Synthesis of α,α-dialkyl-α-amino esters by α-alkylation of aldimines prepared from a novel pyridoxalmodelcompound was studied. The α-alkylation of the aldimines having an ethoxy-ethoxy group at C-3 proceeded most rapidly when LiOH was employed as a base and gave α,α-dialkyl-α-amino esters after acidic hydrolysis. The chelated structure composed of the aldimine and Li+ was also revealed by 1H-NMR analysis
α-Alkyl-α-amino esters were prepared by the alkylation of α-imino esters obtained from α-amino acids and a novel PLP modelcompound possessing a Li+ ionophore character.