Lithium borohydride → tert-Butyl 3-(hydroxymethyl)-3-methylazetidine-1-carboxylate

Participants

Reaction Steps

3-Methyl-azetidine-1,3-dicarboxylic acid 1-tert-butyl ester 3-methyl ester (WO2006/73361 A1, 2006) (1.1 g) is dissolved in 20 mL of tetrahydrofurane. Lithiumborohydride (16.8 mL of a 2 M solution in tetrahydrofurane) is added dropwise and the reaction mixture is stirred at room temperature overnight. The reaction mixture is diluted with water, washed with a saturated ammonium chloride water solution and the organic phase is separated, dried over sodium sulfate and concentrated under vacuum. The residue is chromatographed on silica gel (hexane/ethyl acetate 100:0→50:50) to give the title compound. Yield: 970 mg.

Provenance & Evidence