Development of the synthetic route to 5-hydroxymethyl tolterodine, a key synthetic intermediate of Toviaz, via an organic solvent-free Rh-catalyzed asymmetric 1,4-addition

Abstract

A synthetic route to Toviaz (fesoterodine fumarate) and its key intermediate 5-hydroxymethyl tolterodine (5-HMT) was markedly improved by employing an organic solvent-free rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric 1,4-addition. Under these conditions, the reactivity depended strongly on the substrates’ melting points, even though the reaction temperature was more than 20 °C below them.

Graphical abstract: Development of the synthetic route to 5-hydroxymethyl tolterodine, a key synthetic intermediate of Toviaz, via an organic solvent-free Rh-catalyzed asymmetric 1,4-addition

Supplementary files

Transparent peer review

To support increased transparency, we offer authors the option to publish the peer review history alongside their article.

View this article’s peer review history

Article information

Article type
Communication
Submitted
02 Dec 2025
Accepted
07 Feb 2026
First published
12 Feb 2026

Org. Biomol. Chem., 2026, Advance Article

Development of the synthetic route to 5-hydroxymethyl tolterodine, a key synthetic intermediate of Toviaz, via an organic solvent-free Rh-catalyzed asymmetric 1,4-addition

A. Hirasawa, H. Shibata, G. Okamoto, T. Takemoto, T. Katayama, T. Oshiki and T. Korenaga, Org. Biomol. Chem., 2026, Advance Article , DOI: 10.1039/D5OB01887K

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements