To a solution of 5-methyl-4-phenyl-N-propyl-1,3-oxazole-2-amine (407 mg, 1.88 mmol) in N,N-dimethylformamide (10 mL) was added sodium hydride (60% in oil, 82 mg, 2.04 mmol) at room temperature and the mixture was stirred for 30 min. Methyl 3-[4-[[4-(chloromethyl)benzyl]oxy]phenyl]propanoate (500 mg, 1.57 mmol) was added to the reaction mixture and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for 4 hr. The reaction mixture was poured into water and extracted with ethyl acetate. The organic layer was washed with saturated brine and dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate. The solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure. The residue was purified by silica gel column chromatography to give the title compound (251 mg, yield 32%) as a pale-yellow oil.
