An overview of the fundamental studies on a new method of nicotinic acid synthesis by the gas phase catalytic oxidation of beta-picoline by oxygen is presented. The nature of active component in vanadia catalysts and reactivity of vanadium species are considered. Common features and differences in the mechanistic steps of nicotinic acid formation on various catalysts investigated by in situ FTIR spectroscopy are discussed. Effects of the reaction mixture components on the yield of nicotinic acid are considered in detail. Attention is paid to the kinetic equations of beta-picoline oxidation on vanadia-titania catalysts.