Synthetic applications of pseudocyclic hypervalent iodine compounds

Hypervalent iodine compounds have found wide practical application as versatile, efficient, and sustainable reagents for organic synthesis. Pseudocyclic hypervalent iodine derivatives are characterized by the presence of additional intramolecular non-covalent coordination at the iodine center, which leads to significant alteration of their physical and chemical properties. In comparison with common hypervalent iodine reagents, these pseudocyclic compounds have higher thermal stability, better solubility, and improved reactivity. In recent years, pseudocyclic hypervalent iodine reagents are increasingly used in organic synthesis as environmentally friendly selective oxidants and electrophiles. Furthermore, numerous enantioselective reactions mediated by chiral pseudocyclic hypervalent iodine species have been recently developed. In the present review, the preparation and structural features of pseudocyclic iodine(III) and iodine(V) derivatives are discussed, and recent developments in their synthetic applications are summarized.