Process for producing oxiracetam

摘要

A process for producing oxiracetam (4-hydroxy-2-oxo-1-pyrrolidineacetamide) useful as an agent for improving brain metabolism, under mild conditions and in a single process is provided, this process comprises reacting glycinamide with a butyric acid ester expressed by the formula <IMAGE> wherein A represents a halogen atom or an epoxy group, B represents hydroxyl group, but when A is an epoxy group, A and B together form an epoxy group, and R represents an alkyl group.