Chalcogen–Chalcogen Bonding Catalysis Enables Assembly of Discrete Molecules

Despite the observation of noncovalent
interactions between chalcogen
atoms in X-ray crystal structures, catalysis that harnesses the power
of such chalcogen–chalcogen bonding interactions to produce
advanced molecules remains an unresolved problem. Here, we show that
a class of extraordinary chalcogen-bonding catalysts enables assembly
of discrete small molecules including three β-ketoaldehydes
and one indole, leading to the construction of N-heterocycles
in a highly efficient manner. The strong activation ability of these
rationally designed catalysts provides a general solution to the intrinsic
limitations of chalcogen bonding catalysis.