Mantis-shaped bifunctional tridentate HoMPy-PI-NO ligands capable of cooperatively activating nucleophiles and electrophiles: empowering asymmetric addition reactions

Herein, we report a modular assembly strategy that enables a concise two-step synthesis of highly tunable mantis-shaped <i>C</i>₁-symmetric bifunctional chiral tridentate pyridine-type <i>N</i>-oxide ligands, designated "HoMPy-PI-NO ligands". The newly developed ligands could cooperatively activate nucleophiles and electrophiles, exhibiting superior performance in two asymmetric addition reactions to afford functionalized chiral indole derivatives (up to 90% yield, up to 99% ee).