Ethyl 1H-indole-2-carboxylate

The synthesis and structure of 1H-indole-2-carboxyl­ate is presented.

Our work in the area of synthesis of tris indole compounds as a potential chelator led to the synthesis and crystallization of ethyl 1H-indole-2-carboxyl­ate, C₁₁H₁₁NO₂, an indole that was synthesized by the thionyl chloride reaction of 1H-indole-2-carb­oxy­lic acid, followed by dissolution in ethanol. The mol­ecular packing exhibits a herringbone pattern with the zigzag running along the b-axis direction; the compound crystallizes as a hydrogen-bonded dimer resulting from O⋯H—N hydrogen bonds, between the indole N—H group and the keto oxygen atom, which build centrosymmetric R²₂(10) ring motifs in the crystal.

A general synthesis of tris-indole derivatives as potential iron chelators

The development of a novel route for the synthesis of a new class of compounds is described. The first tripodal, tris-indole amines are prepared by straightforward routes.