AUTHOR=Gambaro Stefania , La Manna Pellegrino , De Rosa Margherita , Soriente Annunziata , Talotta Carmen , Gaeta Carmine , Neri Placido 

TITLE=The Hexameric Resorcinarene Capsule as a Brønsted Acid Catalyst for the Synthesis of Bis(heteroaryl)methanes in a Nanoconfined Space

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Chemistry

VOLUME=7

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/chemistry/articles/10.3389/fchem.2019.00687

DOI=10.3389/fchem.2019.00687

ISSN=2296-2646

ABSTRACT=<p>Herein, we show that the hexameric resorcinarene capsule <bold>C</bold> is able to catalyze the formation of bis(heteroaryl)methanes by reaction between pyrroles or indoles and carbonyl compounds (α-ketoesters or aldehydes) in excellent yields and selectivity. Our results suggest that the capsule can play a double catalytic role as a H-bond catalyst, for the initial activation of the carbonyl substrate, and as a Brønsted acid catalyst, for the dehydration of the intermediate alcohol.</p>