Bovine serum albumin catalyzed one-pot, three-component synthesis of dihydropyrano[2,3-c]pyrazole derivatives in aqueous ethanol

Bovine serum albumin (BSA) catalyzed synthesis of dihydropyrano[2,3-c]pyrazole derivatives via a one pot, three component reaction of an aldehyde/ketone/isatin, malononitrile and 3-methyl-1H-pyrazol-5-(4H)-one in H2O–EtOH (7 : 3) at ambient temperature was developed in this work. The catalyst was found to work efficiently for aldehydes, ketones and isatins to give the corresponding dihydropyrano[2,3-c]pyrazole and spiro[indoline-3,4′-pyrano[2,3-c]pyrazole] derivatives in high yields. BSA showed a broad range of catalytic promiscuity towards various aldehydes, aromatic/aliphatic ketones and substituted isatins. The use of an environmentally benign protocol, reusability of the catalyst, avoidance of hazardous solvents, excellent yields, easy work up and no byproduct formation make BSA an attractive candidate for further applications as a biocatalyst.