In addition to its challenging structural features, alstonerine, as a representative member of the macroline family of alkaloids, has been reported to exhibit cytotoxic activity against two human lung cancer cell lines, so it has been the subject of a number of synthetic studies. Several strategies have been devised to access this structural motif including a sequential Pictet-Spengler reaction and Dieckmann condensation, ring-closing metathesis, phosphine-catalyzed [4＋2] annulation/Friedel-Crafts cyclization, aza-Diels-Alder/ intramolecular Heck reaction, Pauson-Khand reaction. In this paper, the synthetic methods are reviewed ac-cording to the key building reactions of the ring structures. Most routes to alstonerine are through complicated steps. Hence, the simple and convenient methods are still needed to further study.

Key words: Alstonerine, synthesis, biomimetic synthesis