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Science 6 October 2006:
Vol. 314. no. 5796, p. 13
DOI: 10.1126/science.314.5796.13a
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This Week in Science

Figure 1 The chemistry of boron is generally characterized by electron deficiency. Neutral boron compounds tend to be strong Lewis acids, and in borate anions, the B center is typically electropositive, which is reflected in the utility of borohydride salts as hydride (H-) donors. Segawa et al. (p. 113; see the Perspective by Marder) have prepared a molecule that inverts this reactivity pattern. By reductive cleavage of a B-Br bond in a cyclic precursor, they isolate a boryl lithium compound in which the negatively charged B center acts as a base and nucleophile. The compound is stabilized by electron-donating nitrogens that flank the B atom, in analogy with the isoelectronic N-heterocyclic carbenes that have recently been prepared as ligands.

CREDIT: SEGAWA ET AL.




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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)