Imidazodiazepines and processes therefor

Novel immidazobenzodiazepines and their analogs are useful as anticonvulsants, muscle relaxant, anxiolytic and sedative agents. Preferred compounds of this class belong to the imidazo[1,5-a][1,4]diazepine series which may have a very wide variety of organic substituents. An especially preferred genus included with the purview of the invention encompasses a compound of the formula wherein R1 is hydrogen and lower alkyl, preferably methyl; R3 and R5 are hydrogen; R4 is hydrogen, nitro or halogen, most preferably, chlorine, and in a most preferred embodiment when positioned on the fused benzo portion of the imidazobenzodiazepine is in the 8-position thereof; R6 is phenyl or halo, nitro, or lower alkyl-substituted phenyl, preferably, halo, with fluorine being the preferred halogen, the substituted fluoro being positioned in the 2-position of the phenyl moiety; and R2 is hydrogen and lower alkyl.