Vanadium nitrogenase

The topic, vanadium nitrogenase, is reviewed with respect to biological characteristics and findings on its structure and functions. Structural models (vanadium complexes containing ligands related to the active center in the iron-vanadium cofactor) and functional models for the reductive protonation of dinitrogen, the activation of alkynes and reductive C-C coupling of isocyanides are addressed. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.