Sodium borohydride → (5-((5,5-Dimethyltetrahydrofuran-3-yl)methoxy)-6-(2-fluoro-5-methoxyphenyl)pyridin-3-yl)methanol

A solution of methyl 5-((5,5-dimethyltetrahydrofuran-3-yl)methoxy)-6-(2-fluoro-5-methoxyphenyl)nicotinate (700 mg) in methanol (10 mL) was cooled to 0° C., and sodium tetrahydroborate (342 mg) was slowly added by small portions. The reaction mixture was stirred at 60° C. for 4 hr. The solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure, saturated brine was added to the residue, and the mixture was extracted with ethyl acetate. The extract was dried over anhydrous sodium sulfate, and the solvent was evaporated under reduced pressure to give the title compound (700 mg) as a pale-yellow oil. This compound was used for the next step without further purification.