Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry and Petrochemistry, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Murmanska Str. 1, Kiev, Ukraine
Abstract:
This review is devoted to the stereochemistry of nucleophilic substitution reactions at phosphorus. The study of the reactions of phosphoryl group transfer is important for biological and molecular chemistry. The stereochemistry and mechanisms of SN1(P) monomolecular and SN2(P) bimolecular nucleophilic substitution reactions of organophosphorus compounds are discussed. It has been shown that hydrolysis of many natural phosphates proceeds according to the monomolecular SN1(P) mechanism via the formation of metaphosphate intermediate (PO3?). SN2(P) nucleophilic substitution at chiral trivalent or pentavalent phosphorus compounds proceeds via the formation of penta-coordinated transition state or pentacoordinate intermediate.