Emotional voices in context: a neurobiological model of multimodal affective information processing

Just as eyes are often considered a gateway to the soul, the human voice offers a window through which we gain access to our fellow human beings? minds – their attitudes, intentions and feelings. Whether in talking or singing, crying or laughing, sighing or screaming, the sheer sound of a voice communicates a wealth of information that, in turn, may serve the observant listener as valuable guidepost in social interaction. But how do human beings extract information from the tone of a voice? In an attempt to answer this question, the present article reviews empirical evidence detailing the cerebral processes that underlie our ability to decode emotional information from vocal signals. The review will focus primarily on two prominent classes of vocal emotion cues: laughter and speech prosody (i.e. the tone of voice while speaking). Following a brief introduction, behavioral as well as neuroimaging data will be summarized that allows to outline cerebral mechanisms associated with the decoding of emotional voice cues, as well as the influence of various context variables (e.g. co-occurring facial and verbal emotional signals, attention focus, person-specific parameters such as gender and personality) on the respective processes. Building on the presented evidence, a cerebral network model will be introduced that proposes a differential contribution of various cortical and subcortical brain structures to the processing of emotional voice signals both in isolation and in context of accompanying (facial and verbal) emotional cues.     

A Functional Role for Aβ in Metal Homeostasis? N‐Truncation and High‐Affinity Copper Binding

Accumulation of the β‐amyloid (Aβ) peptide in extracellular senile plaques rich in copper and zinc is a defining pathological feature of Alzheimer′s disease (AD). The Aβ1–x (x=16/28/40/42) peptides have been the primary focus of Cu^II binding studies for more than 15 years; however, the N‐truncated Aβ4–42 peptide is a major Aβ isoform detected in both healthy and diseased brains, and it contains a novel N‐terminal FRH sequence. Proteins with His at the third position are known to bind Cu^II avidly, with conditional log K values at pH 7.4 in the range of 11.0–14.6, which is much higher than that determined for Aβ1–x peptides. By using Aβ4–16 as a model, it was demonstrated that its FRH sequence stoichiometrically binds Cu^II with a conditional K_d value of 3×10^?14 M at pH 7.4, and that both Aβ4–16 and Aβ4–42 possess negligible redox activity. Combined with the predominance of Aβ4–42 in the brain, our results suggest a physiological role for this isoform in metal homeostasis within the central nervous system.     

Three-dimensional reconstruction of M. gastrocnemius contraction

There exist many different approaches investigating the contraction mechanisms of skeletal muscles. Thereby, the mechanical behavior, such as force generation in association with kinematic and microstructure, play an important role in modeling of muscle behavior. Besides the mechanical behaviour, the validation of muscle models requires the geometrical environment, too. The geometry of a muscle can be divided into macrostructure, existing of aponeurosis-tendon-complex (ATC) and muscle tissue (MT), as well as the fascicle architecture, representing the microstructure of the MT. In this study, the macrostructure of the isolated M. gastrocnemius was observed during isometric contraction by using three-dimensional optical measurement systems in combination with mechanical measurement techniques. The surface deformation was reconstructed at specific force and length relationships and further the muscle tissue, aponeurosis, and tendon were distinguished, building up a macroscopic geometrical dataset. (© 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Gold- and platinum-bismuth donor-acceptor interactions supported by an ambiphilic PBiP pincer ligand

Noble metals meet a heavyweight: A pincer ligand brings together bismuth with gold and platinum, so that metallophilic interactions are established. According to DFT calculations, these interactions contain dominant metal→bismuth contributions.     

Proteome and phosphoproteome of primary cultured pig urothelial cells

Epithelial tissue lining the inner side of the urinary bladder is the most common target for bladder cancer-related diseases. Bladders of freshly slaughtered pigs were utilised for a comprehensive analysis of the proteome and phosphoproteome of bladder epithelial cells. Following protein separation by 2-D gel electrophoresis and identification by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) the first proteome and phosphoproteome maps of pig urinary bladder epithelial cells (PUBEC) were established. A total of 120 selected protein spots were identified. By using the La(3+) enrichment method further developed in our laboratory we identified 31 phosphoproteins with minimal contamination by non-phosphopeptides. The 2-DE map of pig urothelial cells may prove as a useful tool for studies on uroepithelial biology, and the analysed phosphoproteins expression pattern, together with the whole cell proteome, will be helpful for identifying the proteins involved in bladder-related diseases.     

First intramolecular enantioselective iridium-catalysed allylic aminations

Enantioselective iridium-catalysed intramolecular allylic aminations, using phosphinooxazolines or phosphorus amidites as ligands, provided ee values of >90%, at a catalyst loading of <0.5 mol-%, and displayed a marked preference for intra- over corresponding intermolecular reactions.     

Synthesis of α‐Chiral Ketones and Chiral Alkanes Using Radical Polar Crossover Reactions of Vinyl Boron Ate Complexes

Vinyl boron ate complexes of enantioenriched secondary alkyl pinacolboronic esters undergo stereospecific radical‐induced 1,2‐migration in radical polar crossover reactions. In this three‐component process various commercially available alkyl iodides act as radical precursors and light is used for chain initiation. Subsequent oxidation and protodeborylation leads to valuable α‐chiral ketones and chiral alkanes, respectively, with excellent enantiopurity.