i)—A mixture of (7α,17β)-3-methoxy-7-methylestr-1,3,5(10),14-tetraen-17-ol [Segaloff, et al, Steroids 22, 99 (1973); 86.2 g] and palladium on activated carbon (5%; 34.5 g) in ethanol (578 ml) and dichloromethane (414 ml) was stirred under hydrogen (3 bar) at room temperature for 24 h. The reaction mixture was filtered and the filtrate was concentrated under reduced pressure, to give (7α,14β,17β)-3-methoxy-7-methylestr-1,3,5(10)-trien-17-ol (83.0 g). The product was used in the following step without further purification.
