Synthesis of 4-[4-(3-pyridinyl)imidazol-1-yl]-1-butylamine.

4-[4-(3-pyridinyl)imidazol-1-yl]-1-butylamine, the side chain of telithromycin, is used for the synthesis of novel ketolide antibiotics. The key step in synthesising 4-[4-(3-pyridinyl)imidazol-1-yl]-1-butylamine involves the HBr-induced DMSO oxidation of 3-acetylpyridine to 3-pyridylglyoxal, which was not isolated but transformed directly into 4-(3-pyridyl)imidazole by a Debus reaction with ammonia and formaldehyde. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]