Bis(3-indolyl)methanes (BIM) are highly valuable and appear in the core structure of many natural products and pharmacologically active compounds (anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antiobesity, antimetastatic, antimicrobial, etc.). Herein, we have disclosed an air stable and highly efficient CuFe2O4 heterogeneous catalyst for alkylation of indoles with alcohols to give bis(3-indolyl)methanes in very good yields. The CuFe2O4 catalyst has been found to be magnetically recycled at least five times without losing significant catalytic activity.
Efficient synthesis of bis(indolyl)methanes by the alkylation of indoles with alcohols using heterogeneous CuFe2O4 catalyst