A family of isoreticular metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), based on the UiO-66 structure, were synthesized from the two linker ligands containing electron-donating NH2-groups (2-amino-benzenedicarboxylic acid (H2N-H2BDC)) and electron-withdrawing NO2-groups (2-nitrobenzenedicarboxylic acid (O2N-H2BDC)). The catalytic performance of these materials was investigated with a combination of physicochemical and catalytic approaches in acetalization of benzaldehyde with methanol. The investigation of basicity and Lewis acidity was done by IR spectroscopy using CDCl3 and 5-nonanone as probe molecules, respectively. The combination of physicochemical and catalytic investigations demonstrates that acid-base and catalytic properties of these materials depend on amount and type of functional groups presented in the linker units. Insertion of electron-donating NH2-groups into linker ligand leads to increase in the strength of basic sites in contrast to electron-withdrawing NO2-groups. The strength of Lewis acid sites decreases in order of UiO-66-NO2 > UiO-66 > UiO-66-NH2, that leads to the decrease in their catalytic activity in acetalization of benzaldehyde with methanol in the same order. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.