9-nitro camptothecin (3.4 g) was dissolved in distilled DMF (100 ml). Palladium acetate (0.08 g), formic acid (0.95 ml), and triethylamine (3.5 ml) were added. The solution was heated to 80° C., and the heating was continued for 1 hour. DMF (200 ml) and charcoal were added to the reaction mixture, and the stirring was continued for 0.5 hours at 80° C. The mixture was filtered hot through a celite filter aid, and the filtrate was concentrated to small volume. The precipitated orange solid was collected by filtration to yield 2.5 g of 9-amino camptothecin.
