Abstract
Ethyl 1-methyl-4-(β-D-ribofuranosylamino)imidazole-5-carboxylate 8 was synthesized from ethyl 5-amino-1-(5-O-trityl-2,3-O-isopropylidene-β-D-ribofuranosyl)imidazole-4-carboxylate 4 by quaternization and subsequent base-catalysed ring-opening and closure.