A concave pyridine Ic has been attached to dendrimers of the Frechet type b
y an ethylenoxide linker on the convex outside of the catalyst. Two generat
ions of dendrons [G-1]-OH, [G-2]-OH, [G-1]-Br and [G-2]-Br and of dendrimer
s with 4,4 '-dihydroxybiphenyl (3) and 1,1,1-tris(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethane (4
) as di- and trivalent cores [G-1](2)- [C2], [G-1](3)-[C3] and [G-2](3)-[C3
] have been synthesized. The resulting molecules possess up to twelve conca
ve catalytic pyridine centers on the outside of the molecules, and can be u
sed as selective catalysts in the base catalyzed addition of alcohols to di
phenylketene.