One Pot Synthesis of Pharmaceutical Intermediate 5-Dimethylaminomethyl-2-Furanmethanol from Bio-Derived Carbohydrates

5-Dimethylaminomethyl-2-Furanmethanol (DMMF) is an essential precursor for the production of ranitidine, a drug for gastropathy. Herein a facile pathway to the value-added pharmaceutical intermediate DMMF from carbohydrates, such as glucose and fructose, was developed for the first time. The reaction was carried out under catalyst-free conditions using N, N-dimethyl formamide (DMF) as the amine donor in formic acid (FA). A plausible reaction mechanism from carbohydrates to DMMF was also proposed.