An efficient synthesis of (−)-3-deazaaristeromycin

The coupling reaction of 4-chloro-1H-imidazo[4,5-c]pyridine (6-chloro-3-deazapurine) and (3aS,4S,6R,6aR)-tetrahydro-2,2-dimethyl-6-vinyl-3aH-cyclopenta-[d][1,3]dioxo-4-ol under Mitsunobu reaction conditions provides, after three subsequent straightforward reactions, ready access to the highly biologically active (−)-3-deazaaristeromycin. The versatility of this procedure opens access to a diverse pool of 3-deazapurine carbocyclic nucleosides.