[1,2]-Anionic rearrangement of 2-benzyloxypyridine and related pyridyl ethers.

An anionic rearrangement of 2-benzyloxypyridine is described. Pyridine-directed metalation of the benzylic carbon leads to 1,2-migration of pyridine via a postulated associative mechanism (addition/elimination). Several aryl pyridyl carbinols were obtained in high yields. A formal synthesis of carbinoxamine, an antihistamine drug used for the treatment of seasonal allergies and hay fever, emerges from this methodology.