A mixture of 3-[4-(benzyloxy)phenyl]-6-chloro-1-ethyl-1,3-dihydro-2H-imidazo[4,5-b]pyridin-2-one (190 mg), Pd2 dba3 (23 mg), 2-di-tert-butylphosphino-3,4,5,6-tetramethyl-2′,4′,6′-triisopropyl-1,1′-biphenyl (48 mg) and KOH (145 mg) in dioxane (3 ml) and water (3 mL) was stirred at 100° C. under Ar atmosphere for 6 h. The mixture was cooled to room temperature, and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (50 mg) and iodomethane (0.034 mL) were added. After stirring at 100° C. for 2 h, the mixture was cooled to room temperature. Iodomethane (0.034 mL) was added to the mixture. After stirring at room temperature, the mixture was poured into water, and the mixture was extracted with AcOEt. The organic layer was dried over Na2SO4, filtered and concentrated in vacuo. The residue was purified by column chromatography (silica gel, eluted with 5%-40% AcOEt in hexane) to give 3-[4-(benzyloxy)phenyl]-1-ethyl-6-methoxy-1,3-dihydro-2H-imidazo[4,5-b]pyridin-2-one (125 mg) as a dark yellow oil.
