Iodine-Catalyzed Cross Dehydrogenative Coupling Reaction: A Regioselective Sulfenylation of Imidazoheterocycles Using Dimethyl Sulfoxide as an Oxidant.

A regioselective formation of C-S bonds has been achieved using a cross dehydrogenative coupling (CDC) protocol using iodine as a catalyst and dimethyl sulfoxide as an oxidant under green chemistry conditions. This strategy employs the reaction of easily available heterocyclic thiols or thiones with imidazoheterocycles. This protocol provides an efficient, mild, and inexpensive method for sulfenylation of imidazoheterocycles with a diverse range of heterocyclic thiols and heterocyclic thiones.