Hydrothermal synthesis of nano-selenium balls as a new catalyst: Synthesis of bis-indole derivatives as anti-diabetic agents with molecular docking study

In the last two decades, selenium has been present in many fields, both industrially and biologically. The nano-selenium balls were prepared using the hydrothermal green method and characterized to ensure their crystallinity by using transmission electron microscopy/selected area electron diffraction (TEM/SAED) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). The prepared nanoparticles were used in the synthesis of aryl methylene bis-indole derivatives 3a-i by one-pot mixing of aromatic aldehydes and two moles of indole under solvent-free conditions at 60-70 °C. The prepared products were implemented as inhibitor ligands in the molecular docking study for α-amylase and α-glucosidase. The theoretical data obtained were compared with acarbose as a reference ligand, which encouraged us to measure the colorimetric in vitro anti-diabetic activity. Some bis-indole derivatives 3e, 3f, 3g, and 3i showed promising values and can be presented in vivo as anti-diabetic agents. KEY WORDS: Nano-selenium balls, Bis-indole derivatives, α-Glucosidase enzyme, Anti-diabetic agents, The energy score, Molecular docking Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2026, 40(1), 23-34. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/bcse.v40i1.3