| Abstract: | A practical method for the preparation of 2-chloro-4,6-di(heteroaryl)pyrimidines and their 5-methyl homologues from readily available 2-chloropyrimidine and 2-chloro-5-methylpyrimidine, respectively, is described. The method is based on the addition reactions of heteroaryllithium reagents with chloropyrimidines followed by dehydrogenation of the resultant substituted dihydropyrimidines. The use of 2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyano-1,4-benzoquinone as the dehydrogenation agent gives the best results. Side reactions in the addition step are discussed. |
