Straightforward microwave-assisted synthesis of organochalcogen amines by reductive amination

Organoselenium and organotellurium amines have been shown to present a broad range of interesting properties for both synthetic and biological applications. Despite the current interest in this class of compounds, only few methods to access organochalcogen amines are described in literature, most which involve restrictive conditions associated with displacement reaction, metal-assisted reactions or enzymatic approach. In general, these methods produce organochalcogen amines in poor yields, by long reactions that require protective groups. In this regard, a set of aryl chalcogen (Se, Te) amines were prepared by reductive amination employing a microwave-assisted one-pot protocol. This approach offered a convenient and versatile method to synthesize primary and secondary organochalcogen amines with significantly short time reactions (5–10 min) and satisfactory yields (40–89%).