Copper-catalyzed three-component synthesis of 5-acetamidoimidazoles from carbodiimides, acyl chlorides and isocyanides

Only very limited methods are available for the synthesis of 5-amino imidazoles. We report in this paper that three-component reaction of acyl chlorides, carbodiimides and α-isocyanoacetates or TosMIC took place smoothly in the presence of Et3N (2.5 equiv.) and a catalytic amount of copper iodide (0.2 equiv.) to afford 1,4-disubstituted 5-acetamidoimidazoles in good yields.