Some aspects of the chemical behavior of icosahedral carboranes

Important features of the chemical behavior of icosahedral carboranes are considered. The ways of introducing functional groups at the carbon and boron atoms of carboranes by conventional methods of organic chemistry and methods applicable only to carboranes are discussed. The latter methods include transformations of dicarbadodecaborate(14) dianions. Examples of the enantiomeric resolution of optically active carboranes, whose chirality is associated with the molecular asymmetry, are given. The diversity of chemical transformations of carboranes is exemplified by intramolecular nucleophilic rearrangements, cross-coupling reactions, and the formation of chelate metallacycles.