In an effort to mimic the anthelmintic and insecticidal activties of kainic 1 and domoic 2 acids with compounds of simpler structure and much easier accessibility, the highly functionalised imidazolines 4, 27 and 28 were prepared. This involved a synthesis of suitably protected β- aminoglutamic acid derivatives as key intermediates, which were condensed with orthoesters and deprotected to yield the desired compounds.
