4 -t e rt-Butyl-1,3-dihydroimidazol-2-ones and 1,3-dihydroimidazol-2-thiones were synthesized from 1-amino-3,3-dimethylbutanone and subjected to alkylation reactions. The latter compounds were S-alkylated with iodoacetamide under alkaline conditions. The N 1 ,N 3 -unsubstituted derivative was iodinated and subsequently alkylated with alkylation reagents which previously have been used for the synthesis of anti-HIV active imidazoles. Unfortunately, the present products were devoid of activity against HIV.J. Heterocyclic Chem., 40, 593(2003).1,3-Dihydroimidazol-2-ones are used as cardiotonic agents [1-4] and 1-substituted 1,3-dihydroimidazole-2-thione derivatives are used for the treatment of thyroid disorder [5], arthritis [6,7] and cardiovascular disorders [8,9]. 1-Substituted 1H-imidazole derivatives are used as H I V-1 reverse transcriptase inhibitors [10,11]. In addition, anti-inflammatory activities [12] and, more recently, antioxidant properties [13] have been reported as well. In the present report, we are exploring the chemistry of t e rtbutyl substituted imidazoles which could be possible intermediates for the synthesis of imidazole derivatives with potential activity against HIV. We found t e rt -b u t y l derivatives interesting because an ethyl or an isopropyl group seems to be a prerequisite for activity against HIV of both AG1549 (5-(3,5-dichlorophenyl)thio-4-isop r o p y l -1 -( 4 -p y r i d y l ) m e t h y l -1H-i m i d a z o l -2 -y l m e t h y l carbamate) [11 ] and in SJ-3366 (1-(3-cyclopenten-1-yl)-m e t h y l -6 -( 3 , 5 -d i m e t h y l b e n z o y l ) -5 -e t h y l -2 , 4 -p y r i m i d i n edione) [14].α-Aminoketone hydrochlorides were heated with potassium cyanate to give 4-alkyl-1,3-dihydroimidazol-2-ones 1a,b as previously described by Lawson (methyl, ethyl, and cyclohexyl, respectively). Compound 4 a has previously been prepared by Doney and Altland [17] by the same synthetic procedure. The potassium salt of compounds 4a-c were treated with 2-iodoacetamide to afford 2-(1-alkyl-5-tert-butyl-1H-imidazol-2-ylsulfanyl)acetamides 5a-c (Scheme 1). This is an effective way to prepare N 1 ,S-dialkylated-1H-dihydroimidazol-2-thiones 5 a -c which have a substituent in the 2-position with some resemblance to the one in AG1549.2-[(4-tert-Butyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl)thio]acetamide 6 was synthesized by reaction of the potassium salt of the commercial available 4-t e rt-b u t y l -1 , 3 -d i h y d r o i m i d a z o l e -2 -thione 1c with 2-iodoacetamide in methanol. Compound 6 was coupled with dimethylsulfamoyl chloride to get 2-[(4-t e rt-b u t y l -1 -d i m e t h y l s u l f a m o y l -1 H -i m i d a z o l -2 -yl)thio]acetamide 7. It was attempted to introduce a cyclohexylthio substituent to the 5-position of 7 by lithiation with n-butyl lithium at -78° followed by addition of cyclohexyl disulfide. However, the product was elucidated to be