Various 1-arylsulfonyl-3-(α-hydroxybenzyl)-1H-pyrroles were prepared by Friedel-Crafts reaction of 1-arylsulfonyl-1H-pyrroles with aroylchlorides in the presence of aluminum trichloride, followed by reduction of the ketones to the required carbinols. Title compounds were identified as a novel class of non-nucleoside HIV-1 reverse transcriptase inhibitors characterized by the presence of a diarylcarbinol moiety, a chemical feature that strictly ...