3-Amino-4-[N-(4-cyanophenyl)amino]pyridine → 4-(2-Methyl-1H-imidazo[4,5-c]pyridin-1-yl)benzonitrile

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Reaction Steps

A mixture of 3-amino-4-(4'-cyanophenyl)aminopyridine (9.31 g, 44.3 mmol), triethyl-orthoacetate (40 ml) and acetic anhydride (30 ml) was heated at reflux for 2 hours under nitrogen, cooled, then concentrated under reduced pressure. The brown residue was dissolved in 1M hydrochloric acid and washed with ethyl acetate (200 ml). The aqueous layer was rendered basic with saturated aqueous ammonia and extracted with dichloromethane (3×200 ml). The combined extracts were washed with water, dried (MgSO4) and concentrated to give 1-(4-cyanophenyl)-2-methylimidazo[4,5-c]pyridine, 6.5 g, as a brown solid.

Provenance & Evidence