Regioconvergent Nucleophilic Substitutions with Morita-Baylis-Hillman Fluorides.

Lithium iodide enables regioconvergent C-F bond functionalization of isomeric Morita-Baylis-Hillman fluorides with carbon, sulfur, and nitrogen nucleophiles. The defluorinative carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bond formations give multifunctional compounds in excellent yields and with good to high diastereoselectivities at room temperature. The possibility of catalytic enantioselective allylation is also discussed.

Enantioseparation and racemization of 3-fluorooxindoles.

Fluorinated oxindoles are frequently used building blocks in asymmetric synthesis and represent an important scaffold found in a variety of biologically relevant compounds. While it is understood that incorporation of fluorine atoms into organic molecules can improve their pharmacological properties, the impact on the configurational stability of chiral organofluorines is still underexplored. In this study, semipreparative HPLC enantioseparations of five oxindoles were carried out, and the resulting enantiomerically enriched solutions were used to investigate base promoted racemization kinetics at room temperature.

Enantioseparation and racemization of α-aryl-α-fluoroacetonitriles.

The 2-Aryl-2-fluoroacetonitriles have garnered increasing interest as versatile building blocks in asymmetric synthesis. However, the configurational stability of these organofluorines is poorly understood and analytical methods that can be used to differentiate between their enantiomers remain underdeveloped. In this study, baseline high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) enantioseparation of ten 2-aryl-2-fluoroacetonitriles was achieved by screening frequently used chiral stationary phases.

Neural Processing of Cognitive Control in an Emotionally Neutral Context in Anxiety Patients.

Impaired cognitive control plays a crucial role in anxiety disorders and is associated with deficient neural mechanisms in the fronto-parietal network. Usually, these deficits were found in tasks with an emotional context. The present study aimed at investigating electrophysiological and vascular signatures from event-related brain potentials (ERPs) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in anxiety patients versus healthy controls during an inhibition task integrated in an emotionally neutral context.

The challenge of learning a new language in adulthood: Evidence from a multi-methodological neuroscientific approach.

Being proficient in several foreign languages is an essential part of every-day life. In contrast to childhood, learning a new language can be highly challenging for adults. The present study aims at investigating neural mechanisms supporting very initial foreign language learning in adulthood.

So young, yet so mature? Electrophysiological and vascular correlates of phonotactic processing in 18-month-olds.

The present study investigated neural correlates of implicit phonotactic processing in 18-month-old children that just reached an important step in language development: the vocabulary spurt. Pseudowords, either phonotactically legal or illegal with respect to their native language, were acoustically presented to monolingually German raised infants. Neural activity was simultaneously assessed by means of electroencephalography (EEG) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS).

Uncovering electrophysiological and vascular signatures of implicit emotional prosody.

The capability of differentiating between various emotional states in speech displays a crucial prerequisite for successful social interactions. The aim of the present study was to investigate neural processes underlying this differentiating ability by applying a simultaneous neuroscientific approach in order to gain both electrophysiological (via electroencephalography, EEG) and vascular (via functional near-infrared-spectroscopy, fNIRS) responses. Pseudowords conforming to angry, happy, and neutral prosody were presented acoustically to participants using a passive listening paradigm in order to capture implicit mechanisms of emotional prosody processing.

How Therapeutic Tapping Can Alter Neural Correlates of Emotional Prosody Processing in Anxiety.

Anxiety disorders are the most common psychological disorders worldwide resulting in a great demand of adequate and cost-effective treatment. New short-term interventions can be used as an effective adjunct or alternative to pharmaco- and psychotherapy. One of these approaches is therapeutic tapping.