Ephedrine-based diselenide: a promiscuous catalyst suitable to mimic the enzyme glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and to promote enantioselective C-C coupling reactions.

The ephedrine-based diselenide appears as a new promiscuous catalyst, able to generate optically active alcohols by addition of organozinc to aldehydes (up to 97% ee), and shows powerful GPx like activity, reducing H(2)O(2) to water in only 16.33 min (eleven times faster than PhSeSePh).