MICHAEL T. POPE AND ACHIM MULLER Department of Chemistry, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057-2222, U.S.A.; Department of Chemistry, University of Bielefeld, D-4BOO Bielefeld 1, F.R.G. Polyoxometalates, from their discovery and early development in the final decades of the 19th century to their current significance in disciplines as diverse as chemistry, mathematics, and medicine, continue to display surprisingly novel structures, unexpected reactivities and applications, and to attract increasing attention worldwide. Most of the contributors to the present volume participated in the workshop held at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research at the University of Bielefeld, July 15-17, 1992. The choice of topics illustrates some of the variety of directions and fields in which polyoxometalates can play an important role. Although many of the leading polyoxometalate research groups are represented here, we regret that time constraints, financial limitations, and in some cases difficulties of communication did not allow us to include significant and imp- tant work from other groups outside Europe and North America. In the following we briefly review the current status of the field of po- oxometalates.

Polyoxometalates (POMs) form a large, distinctive class of molecular inorganic compounds of unrivaled electronic versatility and structural variation, with impacts ranging from chemistry, catalysis, and materials science to biology, and medicine. This book covers the basic principles governing the structure, bonding and reactivity of these metal-oxygen cluster anions and the major developments in their molecular science. The book comprises three sections. The first covers areas ranging from topological principles via synthesis and stability to reactivity in solution. It also focuses on the physical methods currently used to extract information on the molecular and electronic structures as well as the physical properties of these clusters. The second part reviews different types of POMs, focusing on those systems that currently impact other areas of interest, such as supramolecular chemistry, nanochemistry and molecular magnetism. The third section is devoted to POM-based materials and their applications and prospects in catalysis and materials science.

Polyoxometalates constitute an extensive class of compounds with an unmatched range of structures, properties and applications. This is an authoritative, up-to-date summary of the chemistry and applications of polyoxometalates.

Biological inorganic chemistry is a field of research at the interface of inorganic and biological chemistry. The rapidly developing insights into the role of metals in biological systems has far-reaching implications not only for biological science but also for related disciplines, ranging from molecular medicine to the environment. In each volume the reader, whether engaged in chemistry, biochemistry, biology or molecular medicine, receives a comprehensive summary and critical overview of a topic of hight current interest written by leading international experts.

Comprehensive Coordination Chemistry II (CCC II) is the sequel to what has become a classic in the field, Comprehensive Coordination Chemistry, published in 1987. CCC II builds on the first and surveys new developments authoritatively in over 200 newly comissioned chapters, with an emphasis on current trends in biology, materials science and other areas of contemporary scientific interest.

"Chemists from several international polyoxometalate research groups discussed recent results, including: controlled self-organization processes for the preparation of nano-composites; electronic interactions in magnetic mixed-valence cryptands and coronands; synthesis of the novel polyoxometalates with topological or biological significance; systematic investigations in acid-base and/or redox catalysis for organic transformations; and electronic properties in materials science."--Page v

In recent years, inorganic polymers have attracted much attention in nano-biomedicine, in particular in the area of regenerative medicine and drug delivery. This growing interest in inorganic polymers has been further accelerated by the development of new synthetic and analytical methods in the field of nanotechnology and nanochemistry. Examples for biomedical inorganic polymers that had been proven to exhibit biomedical effects and/or have been applied in preclinical or clinical trials are polysilicate / silica glass (such as naturally formed “biosilica” and synthetic “bioglass”) and inorganic polyphosphate. Some members of the mentioned biomedical inorganic polymers have already been applied e.g. as “bioglass” for bone repair and bone tissue engineering, or they are used in food processing and in dental care (inorganic polyphosphates). However, there are a number of further biological and medicinal properties of these polymers, which have been elucidated in the last few years but not yet been applied for treatment of humans. In addition to polysilicates and polyphosphate, there are a series of other inorganic polymers including polyarsenate and polyvanadate, whose biological / biomedical properties have been only marginally studied so far. Moreover, the combined application of inorganic polymers and organic polymeric molecules (formation of organic-inorganic hybrid materials) provides a variety of new materials with novel property combinations and diverse applications in nanomedicine. The planned book summarizes the present state of knowledge on a large group of inorganic polymers that had hitherto been mainly considered with regard to their chemistry but not comprehensively reviewed with respect to their potential biomedical applications.