One-pot Synthesis of Benzo[4,5]imidazo[1,2-a]pyridine Derivatives in Aqueous Conditions

One-pot reaction of cyclic 1,3-diketones, dimethylformamide dimethylacetal ( DMFDMA) and 2-(1H-benzo[ d] imidaz-2-yl) acetonitrile was found to be a highly selective process leading to 4-oxo-1,2,3,4-tetrahydrobenzo[ 4,5] imidazo[ 1,2- a] quinolin-6-yl cyanides. Optimized reaction conditions using water as solvent at room temperature or under microwave heating allowed high yields of the target products required no additional purification.