All MEPA compounds were synthesized by Knoevenagel condensation of appropriate benzaldehydes with 2-methoxyethyl cyanoacetate, catalyzed by base, piperidine (Scheme 1). The preparation procedure was essentially the same for all the MEPA compounds. In a typical synthesis, equimolar amounts of 2-methoxyethyl cyanoacetate and an appropriate benzaldehyde were mixed in equimolar ratio in a 20 mL vial. A few drops of piperidine were added with stirring. The product of the reaction was isolated by filtration and purified by crystallization from 2-propanol. The condensation reaction proceeded smoothly, yielding products, which were purified by conventional techniques. The compounds were characterized by IR, 1 H and 13 C NMR spectroscopies. No stereochemical analysis of the novel ring-substituted MEPA was performed since no stereoisomers (E or/and Z) of known configuration were available.