Synthesis of [quinoline‐3‐14C]‐SSR97193 (ferroquine) from [2‐14C]‐malonic acid

The antimalarial quinoline‐3‐¹⁴C]‐SSR97193 (ferroquine) ( 8 ), an analogue of chloroquine (CQ) ( 1 ), was synthesized from 2‐¹⁴C]‐malonic acid with an overall radiochemical yield of 15%. The synthetic route via ¹⁴C]‐Meldrum's acid ( 9 ) was designed to minimize the intermediacy of radiolabelled volatiles. This synthesis involves a four‐step route to labelled 4,7‐dichloroquinoline, which is the key intermediate for the synthesis of many analogues of CQ. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.