Iodine catalyzed one-pot synthesis of highly substituted N-methyl pyrroles via [3 + 2] annulation and their in vitro evaluation as antibacterial agents

A new class of highly substituted pyrroles have been synthesized via a simple, fast, and efficient method using environmentally friendly iodine catalyzed [3 + 2] annulation. N-Methyl-N-[(E)- 1-(methylsulfanyl)-2-nitro-1-ethenyl]amine (NMSM) 1 and beta -nitrostyrenes 3 underwent cycloaddition to afford the desired products 4 in excellent yields under solvent and metal free conditions. All the pyrrole derivatives were evaluated for their in vitro anti-bacterial activity. Among the synthesized pyrrole derivatives, 4b, 4c, 4e, 4g, 4i, 4j, 4l, 4m and 4n displayed good inhibitory properties against a panel of Gram positive and negative infectious pathogens.