To a stirred solution of 2-butyl-1H-thieno-[3,4-d]imidazole (38 mg, 0.211 mmol) in DMF (1.6 mL) at room temperature was added NaH (316 mmol). After 30 minutes, tert-butyl-4'-bromomethylbiphenyl-2-carboxylate (80.5 mg, 0.232 mmol) was added in one portion. The reaction mixture was stirred for 2 hours and brine (5 mL) was added. Extractive workup (EtOAc) and purification by flash chromatography (SiO2, 40% EtOAc/hexane) gave 64 mg (68%) of 4'-[(2-butyl-1H-thieno[3,4-d]imidazol-1-yl)methyl][1,1'-biphenyl]-2-carboxylic acid t-butyl ester as a thick oil: 1H NMR (300 MHz, CDCl3) δ 7.78 (dd, 1H, J=7.5 and 1 Hz), 7.48 (td, 1H J=7.5 and 1 Hz), 7.40 (td, 1H, J=7.5 and 1 Hz) 7.32-7.26 (m, 3H), 7.19 (d, 2H, J=8 Hz), 6.99 (d, 1H, J=2.5 Hz), 6.28 (d, 1H, J=2.5 Hz), 5.17 (s, 2H), 2.78 (t, 2H, J=8 Hz), 1.91-1.81 (m, 2H), 1.54-1.41 (m, 2H), 1.23 (s, 9H), 0.96 (t, 3H, J=7 Hz).
