Iodide Anion Enables a Reductive Cross-Electrophile Coupling for Preparing Tertiary Amines.

The reducing power of iodide anion is an underexplored property that can be used for the cross-electrophile coupling of organic molecules. Herein we harness this trait for the preparation of tertiary amines through the combination of two simple reagents: an electrophilic-carbon precursor and an iminium iodide in a dual role - both as nitrogen-containing building block and as reducing agent. The underlying mechanism of this new C-C bond-formation paradigm is explored through a combination of experiment and quantum chemical calculations.

Revisiting the Baddeley Reaction: Access to Functionalized Decalins by Charge-Promoted Alkane Functionalization.

C-H functionalization of purely aliphatic substrates is a challenging endeavor, as the absence of directing groups generally thwarts attempts at regiocontrol. This is particularly true for difunctionalization reactions, where the control of relative stereochemistry poses an additional obstacle. The Baddeley reaction of decalins, despite suffering from strong limitations with regard to yield and generality, stands as one of only few known transformations capable of regio- and stereocontrol in aliphatic C-H functionalization.

Remote proton elimination: C-H activation enabled by distal acidification.

Generally, the acidity of carbon-hydrogen bonds is most sensitive to functionality just one or two bonds away. Here, we present an approach to the formation of carbon-carbon σ bonds by remote proton elimination, a distinct mode of carbon-hydrogen activation enabled by distal acidification through five carbon-carbon bonds. Application of remote proton elimination to cyclodecyl cations unveiled an appealing method for the synthesis of decalins.

[A survey into smokers' interest in quitting smoking and in the provision of smoking cessation counselling in community pharmacies].

Since even a little help from healthcare professionals provided to smokers in the form of a clear-cut and resolute interventions may help increase a rather low rate of smokers' successful attempts to quit smoking, the pharmacists, who are on a daily basis in a close contact with the patients-smokers, have a very good position to assume an important role in enforcing the anti-smoking activities, both in the form of their active approach to such patients and the provision of counselling to support smoking cessation. Our questionnaire was designed to assess the interest of smokers in the Czech Republic and Slovakia in quitting smoking and the interest of those who intend to give up their bad habit in smoking cessation counselling provided in community pharmacies as well as their potential willingness to pay for this service. The survey has shown that almost 80% of smokers want to quit smoking.

Impairment of spatially directed attention in patients with probable Alzheimer's disease as measured by eye movements.

Objective: To investigate changes in spatially directed attention in patients with a diagnosis of probable Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Background: Impaired attention in patients with probable AD has not been the subject of extensive research. Yet recent reports suggest that attentional deficits may be an important early feature of the disease in a subset of patients.