Table of contents

Data on the synthesis and structures of β-diketonates and their N,P-containing structural analogues are generalised and described systematically. The possibility of creating diverse metal complexes with various modes of coordination of typical chelating ligands is discussed.

Theoretical and experimental data on the synthesis, structure, properties and applications of phosphate tungsten bronzes accumulated to date are systematised. Attention is focussed on interrelations between structural features and electrophysical properties of these compounds. Prospects for practical applications of phosphate tungsten bronzes are discussed.

The data on the synthesis, structures and chemical properties of pyrido- and pyrimidoisoindole derivatives with an azine ring annelated to a pyrrole ring, which have been published over the last two decades, are generalised. The structure of the π-electron system and the high reactivities of azinoisoindoles are discussed. Special attention is given to aromatic pyrido- and pyrimidoisoindoles.

A class of conformationally rigid cyclic α-amino acids that can be used in the synthesis of peptidomimetics, peptide models and biologically active compounds is surveyed. The rigid frameworks of such amino acids enable "fixation" of strictly defined torsion angles and hence prediction and deliberate tuning of the conformation of a polypeptide chain. Recent data on the structures and methods of the synthesis of such amino acids are presented.

The review surveys the synthesis, bulk structures, solution behaviour and functional capabilities of graft copolymers containing chemically complementary polymer components. The influence of a system of intramolecular bonds between the main and grafted chains and between the adjacent grafted chains on the properties of graft copolymers is analysed. Such graft copolymers are shown to belong to a special class of polymer compounds referred to as intramolecular polycomplexes.