Multicomponent reactions

In the laboratory of organic synthesis such a three component reaction has been described recently, and the resulting pyrrole compounds have been further transformed to fused pyrroles and fluorescing pyrrolopyrrole compounds. We want to further expand the synthetic possibilities of this reaction by adding a fourth reactive component in situ, making this a four-component reaction with even wider potential. The challenge lays in finding conditions in which the four components react in the right order with each other, combined with an easy separation technique (e.g. crystallisation). The resulting compounds will be submitted to the biological groups of the KU Leuven for several types of biological screening including an SAR study of anti-HIV activity, anticancer studies, and the investigation of their anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory properties.

• Number of places available: 1 or 2 per semester.