Divergent synthesis of bis(indolyl)methanes via FeIII-catalysed regioselective dehydrogenative coupling reactions: a biomimetic approach to 6,6'-bis-(debromo)-gelliusine F.

The divergent dehydrogenative coupling reactions of tryptamines with the catalysis of nontoxic FeIII salts in the presence of DDQ as the co-oxidant have been developed. Remarkably, the transformations feature a rapid and regioselective assembly of diverse 2,8'- and N1,8'-bis(indolyl) methane derivatives from readily-available starting materials by simply changing the FeIII salt and reaction temperature. Besides, the fast reaction rate, mild reaction conditions, low catalyst cost and easy operations make this methodology quite useful. The synthetic utility was further demonstrated in the biomimetic synthesis of 6,6'-bis-(debromo)-gelliusine F.

Development of Strigolactones as Novel Autophagy/Mitophagy Inhibitors against Colorectal Cancer Cells by Blocking the Autophagosome-Lysosome Fusion.

Inhibition of autophagy has been widely viewed as a promising strategy for anticancer therapy. However, few effective and specific autophagy inhibitors have been reported. Herein, we described the design, synthesis, and biological characteristics of new analogues of strigolactones (SLs), an emerging class of plant hormones, against colorectal cancers. Among them, an enantiopure analogue 6 exerted potent and selective cytotoxicity against colorectal cancer cells, but not normal human colon mucosal epithelial cells, which were further confirmed by the plate colony formation assay. Moreover, it significantly inhibited tumor growth in an HCT116 xenograft mouse model with low toxicity. Mechanistically, it is associated with selective induction of cell apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. Remarkably, 6 acted as a potent autophagy/mitophagy inhibitor by selectively increasing the autophagic flux while blocking the autophagosome-lysosome fusion in HCT116 cells. This study features stereo-defined SLs as novel autophagy inhibitors with high cancer cell specificity, which paves a new path for anticolorectal cancer therapy.

Acid-promoted intra- and intermolecular [2+2] cycloaddition of indoles to aryl alkynes to access cyclobutene-fused indolines.

Herein, we have reported the first example of both intra- and intermolecular [2+2] cycloaddition of the electron-rich indoles and unactivated aryl alkynes promoted by the combination of Fe(NO3)3 and HNO3, which highlights efficient and selective access to several different types of functionalized cyclobutene-fused indolines from readily available starting materials with cheap catalysts and simple operations.