The product of Example 3 was hydrolyzed by treating 0.5 g of the 21-acetoxy derivative in 8 ml methylene chloride with 10 ml methanol and 4 ml 0.2M aqueous potassium carbonate at room temperature under nitrogen for 30 minutes. The hydrolyzed product was extracted with methylene chloride, washed with water, dried and evaporated. A sample obtained by preparative high performance liquid chromatography showed M+ =404 daltons. An identical product was obtained by a different synthetic route involving alkaline hydrolysis of 21-acetoxy-4,6-pregnadiene-3,20-dione to the C-21-alcohol, followed by reaction with ethanethiolic acid.
