Total Synthesis of Teixobactin

The first total synthesis of the cyclic depsipeptide natural product teixobactin is described. Synthesis was achieved by solid-phase peptide synthesis, incorporating the unusual l-allo-enduracididine as a suitably protected synthetic cassette and employing a key on-resin esterification and solution-phase macrolactamization. The synthetic natural product was shown to possess potent antibacterial activity against a range of Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria, including a virulent strain of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).