New reaction facilitates drug discovery

Chemists at ETH Zurich have found a facile method that allows a commonly used building block to be directly converted into other types of important compounds. This expands the possibilities of chemical synthesis and facilitates ...

Bioinspired acid-catalyzed C2 prenylation of indole derivatives

Biomimetic catalysis is an emerging concept that emulates key features of enzymatic process. Prenylation is a ubiquitous process found in almost all living organisms. Inspired by the enzymatic mechanism, researchers developed ...

Enantioselective synthesis of indole derivatives

Indoles, and structures derived from them, are a component of many natural substances, such as the amino acid tryptophan. A new catalytic reaction produces cyclopenta[ b ] indoles—frameworks made of three rings that are ...