5-Bromoindole: Past, Present, and the Road Ahead
Historical Development
The roots of 5-Bromoindole trace back to a world determined to explore the building blocks of organic chemistry. By the 1960s, researchers looked for ways to modify indole rings to push boundaries in both pharmaceuticals and materials. The idea of dropping a bromine atom onto the fifth position of indole wasn’t just a stroke of chemical curiosity—it promised targeted reactivity and new synthetic possibilities. Academic groups in Europe and the United States gave early attention to halogenated indoles because of their biological promise, and as the decades slipped by, the synthetic routes refined. Interest only picked up as high-throughput screening and molecular modeling took off, and 5-Bromoindole soon found its place as a useful intermediate no research chemist wanted to do without.
Product Overview
5-Bromoindole stands out because it’s a simple yet flexible starting material. It shows up as a pale beige to off-white crystalline solid, catching the eye in standard chemical supply catalogs. What fuels its rising popularity is how the bromine at the 5-position opens the door for a string of transformations. Chemical suppliers offer it in a range of package sizes for academics, startups, and big pharmaceutical companies. It’s not just a laboratory oddity—you’ll spot it on the shelf in places from medicinal chemistry labs to agrochemical research groups hustling to create new compounds.
Physical & Chemical Properties
With a molecular formula of C8H6BrN and a molar mass near 196.05 g/mol, 5-Bromoindole doesn’t try to hide its reactivity. It melts at around 54-59°C and falls right into line with the behavior of other indole derivatives. In terms of appearance, this compound feels like a quiet workhorse—no sugar-coating, no striking odor, just a solid with decent solubility in organic solvents like ethanol, dichloromethane, and acetonitrile. It stands up well to room temperatures, but dampness can push it into decomposition over the long haul, so dry storage matters. A stable compound in most lab setups, it shows clear UV absorption around 220–280 nm, which helps chemists monitor reactions without fuss.
Technical Specifications & Labeling
Good quality matters in chemical work, so you want a 5-Bromoindole sample with purity of at least 98%—though some suppliers offer higher grades to satisfy analytical requirements. Labels typically show standard identifiers: CAS Number 516-11-6, chemical structure, batch number, date of manufacture, and recommended storage conditions. Practical suppliers add hazard symbols and phrase codes in order to keep lab safety front and center. Each lot should carry a certificate of analysis, which lets chemists confirm that their 5-Bromoindole meets the grade for whatever experiments lie ahead.
Preparation Method
Making 5-Bromoindole isn’t as mysterious as some specialty chemicals. A routine method involves electrophilic bromination of indole using molecular bromine or N-bromosuccinimide (NBS), usually under controlled temperatures and in solvents like acetic acid or DMF. Tuning the conditions allows selective bromination at the 5-position—an important detail for those wanting to avoid multiple brominated by-products. Pure product falls out after work-up, often managed with basic aqueous washes and crystallization. Advances in greener chemistry keep nudging this process forward, sometimes swapping in milder conditions or alternative solvents to cut waste and improve worker safety.
Chemical Reactions & Modifications
The bromine atom on 5-Bromoindole isn’t just a placeholder—it acts as a handle for bigger and bolder transformations. This compound invites Suzuki–Miyaura, Heck, Buchwald–Hartwig, and Sonogashira couplings. Whether chemists chase down biaryls, indole-derivatives, or even build-in fluorophores, 5-Bromoindole delivers. It doesn’t stop at cross-couplings, either; nucleophilic substitutions and metal-catalyzed aminations make this derivative a popular springboard. On a practical level, controlling reaction temperatures and base strengths helps minimize unwanted side-reactions—a lesson any synthetic chemist learns quickly.
Synonyms & Product Names
5-Bromoindole hides behind a few different names, so scouring databases can mean looking up variations. Common synonyms include 5-Bromo-1H-indole, 5-bromoindol, and Indole, 5-bromo-. Chemical catalogs sometimes just use the CAS Number 516-11-6 as shorthand. No matter the alias, the structure of this compound never changes. Recognizing alternative names helps avoid mix-ups and keeps supply chain orders on track—always a challenge in multi-lingual, fast-moving lab environments.
Safety & Operational Standards
Any lab worker must respect 5-Bromoindole’s hazard profile. It shows low to moderate toxicity but can irritate the skin, eyes, and respiratory tract. Working with gloves, goggles, and a fume hood becomes a habit as soon as a solid hits the weighing paper. Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) lay out first-aid steps and storage notes: cool, dry conditions and no strong oxidizers nearby. Regulatory limits rarely come into play for research-scale amounts, but careful record-keeping and compliant labeling avoid headaches with local authorities. Disposal follows standard practices for halogenated organics, so used solvents and residues don’t end up harming the environment.
Application Area
The strongest demand for 5-Bromoindole lives in medicinal chemistry labs. Its indole core shows real promise as a scaffold in drug design, and modifications at the 5-position often boost biological activity or change pharmacokinetics. Chemists lean on this compound during the hunt for kinase inhibitors, anti-cancer agents, antibiotics, and anti-inflammatory molecules. Outside pharma, agrochemical innovators explore this building block while brewing up new herbicides and fungicides. Academic researchers rely on its straightforward reactivity to test synthetic ideas and teach undergraduates the basics of substitution and coupling chemistry. Material scientists also layer in this indole variant during work on functional dyes and OLED component synthesis, especially when fine-tuning electronic properties takes priority.
Research & Development
R&D teams treat 5-Bromoindole as more than an intermediate—it often becomes a foundation for iterative compound libraries. Structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies add a substitution here, a coupling there, always measuring new analogs for biological function. In my own lab experience, weeks of work ride on the consistent supply and quality of this single compound. Method development groups still run trials aimed at greener bromination, cutting cost and energy use. Formulation scientists check how brominated indoles behave under real-world conditions, from aqueous suspensions to tablet pressing. Innovations in purification and isolation let chemists shave days off project timelines, and as new instrumentation arrives, quick quantitation via HPLC or NMR keeps research humming along.
Toxicity Research
Toxicologists work from the ground up to build a clearer profile of 5-Bromoindole’s safety. Cell studies and animal testing provide data on acute and chronic exposure, mostly pointing to low risk at the concentrations typically found in lab use. Yet toxic breakdown products, such as brominated phenols or indole fragments, remain a concern for those scaling up reactions. Environmental data stays patchy, so research groups routinely evaluate biodegradability and water solubility before green-lighting waste streams. The balance between utility and safety means documentation matters; chemists refer back to both published literature and vendor-provided toxicity reports as new regulations evolve.
Future Prospects
Looking ahead, interest in 5-Bromoindole won’t wane anytime soon. Medicinal chemists still see fresh possibilities in tweaking indole cores, especially as AI-driven molecule discovery picks up. With more pharma companies focusing on rare diseases and personalized therapies, the need for versatile building blocks like this grows. Improvements in bromination technology might soon offer purer products with fewer steps and less waste. Combination with emerging biocatalysis or flow chemistry tools could further shrink environmental impact and boost output. On the regulatory side, transparency and comprehensive labeling might become even more crucial as chemical tracking requirements evolve. In the bigger picture, the trajectory feels set—5-Bromoindole’s mix of simplicity and reactivity will give it work to do in tomorrow’s innovation-driven labs.
Why 5-Bromoindole Matters
Step into any research lab focused on drug design, and 5-Bromoindole will show up on the shelf. You wouldn't find it at the corner pharmacy, but its impact runs deep in the journey from chemistry to medicine. The story of this compound, a bromine-tagged indole derivative, connects threads from organic chemistry textbooks to real-world applications in cancer therapy, neuroscience, and agriculture.
Roots in Drug Discovery
Indole structures play a huge part in biology because they look similar to tryptophan, an amino acid our bodies rely on. By plugging a bromine atom into the fifth position of the indole core, scientists transformed an ordinary molecule into a versatile tool. Medicinal chemists use 5-Bromoindole as a building block. Through clever reactions, they piece together new drug candidates. For example, some studies out of the National Institutes of Health highlight how this compound helps create kinase inhibitors, which play a role in cancer research. I remember my own time in a university research lab, seeing graduate students excitedly sketching new molecules on whiteboards, hoping to find the next step in fighting disease, all thanks to simple indole derivatives like this one.
Chasing New Antidepressants and Anti-Inflammatory Drugs
Mental health research keeps shining light on neurotransmitters like serotonin. Serotonin’s foundation? The indole ring. Tweaking indole with bromine leads to molecules that can target specific brain receptors. Scientists see 5-Bromoindole as a chance to invent selective drugs that regulate mood or pain without the baggage of old medicines. Journals like Current Medicinal Chemistry track progress on this front, showing that synthetic tweaks like bromination often improve how a drug behaves inside the body, from stability to selectivity.
Beyond Medicine: Crops, Colors, and Chemical Tools
The story doesn’t end in hospitals. Crop scientists eye 5-Bromoindole as a starting material for making plant growth regulators and pest management tools. Some companies have used indole-based molecules for dyes and specialty chemicals. In chemistry classrooms, students learn to use this compound for classic reactions like Suzuki couplings and metal-catalyzed cross-couplings. These reactions lay out the blueprint for new materials or pharmaceuticals. During my graduate studies, setting up these reactions was a rite of passage, and 5-Bromoindole’s reactivity made it a recurring favorite.
Safety, Access, and Responsible Use
No chemical is without risk. Laboratories follow safety protocols: fume hoods, gloves, and eye protection stay mandatory. While 5-Bromoindole isn’t notorious for wild toxicity, safe handling protects researchers and the environment. Chemical supply companies regulate its sale, verifying buyers’ intentions and credentials. This keeps misuse to a minimum and ensures only professionals work with it.
Path Forward: Building Solutions with 5-Bromoindole
The bigger challenge? Making science accessible and affordable. Starter materials like 5-Bromoindole cost money. Pricing can put emerging labs in lower-income countries at a disadvantage. Groups like the Open Source Malaria project share data openly, letting students and researchers worldwide collaborate. By pooling knowledge and resources, the scientific community can keep harnessing small building blocks like 5-Bromoindole to tackle big problems. That optimism—little molecules making a big difference—still grabs me, years after my own days in the lab.
Chemical Formula and Core Properties
5-Bromoindole sports the simple chemical formula C8H6BrN. That single bromine atom, attached to the fifth carbon on the indole ring, changes the game for this molecule. Take the familiar indole skeleton—think about the characteristic double-ring structure found in many natural products and neurotransmitters. Swap hydrogen for bromine at the fifth spot, and 5-bromoindole comes to life.
Sometimes, folks see this compound as just another lab reagent. In my academic days, this molecule popped up more than a few times. That bromine tag lets chemists insert various other chemical groups in a predictable, controllable way. Scientists lean on 5-bromoindole not because it’s flashy, but because it opens doors to bigger discoveries.
Why This Compound Attracts Interest
5-Bromoindole grabs attention in the world of medicinal chemistry. Turn back the pages of drug development history, and you’ll find indole derivatives at the root of serotonin and tryptophan, both deeply connected to brain chemistry. Substitution at the fifth position, like with bromine here, tweaks biological activity. Research papers often highlight its role in finding new treatments, especially in cancer and anti-inflammatory projects.
Researchers prize this molecule’s structure for building libraries of potential drug candidates. That bromine gives a solid anchor point for further modifications. Medicinal chemists focus on small changes that lead to big differences in how a compound interacts with enzymes or receptors. For colleges and pharma labs, access to reliable forms of 5-bromoindole means more shots at producing important new medicines.
Challenges in Sourcing and Handling
Quality varies by supplier. Labs need sources with proven purity and batch consistency. I once ordered a batch that turned out to degrade in ambient light—nothing halts an experiment faster. Responsible labs secure storage measures and clear labeling, since halogenated indoles can get dodgy when handled poorly. Labs with solid standard operating procedures encounter fewer mishaps and generate trustworthy results.
There’s also an environmental angle. Brominated compounds deserve respect in use and in waste streams. Hazardous waste management rules exist for a reason, and I’ve seen institutions penalized for improper disposal. Simple steps like using properly labeled waste containers and following disposal protocols cut down environmental risks.
Practical Solutions for Research and Safety
Educational programs and lab manuals need to cover both why 5-bromoindole matters and how to respect its hazards. Too many new researchers treat every compound the same. If academic settings emphasize best practices early, mistakes drop fast. Industry outfits already see value in reinforcing this. Better documentation at the purchase and disposal stages builds a culture of responsibility.
For supply chain issues, building relationships with reputable vendors pays off. Checking third-party certificates and batch analysis reports, even for simple reagents, prevents wasted time and money. Scientists, technicians, and students need fast access to safety data and real, experience-based advice from peers—not just boilerplate warnings.
Looking Forward
5-Bromoindole might seem obscure outside chemistry and pharmaceuticals, but the groundwork it sets supports important progress. By treating each chemical with due diligence and sharing practices across institutions, researchers boost both innovation and safety. My own experience tells me respect for the small details—where a single bromine lands, how a vial is stored—makes all the difference in research outcomes and community health.
Knowing What You’re Dealing With
Chemicals like 5-Bromoindole show up in countless labs, usually as intermediates in pharmaceutical research. They can do a lot of good, but these substances don’t treat mistakes kindly. Over a decade splitting my workdays between academic and industrial labs, I picked up plenty of lessons about what tends to go wrong—often from seeing others cut corners.
Handling: More Than Just Gloves
The basics are obvious: lab coat, splash-proof goggles, and gloves that stand up to organics. But protection shouldn’t stop there. People sometimes swap out nitrile for latex, thinking they’re all the same. Nitrile resists chemicals like 5-Bromoindole far better, keeping your skin safe from unexpected splashes.Never trust a bottle you didn’t label yourself, and never assume the person before you poured carefully. I’ve watched folks set containers near bench edges or leave stoppers loose—one bump and you’ve got a spill. Secure containers, seal everything tight, and—just as important—clean up immediately after using the compound, even if you’re “just running out for a minute.”
Air Quality and Inhalation Hazards
A lot of people still underestimate fume hoods. Vapors from indoles linger, and even if 5-Bromoindole isn’t the most volatile compound, breathing in dust or residue for a whole afternoon can irritate airways or worse. I’ve seen colleagues rush through weighing powder on an open bench and end up coughing for hours. Weigh out all powders under a well-functioning hood. Double-check the airflow each day by holding a piece of tissue near the sash before setting up. No one wants to find out the fan failed after a headache sets in.
Skin Contact and Hygiene
Soap and water remain the top way to get rid of accidental residues. Splashing your hands around with gloves still on, then touching doorknobs or notebooks, turns those into contamination sources. One slip, and now everything you handle could spread the compound further—someone else pays the price for a shortcut you took. Always take off gloves before grabbing pens or phones, and always change them if they get torn or splattered.
Fire Risks and Storage
5-Bromoindole burns more easily than some folks realize. Store the bottle away from heat and open flames. If your lab allows hot plates near reagent cabinets, you’ve got a recipe for trouble. Refrigerators not only protect against accidental heating but also keep degradation to a minimum—worth the investment for everyone’s safety.
Spill Response: No Panic Allowed
I’ve watched new team members freeze after a small spill. Preparation makes a huge difference. Keep a spill kit on hand with absorbents that don’t break down with organic powders. Avoid sweeping up the powder dry—it just sets more particles into the air. Open a fresh absorbent pad, wet it slightly, and carefully wipe up. Dispose of all waste properly—don’t toss it in regular trash.
Turning Safety Into Habit
Learning safety isn’t about memorizing rules—it’s about building habits. Staying consistent means you keep yourself and colleagues out of trouble, improve results, and keep accidents from halting work. Good ventilation, reliable protective gear, careful handling, and clean habits create an environment where things rarely go wrong—not by chance, but by design.
Why Attention to Storage Makes Sense
5-Bromoindole looks like just another white powder on a lab shelf, but a lapse in storing it could mean the difference between a successful experiment and a hazardous mess. It’s tempting to toss it next to the other reagents and move on, but this material reacts with moisture and light. I learned early in my research days that a compromised reagent leads to unpredictable results, wasted samples, and unnecessary risks.
Keep It Cool, Keep It Dry
Let’s talk temperature. Chemical stability gets shaky above room temperature. I’ve pulled out bottles stored in a sunlit corner and found caking, discoloration, sometimes even pressure buildup. Keeping 5-Bromoindole in a refrigerator—ideally between 2–8°C—protects it from that kind of breakdown. You don’t need a fancy freezer, but a consistent, cool environment matters. At my last job, a shared chemical fridge with clear logbooks prevented many headaches.
Moisture destroys indole derivatives, including this one. In humid climates, powders can clump or even dissolve. Always seal the container tightly. I recommend storing the jar in a desiccator with silica gel or another drying agent. This double barrier against water vapor saved my team from tossing out expensive material more than once.
Shielding from Light
Sunlight turns some organics from stable to sticky or changes their color. 5-Bromoindole isn’t immune. Over time, exposure to ambient light eats away at purity. Dark amber glass bottles provide some protection, but I always placed them in a cabinet away from UV or direct light sources. Don’t store it in a place where overhead lights stay on 24/7.
Why Labeling Matters
Labeling isn’t busywork. Write the storage requirements directly on the bottle: “Keep cool, dry, and protect from light.” Date it and record the supplier’s batch number. Years ago, our lab almost used a degraded sample because a previous user forgot to note a broken seal. A few minutes with a sharpie saved the project.
Physical Organization Prevents Problems
High shelves or crowded bins in chemical rooms lead to spilled substances and sometimes broken glass. Store 5-Bromoindole on an easy-to-access middle shelf, not next to acids, oxidizers, or other reactives. Keep it with similar non-reactive organics for consistency. Organized storage reduces search time and the odds of accidental mixing.
Safety Habits Matter Most
Chemical supplies, once spoiled, can break down into irritants or even toxins. Spill kits and gloves should stay close by. Frustrating as it sounds, double-checking containers for cracks or leaks every few weeks matters more than any fancy catalog listing. I once found a crack in a reagent bottle just before it leaked onto sensitive equipment. Regular shelf checks prevented much larger headaches.
Solid Practices Lead to Safer Labs
Good storage habits mean safer labs and more reliable science. Whether you’re a seasoned chemist or a student starting out, think of every container as part of a chain—one broken link could break more than your next experiment. Consistent attention to climate, light, and order isn’t just for the protocol checklist. It’s about treating every chemical, yourself, and your labmates with respect.
What Makes 5-Bromoindole Noteworthy?
Once you step into a research chemistry lab, either at a university or a small biotech startup, you start to appreciate how much hinges on obscure, somewhat intimidating names such as 5-Bromoindole. For organic chemists, this compound isn't just another chemical collecting dust—a brominated indole is a core building block, especially in drug discovery and materials science. I’ve witnessed firsthand how a simple substitution like adding a bromine atom suddenly makes a molecule gain a new dimension—maybe it slides just right into an enzyme pocket or acts as a launching pad for more complex structures. Scientists use 5-Bromoindole to synthesize molecules ranging from cancer drug candidates to custom dyes.
Can You Buy 5-Bromoindole?
Chemical suppliers like Sigma-Aldrich, Alfa Aesar, and TCI America list 5-Bromoindole right in their online catalogs. A quick search online pulls up multiple hits. Pricing sits in a broad range, but 1 gram often costs from $50 to $120, depending on the vendor and purity level. Larger bottles—say, 25 or 100 grams—bring the per-gram price lower, sometimes just under $20 a gram. Students and independent researchers like me often find the price tough for casual experiments. But research institutions, especially those backed by pharma, treat this as a basic expense.
Many suppliers only ship to registered institutions or businesses with the right paperwork. There's some regulation because indole derivatives can be repurposed to make controlled substances. Standard suppliers demand customer accounts, and they ask for the intended use. Chemical chains like Fisher Scientific even review each order before approving shipment. People shopping from countries with stricter import regulations might run into blocks and extra paperwork—all of which complicates access.
Why Price Matters in Research
Supply chains shape pricing almost as much as supply-and-demand math. Prices changed a lot during the COVID-19 pandemic; some compounds doubled because of shipping bottlenecks and raw material shortages. In the past, I’ve watched synthesis projects pause for weeks waiting for a shipment to clear customs or because a supplier ran out. Fluctuating prices mean that grant-funded labs have to budget tightly and ration how much they spend on high-value reagents. Corporate buyers buy in bulk to bring down costs, but smaller labs have to pick their moments.
Possible Solutions for Reliable and Fair Access
Access to specialty chemicals should not rest solely with major research cities. International collaboration could help—shared repositories and regional distribution centers would cut shipping delays and reduce markups. Some academic groups have formed cooperative purchasing networks, joining forces to negotiate lower prices from suppliers. Pushing chemical companies to post transparent pricing and stock info makes a difference; nobody likes hidden fees or “call for pricing” buttons. Governments can also help by simplifying import rules for legitimate researchers and improving customs processes.
Affordable and reliable access to compounds like 5-Bromoindole pushes science forward, not just in the world’s top labs, but for bright students and small research teams everywhere.
