A very simple and efficient method is described for protection of alcohols and nucleosides with trityl(triphenylmethyl), mono and dimethoxytrityl chlorides in the presence of triethylamine under microwave irradiation. High selectivity was observed for tritylation of 5'-OH function of nucleosides.

KEY WORDS: Protection, Trityl chlorides, Microwave irradiation, Nucleosides, Selectivity