To a suspension of 3′-fluoro-4′-[(2-methyl-6-oxo-4-propyl-1,6-dihydropyrimidin-5-yl)methyl]biphenyl-2-carbonitrile (2.0 g), (4-methoxyphenyl)boronic acid (2.0 g), triethylamine (4.0 mL), pyridine (2.0 mL) and molecular sieves 4 A (4.0 g) in methylene chloride (30 mL) was added copper(II) acetate (1.0 g), and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 days. The reaction mixture was diluted with ethyl acetate, the insoluble material was filtered off through celite, and the filtrate was concentrated. The residue was purified by silica gel column chromatography to give the title compound as a pale-yellow amorphous solid (2.35 g, 91%).
