Phosphonate

In <a href="/facts/Organic_chemistry/djxhxaNg">organic chemistry</a>, phosphonates or phosphonic acids are <a href="/facts/Organophosphorus_compound/kNgIF93U">organophosphorus compounds</a> containing C−PO(OR)2 <a href="/facts/Functional_group/GXkSPsjM">groups</a>, where R is an organic group (<a href="/facts/Alkyl/vmEk8X4v">alkyl</a>, <a href="/facts/Aryl/M3z7QRXd">aryl</a>). If R is hydrogen then the compound is a <a href="/facts/Phosphite_ester/Uq54qjld">dialkyl phosphite</a>, which is a different functional group. Phosphonic acids, typically handled as salts, are generally <a href="/facts/Volatility_(chemistry)/90r3ep6w">nonvolatile</a> solids that are poorly <a href="/facts/Soluble/kLE9h3Jb">soluble</a> in <a href="/facts/Organic_solvent/LoMPMz8S">organic solvents</a>, but soluble in water and common <a href="/facts/Alcohol_(chemistry)/Y0SCTDkh">alcohols</a>. 
Many commercially important compounds are phosphonates, including <a href="/facts/Glyphosate/dS72T7VY">glyphosate</a> (the active molecule of the herbicide <a href="/facts/Roundup_(herbicide)/y2AudgdY">Roundup</a>), and <a href="/facts/Ethephon/Na2RC6Uy">ethephon</a>, a widely used plant growth regulator. <a href="/facts/Bisphosphonates/s6po5jLd">Bisphosphonates</a> are popular drugs for treatment of <a href="/facts/Osteoporosis/xa1W00Tj">osteoporosis</a>.

 
In <a href="/facts/Biochemistry/fa2pWEBp">biochemistry</a> and <a href="/facts/Medicinal_chemistry/SLNHz1hb">medicinal chemistry</a>, phosphonate groups are used as stable <a href="/facts/Bioisostere/M7R0LGfp">bioisosteres</a> for phosphate, such as in the antiviral nucleotide analog, <a href="/facts/Tenofovir/PVVaPem5">Tenofovir</a>, one of the cornerstones of anti-<a href="/facts/HIV/ulY2rgzu">HIV</a> therapy. And there is an indication that phosphonate derivatives are "promising ligands for <a href="/facts/Nuclear_medicine/L9Dzjd90">nuclear medicine</a>."

Phosphonate open-in-new

Phosphonate