Area-specific increased density of mu-opioid receptor immunoreactive neurons in the cerebral cortex of drug-related fatalities

In animal experiments and in cell culture, chronic morphine treatment has been followed by "up-regulation" as well as "down-regulation" of the mu-opioid receptor (OR) number. The present postmortem morphometric study of morphine-related fatalities of drug-addicts (n=13, 20-35 years old, with blood unconjugated morphine levels from 27.1 ng/ml to 458 ng/ml, m.v. 198.5 ng/ml) versus a non-addicted control group (n=13, 10-44 years old) was intended to examine, whether chronic opiate exposure affects the numerical density of mu-OR expressing neurons in the human neocortex (areas 11, 24 and 25 according to Brodmann). For the immunohistochemical procedure, vibratome sections (100 microm) were incubated with a monoclonal antibody against the mu-OR, diluted 1:100, and immunolabelled sites were visualized using an immunoperoxidase protocol. The numerical densities of OR immunoreactive neuronal profiles and Nissl-stained central profiles were assessed morphometrically (camera lucida-drawings). In both groups, the anti-mu-OR-immunoreactivity was mainly localized in pyramidal neurons of layers (L) II/III and V and in multiform neurons of L VI. In the areas 24 and 25, the density of the immunoreactive neuronal profiles did not display a significant difference between the two examined groups. In the area 11, however, the number of immunolabelled neuronal profiles amounted to 2777+/-206 mm(3) in the drug-related fatalities and to 2320+/-124 mm(3) in the control group and thus was significantly increased.     

Biotic Carbon Sequestration and the Kyoto Protocol: The Construction of Global Knowledge by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

This paper explores the dynamics of the production of global knowledge by an international knowledge organization, in this case the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Based on previous notions of international boundary organizations, the idea of international knowledge organizations emphasizes the knowledge generation function of such organizations rather than their convening function. Using the case of controversial Kyoto Protocol biotic carbon sequestration policies, I argue that boundary work and uncertainty management are the essential dynamics in the successful construction of global knowledge by international knowledge organizations. This uncertainty management occurs in a manner broadly, although not completely, in conformance with the institutional preferences of powerful policy actors. Global knowledge can legitimate and help refine global policies, but the process of its construction must be iterative and transparent if it is to be credible for global environmental governance over the long-term.     

Pedagogy of individual choice and female inmate reentry in the U.S. Southwest

Much of the mental health, substance use, and educational programming within a particular women's prison in the southwestern United States promotes individual choice and agency. Incarcerated women from rural areas are told that their ability to succeed outside of prison is primarily dependent upon their personal choices. Comparably little attention is given to preparing women for their upcoming release or to overcoming structural barriers that could undermine successful reentry within rural communities. As a result, these returning citizens, many of whom grapple with mental illness and alcohol or drug dependence, blame themselves for their inability to surmount these barriers. In this qualitative research, we draw upon the perspectives of 99 incarcerated women to clarify how ideologies of individual choice promulgated in reentry pedagogy clash with contextual factors within rural communities to derail the reentry process. We also consider community reentry from Amartya Sen's capabilities framework and discuss how this model could inform needed interventions.     

Structural Inequality and Social Support for Women Prisoners Released to Rural Communities

Incarceration and community reentry for rural women reflect gendered processes. We draw on in-depth semistructured interviews and focus groups to examine the return of women prisoners to underserved rural communities while attending to the perspectives of their closest social supporters. Our findings underscore the complexity of the reentry process for rural women and its particular impact on their families. We challenge dominant discourses of personal responsibility that detract from the structural violence and injustice shaping reentry experiences for women and their social supporters. We also consider the policy implications of discharge and reentry planning for rural women and their families as well as strategies to reduce recidivism.     

Introduction to the forum ‘The EU's Common Security and Defence Policy and the challenge of democratic legitimacy beyond the nation-state’

The democratic control and legitimacy of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) has received growing attention. However, thus far, studies have mostly focused on ‘blue prints’, i.e., the analysis of formal powers of formal institutions, especially the European Parliament. These studies leave two desiderata that the contributions to this forum aim at overcoming: Firstly, in-depth case studies are required on how formal institutions make actual use of their formal powers in CSDP. Secondly, an examination of the ‘sociocultural infrastructure’ in which formal institutions and decision-making processes are embedded is required. The contributions to this forum redress both deficits. First, the actual practices of parliamentary involvement in the case of the EU's first maritime mission ‘Atalanta’ are examined. Second, the most important dimensions of the ‘sociocultural infrastructure’ are empirically studied, namely public opinion, the public sphere and civil society.