Electrochemical Selenation/Cyclization of Quinones: A Rapid, Green and Efficient Access to Functionalized Trypanocidal and Antitumor Compounds

Electrochemical selenation in undivided electrochemical cells allows the preparation of selenium-containing naphthoquinones. The rapid, green and efficient protocol avoids chemical oxidants and enables the synthesis of target molecules in a fast and reliable way. This strategy provides and efficient and general method for the synthesis of quinoidal compounds with activity against five cancer cell lines and Trypanosoma cruzi, the parasite that causes Chagas disease.