Synthetic chemistry and biological activity of pentafluorosulphanyl (SF5) organic molecules

The pentafluorosulphanyl group (SF5) is a highly stable chemical function which has been attracting a great deal of interest owing to its peculiar chemical, structural, physicochemical and biological properties. Progress in the area of SF5-compounds has been somewhat hindered by the lack of straightforward lab-scale synthetic methods for introducing the SF5-group into organic molecules. However, recent synthetic progress, the availability of some SF5-building blocks from commercial suppliers and the discovery of interesting properties of SF5-substituted molecules in materials science, biology and drug discovery are giving new momentum to research in this fascinating area of fluorine chemistry. Synthesis, reactivity and biological properties of SF5-substituted organic molecules are herein reviewed with an emphasis on the work published after year 2000.