(Catecholato)iron(III) complexes: structural and functional models for the catechol-bound iron(III) form of catechol dioxygenases

Catechol dioxygenases are mononuclear non-heme iron enzymes that catalyze the oxygenation of catechols to aliphatic acids via the cleavage of aromatic rings. In the last 20 years, a number of (catecholato)iron(III) complexes have been synthesized and characterized as structural and functional models for the catechol-bound iron(III) form of catechol dioxygenases. This review focuses on the structural and spectroscopic characteristics and oxygenation activity of the title complexes.