Treatment of L-biopterin (I) with N,N-dimethyformamide dimethyl- (or diethyl)acetal and then with acetic anhydride in pyridine gave 1',2'-di-O-acetyl-N'-(N,N-dimethylaminomethylene)-L-biopterin (4), which was converted by the Mitsunobu reaction into 3-methyl (5) and 3-p-nitrophenetyl derivatives (7). The protective groups on the side chain diols and N2 of these compounds were selectively cleaved to furnish products 6, 8-10, among which 9 is naturally occurring 3-methyl-L-biopterin and 8 is N',N(3)-protected biopterin, a versatile intermediate for various reactions on the side-chain diol. In contrast, the same Mitsunobu reactions of tri-N2:I',2'-0-acetyl-L-biopterin (II) afforded 04-methyl (12) and 04-NPE derivatives (13), both of which yielded 0 4-methyl-L-biopterin (14) and subsequently led to 4-amino-L-biopterin (18).
