A library of ten 1,3-diyne-linked peptoids has been synthesized through an Ugi four-component reaction (U-4CR) followed by a copper-catalysed alkyne homocoupling (Glaser reaction). The short and chemoselective reaction sequence allows generating diverse (pseudo) dimeric peptoids. A combinatorial version allows the one-pot preparation of, e.g., six-compound-libraries of homo- and heterodimers verified by ESI-MS and HPLC. In a preliminary evaluation, some compounds display moderate activity against the Gram-positive bacterium
A method to convert tertiary N-propargylamides into 1,2,4-trisubstituted imidazoles using ammonium chloride and zinc triflate as the catalyst is reported. The method is convenient, practical and employs conventional heating. It is also applicable to N-propargyl lactams and tends to populate the so-called ‘lead-like’ chemistry space.