Selective oxidation of carbohydrates

A process for the regioselective oxidation of a single secondary hydroxy function of a carbohydrate substrate comprising two or more secondary hydroxy functions, wherein the carbohydrate substrate is a neamine-based aminoglycoside antibiotic selected from the group consisting of neomycin, neamin, amikacin, paromomycin, ribostamycin, kanamycin, framycetin, isepamicin, and derivatives thereof, and wherein the single secondary hydroxyl function is the C3 hydroxyl of ring I of the neamine-backbone, comprising contacting the carbohydrate substrate in a solvent in the presence of a transition metal catalyst complex with an oxidizing agent to yield a mono-oxidized carbohydrate, and wherein the catalyst complex comprises at least one transition metal atom selected from palladium, ruthenium, copper, manganese and iron and one or more ligands comprising at least one nitrogen atom.