Synthetic cannabinoids in "spice-like" herbal blends: First appearance of JWH-307 and recurrence of JWH-018 on the German market

Herbal smoking blends, available on the German market were analyzed and several known synthetic cannabinoids were identified (JWH-122 and JWH-018). In addition, we isolated a new active ingredient by silica gel column chromatography and elucidated the structure by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods. The compound was identified as JWH-307, a synthetic cannabinoid of the phenyl-pyrrole subclass with known in vitro binding affinities for cannabinoid receptors. To date, this is the first appearance of this subclass of cannabimimetics in such products. JWH-307 has been further characterized by gas chromatography accurate mass spectrometry (GC-HRMS), electrospray tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS), ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) spectroscopy. JWH-018 was among the first compounds banned by many countries world-wide including Germany. The identification of JWH-018 was striking, since this is the first report where JWH-018 recurred on the German market thus violating existing laws. A generic method was established to quantify synthetic cannabinoids in herbal smoking blends. Quantification was achieved using an isotopically labeled standard (JWH-018-D(3)). JWH-018 was found at a level of 150mg/g while JWH-122 and JWH-307 occurred as a mixture at a total level of 232mg/g.     

The Reverse Majority Voting under the ‘Six Pack’: A Bad Turn for the Union?

The ‘six‐pack,’ a set of six Union legislative acts that was adopted in November 2011, was one of the main Union responses to the current sovereign debt crisis. Aware of the weak performance of the Stability and Growth Pact and of the underlying design faults of the Treaty provisions on the coordination of Member States' economic policies, in particular the multilateral surveillance procedure (Art 121 TFEU) and the excessive deficit procedure (Article 126 TFEU), the legislators were determined to strengthen the means of surveillance in this policy field. One step considered necessary to achieve this end was the introduction of reverse majority voting in the Council when the latter has to adopt, for example, sanctions in above procedures. This article will examine whether this voting method is compatible with the Treaties.     

“That shit doesn't fly”: Subcultural constraints on prison radicalization

Many observers describe prison subcultures as inherently and irredeemably antisocial. Research directly ties prison subcultures to violence, gang membership, and poor reintegration. In extreme cases, research has also suggested that prison subcultures contribute to incarcerated people joining radical groups or embracing violent extremist beliefs. These claims, however, ignore key differences in the larger cultural and social context of prisons. We examine the relationship between prison subcultures and prison radicalization based on semistructured qualitative interviews with 148 incarcerated men and 131 correctional officers from four western Canadian prisons. We outline several imported features of the prison subculture that make incarcerated people resilient to radicalized and extremist messaging. These features include 1) national cultural imaginaries; 2) the racial profile of a prison, including racial sorting or a lack thereof; and 3) how radicalization allowed incarcerated men and correctional officers to act outside the otherwise agreed-to subcultural rules. Our research findings stress the importance of contemplating broader sociocultural influences when trying to understand the relationship between radicalization and prison dynamics and politics.     

Neuropsychological,Psychological, and Vocational Assessment of High Achievers in a Medicolegal Context

High achievers are a unique subset of persons referred for neuropsychological and psychological assessments in medicolegal contexts, including personal injury, disability, and workers’ compensation cases. Literature in this area is limited and poorly integrated, and neither a conceptual model nor best evidence-informed practices for the assessment of high achievers in the medicolegal context have yet emerged. Construct and methodological issues also hamper the ability of assessors to accurately and fairly assess this specialist group, which is particularly troubling in high-stakes forensic assessments. This paper reviews the current methodological issues involved in the assessment of high achievers and proposes an integrated, multimethod assessment model based on a particular vocational group, namely that of business leaders and entrepreneurs, that draws from available empirical research in different fields of psychological inquiry.     

Community-based applications to enhance road safety

Road safety plays an increasing role in communities throughout the entire world. According to estimates, road accidents will have moved from ninth to third in the worldwide ranking of burden of disease by 2020. This theme issue is dedicated to community-based applications that have the aim to enhance road safety. Although various interventions will be demonstrated, this issue provides by no means an exhaustive overview of community-based applications. The applications presented in this issue are predominantly meant to stimulate ideas and discussion on what can be done to enhance road safety.     

Neurocognitive Disorders in DSM-V: Forensic Perspective

Although determination of diagnosis of cognitive impairments constitutes one of the core objectives of forensic neuropsychological assessment, the diagnostic criteria for cognitive disorders provided by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR, American Psychiatric Association 2000) have been of low internal and external validity and limited utility. This paper reviews the evolution of diagnosis of cognitive disorders from current DSM-IV-TR to the proposed DSM-V (American Psychiatric Association 2010). The conceptual framework is tracked, along with the body of literature associated with the DSM-V proposal on Minor and Major Neurocognitive Disorders. The quality of evidence for internal and external validity is reviewed, as well as the fairness and utility of newly proposed diagnoses from both clinical and forensic perspectives. Significant conceptual, evidentiary, psychometric, assessment, and practical questions are raised related to the new classification, and recommendations are offered for improvement to the proposal of the DSM-V Work Group on Neurocognitive Disorders.     

Beyond Traumatic Brain Injury: Advancing Forensic Neuropsychological Assessment

As research on the cognitive impact of medical conditions and mental health disorders advances, it is imperative for forensic neuropsychologists to stay abreast of rapidly accumulating new empirical evidence from neuroscience and neuropsychology to disentangle multiple determinants of cognitive impairment. Although medicolegal neuropsychological assessments traditionally focused on traumatic brain injury (TBI) sequelae, it is equally important to consider the potential impact of any other acquired, or secondarily induced brain impairments, regardless of their source. Such injuries or conditions are at times assumed to cause a lesser cognitive impact than TBIs; however, their effects depend entirely on the factor in question. Injuries and illnesses implicated in civil litigation—and eventually affecting competency—can indeed involve TBI, but also anoxic/hypoxic injuries, pain, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sensory deficits (e.g., tinnitus), and fatigue, and all, in turn, can affect an individual’s cognitive function and quality of life. Impairments caused by these conditions can be disabling and resistant to treatment, particularly, when the treatment is based on incorrect diagnostic, prognostic, and causality assumptions.     

Anoxia-Hypoxia in Forensic Neuropsychological Assessment: Cognitive Impact of Pulmonary Injuries,Respiratory Distress,Cerebral Blood Hypoperfusion,and Major Surgeries

Pulmonary injuries, respiratory distress, blood loss-related cerebral blood perfusion, and major surgeries are common features of medical histories in forensic neuropsychological assessments. Unless the explicit reason for referral is determination of the cognitive impact of one of these adverse medical conditions, their contribution to neuropsychological causality determination can be overlooked, minimized, or misattributed to other causes. Given the underlying common denominator among these conditions, that is, sub-optimal oxygen delivery to the brain, transient or long-term debilitating injuries causing neuropsychological change of various degrees can result. A thorough understanding of the impact of these medical events is paramount in forensic neuropsychological assessment for diagnosis, causality, and functional impact determination, prognosis, rehabilitation, and recommendations. In this paper, we critically review the available empirical evidence regarding anoxia and hypoxia arising from pulmonary injuries and respiratory distress, cerebral blood hypoperfusion, and major surgeries, together with evidence of their impact on cognitive functioning. Medical and psychological electronic search engines [PubMed, PsycINFO, and Google Scholar (up to January 2018)] have been screened for neuroscience-related and neuropsychological literature pertaining to pulmonary injuries and respiratory distress, cerebral blood perfusion, and major surgeries, and subsequently optimized for the issue under review.