The triazole ring in 1,2,3-triazolo[l,5-a] -pyridinesand -quinolines, and in 1,2,3-triazoIo[5,1 -a3 isoquinolines can be opened with loss of nitrogen. The reagents described are bromine, aqueous sulphuric acid, glacial acetic acid, and selenium dioxide; the products from the triazolopyridines are dibromomethyl, hydroxymethyl, acetoxymethyl, and acyl derivatives of pyridine. The generality of the reactions is discussed. The first reported reaction in which the six-membered ring of a 1,2,3-triazolo[l,5-a]pyridine is opened, by hydride reduction, gives a triazolyl butadiene.We have reported in previous parts of this series that the triazolopyridine (la), triazoloquinolines (2) and (3), and triazoloisoquinoline (4) undergo directed lithiation which can lead to regiospecific substitution on the six membered rings. When this type of substitution can be combined with a good procedure for opening the triazole ring, with loss of nitrogen, we have syntheses of 2,6-disubstituted p y r i d i n e ~, ' ~ of 2,3disubstituted q u i n o l i n e ~, ' ~~ and of 1,3-disubstituted isoquinolines.' Most of our syntheses have involved the use of bromine for the ring opening, giving for example 2-dibromomethylpyridine (6a) which was easily converted into pyridine-2carbaldehyde,6 but restrictions with this reaction led us to study other ring opening procedures. This study has much widened -2