This is the first book in its class solely devoted to fluorinated heterocyclic compounds. It encompasses all aspects of chemistry and applications of fluoroheterocycles including synthesis, biological activity studies, development of PET radiopharmaceuticals, structural NMR research, computational chemistry and many other critical areas. The book covers all major classes of heterocycles (azoles, azines, heteroalicyclic compounds, fused systems) as well as all popular fluorine-containing fragments (C-F, N-F, CF2 CF3, OCF3, SF5). Particular attention was given to modern synthetic methods including metallocomplex catalysis and combinatorial chemistry, as applied to the chemistry of fluorinated heterocyclic compounds. The first chapter is devoted to critical overview of the current status of the field and its historical perspective. The subject matter in subsequent chapters is divided into two broad areas. Chapters 2-7 focus on methods of preparation of several classes of fluorinated heterocycles. Included in synthetic methodologies reviewed are those based on selective fluorination, functionalization of fluorinated heterocycles, and the use of fluorinated building blocks. Chapters 8-15 deal with several aspects of research on biologically significant fluorinated heterocycles and include reviews of synthetic approaches, structural studies, and applications. The breadth of topics together with the in depth treatment given to each topic will make this book a valuable resource for chemists of many disciplines.

Andrei A. Gakh is a senior research scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. His current research interests include chemistry of heterocyclic, fluoroorganic and nitro compounds as well as molecular engineering and nanotechnology. Kenneth L. Kirk was Chief of the Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases NIDDK between 1997 and 2008. His research interests have focused on biomedicinal aspects of organofluorine chemistry.

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