An efficient, scalable synthesis of the PDE4 inhibitor, 6-[1-methyl-1-(methylsulfonyl) ethyl]-8- (3-{(E)-2-(3-methyl-1, 2, 4-oxadiazol-5-yl)-2-[4-(methylsulfonyl) phenyl] vinyl} phenyl) quinoline benzenesulfonate (10) is described. The synthesis is highly convergent, generating the penultimate 9 by coupling aldehyde 7 and oxadiazole 8 in a Knoevenagel reaction. The process consists of a total of nine chemical steps, five of which comprise the ...