Identification and synthesis of by-products found in 4-methylthioamphetamine (4-MTA) produced by the Leuckart method

The synthesis of the designer drug 4-methylthioamphetamine (4-MTA) has been carried out using the well-known Leuckart reaction in four versions. The treatment of 4-methylthiophenylacetone with formamide, mixture of formamide/formic acid, ammonium formate, and mixture of ammonium formate and formic acid followed by acid hydrolysis brought about the formation of 4-MTA contaminated with a number of impurities. The gas chromatography mass-spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of the reaction mixtures allowed identification of the most prominent impurities, such as diasteromers of N,N-di-[β-(4-methylthiophenyl)isopropyl]amine, N,N-di-[β-(4-methylthiophenyl)isopropyl]methylamine, N,N-di-[β-(4-methylthiophenyl)isopropyl]formamide, the Schiff bases derived from 4-MTA and 4-methylbenzaldehyde (benzaldimine) and 4-methylthiophenylacetone (ketimine) as well as some heterocycles: 4-methyl-5-(4'-methylthiophenyl)pyrimidine, 4-(4'-methylthiobenzyl)pyrimidine, 2,6-dimethyl-3,5-di-(4'-methylthiophenyl)pyridine, 2,4-dimethyl-3,5-di-(4'-methylthiophenyl)pyridine. The correctness of identification was confirmed by independent synthesis of these compounds. Each synthesized reference compound was characterized by means of MS, (1)H and (13)C NMR, and IR methods. The stereochemistry of (RR/SS) diasteromer of N,N-di-[β-(4-methylthiophenyl)isopropyl]amine was confirmed by a crystallographic method.     

Multiple perpetrator sexual assault: how does it differ from assault by a single perpetrator?

Research that attempts to identify characteristic features of multiple perpetrator sexual assault (MPSA) is limited. This study compared demographic and assault related characteristics of 135 cases of MPSA with 139 cases of single perpetrator sexual assault (SPSA) reported to the Haven sexual assault referral centre, Camberwell, London, over a 4-year period, and aimed to identify any unique features of MPSA victims, perpetrators and assault type. Victims of MPSA were younger, less likely to be White, more likely to report previous self-harm and more likely to sustain injuries than victims of SPSA. Multiple perpetrators were younger, less likely to be White and more likely to be strangers to the victim than single perpetrators. The nature of the assault was different in single and multiple perpetrator cases; in MPSA, there were more completed rapes and more multiple rapes, and perpetrators were more likely to meet the victim in an outside location before carrying out the assault in a place of residence that was not the victim's. These findings add to a scant but growing evidence base.     

The Law Applicable to Divorce as Test Ground for Enhanced Cooperation

Enhanced cooperation was introduced in the Treaty of Amsterdam (1997). Despite a lot of academic ink being spilled, the instrument had, until recently, never been applied in practice. In June 2010, the Council reached consensus on authorising a group of Member States to pursue, in the framework of enhanced cooperation, common rules in the area of the law applicable to divorce. The present paper critically analyses this first precedent. For that purpose, the background to the policy area will be explored. Subsequently, the desirability of enhanced cooperation shall be assessed. Finally, the content of Rome III, and its effects upon Member States not participating in the initiative, will be analysed. The paper will attempt to formulate an answer to the question whether enhanced cooperation should be the new approach to harmonisation of family‐related Private International Law.     

Rural development through the construction of new,nested, markets: comparative perspectives from China,Brazil and the European Union

This article discusses and compares the rural development processes and practices currently occurring in China, Brazil and the European Union. Although these are strongly rooted in the specificities of time and space, they also share important commonalities. We argue that rural development can be viewed as an evolving set of responses to market failures. A key element of these responses is that they are unfolding through the construction of new markets: a seemingly contradictory phenomenon that has, as yet, hardly been scrutinized or theoretically elaborated. We describe these newly emerging markets as ‘nested markets’ and support our argument with a careful reconsideration of the dynamics of long-established nested markets. We then extend this analysis, firstly, by arguing that the construction of such new markets occurs through a process of social struggle and, secondly, by exploring the strength of these newly emerging constellations in relation to the hegemony exerted by food empires. Our analysis puts common-pool resources, which underlie these new, nested markets, centre stage.     

A European Constitutional Patriotism? The Case Restated

Abstract:  Especially since the failure of the European Constitutional Treaty, the idea of a European constitutional patriotism has become subject to ever more intense criticism. This article argues that many of the criticisms of the idea of a European constitutional patriotism have been based on philosophical misunderstandings (both of the notion of constitutional patriotism as such, and of the role it could play in Europe) or rely on implausible empirical claims. Accordingly, the normative idea of constitutional patriotism is first clarified; second, the article discusses some of the most common normative and empirical traps when trying to 'transfer' constitutional patriotism from a domestic nation-state context to the supranational level, as well as the tendency to overburden constitutional patriotism with expectations of solidarity and deliberative democracy; third, an EU-specific post-sovereign, pluralist version of constitutional patriotism is defended against critics who see even such a vision as insufficiently sensitive to value pluralism and cultural diversity.     

Histological and immunohistochemical study of Wischnewsky spots in fatal hypothermia

Wischnewsky spots in the gastric mucosa are considered an important finding for the diagnosis of hypothermia-related deaths. In the present prospective histological and immunohistochemical investigation, 14 cases of fatal hypothermia presenting Wischnewsky spots at autopsy were studied. Macromorphologically, the lesions, varying in diameter from 0.1 to 0.4 cm, had a blackish-brownish color and appeared partly lofty, especially on the apex of gastric folds. Histologically, no erosions or ulcers were observed in the gastric mucosa. In some cases, hemorrhages in conjunction with infarctions of the mucosa were observed in the mucosal glands. Those regions, however, did not represent the lesions visible as Wischnewsky spots at the macroscopical level. Immunohistochemical stains were done with a specific antibody against hemoglobin (Dako, Glostrup, Denmark). Wischnewsky spots expressed immunopositivity with antihemoglobin. Concerning the pathogenesis and underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms contributing to the development of Wischnewsky spots, we hypothesize that cooling of the body in the setting of cold ambient temperatures primarily leads to circumscribed hemorrhages of the gastric glands in vivo or in the agonal period, respectively. Subsequently, due to autolysis, erythrocytes are destroyed and hemoglobin is released. Following exposure to gastric acid, hemoglobin is hematinized, leading to the typical blackish-brownish appearance of Wischnewsky spots seen at gross examination. Wischnewsky spots are not equivalent to erosions in terms of histopathological diagnosis but rather represent epiphenomena generated in vivo or in the agonal period of fatal hypothermia.     

A new method of age estimation based on the changes in human non-collagenous proteins from dentin

The new method exploits the characteristic of staphylococcal protease V8, which specifically splits peptide bonds where l-glutamic or l-aspartic acid participate. Those peptide bonds where d-aspartic acid is present remain unsplit because of the stereospecifity of enzymes. In accordance with expectations, fewer peptide bonds are split by this protease at more advanced ages and larger peptide fragments are thus formed due to the higher content of d-amino acid residues in the proteins of older people. The samples of acid-extracted non-collagenous proteins from dentin were separated using high performance liquid chromatography after enzymatic hydrolysis. A peak with a retention time of 45.3 min was chosen and his enlarging area showed a linear correlation with increasing age. Although the linear correlation with age was proved, the scattering of values decreases the usefulness of the proposed method for age estimation.