Over the last 100–120 years, due to the ever-increasing importance of fluorine-containing compounds in modern technology and daily life, the explosive development of the fluorochemical industry led to an enormous increase of emission of fluoride ions into the biosphere. This made it more and more important to understand the biological activities, metabolism, degradation, and possible environmental hazards of such substances. This comprehensive and critical review focuses on the effects of fluoride ions and organofluorine compounds (mainly pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals) on human health and the environment. To give a better overview, various connected topics are also discussed: reasons and trends of the advance of fluorine-containing pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals, metabolism of fluorinated drugs, withdrawn fluorinated drugs, natural sources of organic and inorganic fluorine compounds in the environment (including the biosphere), sources of fluoride intake, and finally biomarkers of fluoride exposure.

This review covers recent developments for optically active sulfoxide preparations and the problem of accurate determination of the stereochemical outcome due to the self-disproportionation of enantiomers (SDE).

This review article provides a comprehensive update on the development of new methods for the asymmetric synthesis of α-(trifluoromethyl)-α-amino acids, covering the literature from 2006 to mid-February 2012. Most of the methods discussed are based on asymmetric additions across the carbon–nitrogen double bond of the imines derived from esters of 3,3,3-trifluoropyruvic acid. Medium to high levels of stereocontrol can be achieved using phenylglycinol-derived chiral auxiliaries attached to the nitrogen of the corresponding imines. Among the enantioselective approaches, impressive results were achieved through the application of the Strecker­ reaction using chiral thioureas, as well as chiral Brønsted acids, as organocatalysts. 1 Introduction 2 Stoichiometric Asymmetric Syntheses of α-(Trifluoromethyl)-α-amino Acids 3 Catalytic Asymmetric Syntheses of α-(Trifluoromethyl)-α-amino Acids 4 Miscellaneous 5 Conclusions