A mixture of cesium carbonate (0.24 g, 0.72 mmol), (1H-benzo[d]imidazol-2-yl)(4-hydroxyphenyl)methanone (0.17 g, 0.72 mmol), and 5-(2-fluoropyridin-3-yl)azepan-2-one (0.050 g, 0.24 mmol) in NMP (0.25 mL) under argon was heated to 140° C. for 36 h. After cooling to room temperature, the mixture was partitioned between ethyl acetate and water. The layers were separated and the organic layer was washed with water several times, dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate, filtered, and concentrated in vacuo. The resulting oil was purified by reversed phase HPLC, and the resulting oil was dissolved in DCM and washed with saturated aqueous sodium bicarbonate (2×), dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfate, filtered, and concentrated in vacuo to give 4-(2-(4-(1H-benzo[d]imidazole-2-carbonyl)phenoxy)pyridin-3-yl)cycloheptanone. MS (ESI, pos. ion) m/z: 427.1 (M+1). IC50 (uM) +++++.
