Abstract
A short synthesis of cytotoxic 4‐arylcoumarins via condensation of phenols with cinnamic acids in the presence of CF3COOH, followed by dehydrogenation with DDQ, is described.
Acknowledgments
We are indebted to Ministero dell'Università e Ricerca (MIUR) (Cofin 2003 and Fondo Incentivazione Ricerca di Base (FIRB) 2001 projects) for financial support.