Facile iodine-promoted synthesis of bis(1-imidazo[1,5- a ]pyridyl)arylmethanes and exploration of applications.

A practical strategy for the iodine-promoted synthesis of bis(1-imidazo[1,5- a ]pyridyl)arylmethane and its derivatives has been developed. These compounds exhibit high cytotoxicity toward various cancer cell lines and moreover they are promising ligands for the Cu-catalysed synthesis of quinolines.