The effectiveness of specialized legal counsel and case management services for indigent offenders with mental illness

Background: In recent years, jurisdictions have recognized the strain placed on limited existing resources by criminal offenders with mental illness who frequently cycle through local jail facilities. In response, many locales have developed and implemented specialized programs to more effectively and efficiently manage these offenders, particularly the process of assigning defense attorneys to these often indigent defendants. Methods: The current study examined the impact of an Indigent Defense Counsel (IDC) program designed to provide specially trained defense attorneys, and enhanced case management services to 257 indigent jail inmates with a qualifying, major mental health diagnosis (e.g., major depression). These offenders were compared to 117 similar offenders who did not receive these services, on both their length of stay in the jail, and their likelihood of recidivism after release to the community. Results: Survival analyses revealed that program participants spent about 17 fewer days in jail; however, recidivism rates between groups, measured as return to the same county jail or as statewide re-arrest, did not differ. Conclusions: These results suggest that defendants with mental illness can potentially be managed effectively in the community, with little added risk to public safety and at potential savings in jail bed days/costs. Implications for the processing of indigent criminal defendants with mental illness are presented

Caenorhabditis elegans PIEZO Channel Coordinates Multiple Reproductive Tissues to Govern Ovulation

PIEZO1 and PIEZO2 are newly identified mechanosensitive ion channels that exhibit a preference for calcium in response to mechanical stimuli. In this study, we discovered the vital roles of pezo-1, the sole PIEZO ortholog in Caenorhabditiselegans, in regulating reproduction. A number of deletion alleles, as well as a putative gain-of-function mutant, of PEZO-1 caused a severe reduction in brood size. In vivo observations showed that oocytes undergo a variety of transit defects as they enter and exit the spermatheca during ovulation. Post-ovulation oocytes were frequently damaged during spermathecal contraction. However, the calcium signaling was not dramatically changed in the pezo-1 mutants during ovulation. Loss of PEZO-1 also led to an inability of self-sperm to navigate back to the spermatheca properly after being pushed out of the spermatheca during ovulation. These findings suggest that PEZO-1 acts in different reproductive tissues to promote proper ovulation and fertilization in C. elegans

Transcriptome Profiling of the Intoxication Response of Tenebrio molitor Larvae to Bacillus thuringiensis Cry3Aa Protoxin

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) crystal (Cry) proteins are effective against a select number of insect pests, but improvements are needed to increase efficacy and decrease time to mortality for coleopteran pests. To gain insight into the Bt intoxication process in Coleoptera, we performed RNA-Seq on cDNA generated from the guts of Tenebrio molitor larvae that consumed either a control diet or a diet containing Cry3Aa protoxin. Approximately 134,090 and 124,287 sequence reads from the control and Cry3Aa-treated groups were assembled into 1,318 and 1,140 contigs, respectively. Enrichment analyses indicated that functions associated with mitochondrial respiration, signalling, maintenance of cell structure, membrane integrity, protein recycling/synthesis, and glycosyl hydrolases were significantly increased in Cry3Aa-treated larvae, whereas functions associated with many metabolic processes were reduced, especially glycolysis, tricarboxylic acid cycle, and fatty acid synthesis. Microarray analysis was used to evaluate temporal changes in gene expression after 6, 12 or 24 h of Cry3Aa exposure. Overall, microarray analysis indicated that transcripts related to allergens, chitin-binding proteins, glycosyl hydrolases, and tubulins were induced, and those related to immunity and metabolism were repressed in Cry3Aa-intoxicated larvae. The 24 h microarray data validated most of the RNA-Seq data. Of the three intoxication intervals, larvae demonstrated more differential expression of transcripts after 12 h exposure to Cry3Aa. Gene expression examined by three different methods in control vs. Cry3Aa-treated larvae at the 24 h time point indicated that transcripts encoding proteins with chitin-binding domain 3 were the most differentially expressed in Cry3Aa-intoxicated larvae. Overall, the data suggest that T. molitor larvae mount a complex response to Cry3Aa during the initial 24 h of intoxication. Data from this study represent the largest genetic sequence dataset for T. molitor to date. Furthermore, the methods in this study are useful for comparative analyses in organisms lacking a sequenced genome

Ancestral roles of the Fam20C family of secreted protein kinases revealed in C. elegans.

Fam20C is a secreted protein kinase mutated in Raine syndrome, a human skeletal disorder. In vertebrates, bone and enamel proteins are major Fam20C substrates. However, Fam20 kinases are conserved in invertebrates lacking bone and enamel, suggesting other ancestral functions. We show that FAMK-1, the Caenorhabditis elegans Fam20C orthologue, contributes to fertility, embryogenesis, and development. These functions are not fulfilled when FAMK-1 is retained in the early secretory pathway. During embryogenesis, FAMK-1 maintains intercellular partitions and prevents multinucleation; notably, temperature elevation or lowering cortical stiffness reduces requirement for FAMK-1 in these contexts. FAMK-1 is expressed in multiple adult tissues that undergo repeated mechanical strain, and selective expression in the spermatheca restores fertility. Informatic, biochemical, and functional analysis implicate lectins as FAMK-1 substrates. These findings suggest that FAMK-1 phosphorylation of substrates, including lectins, in the late secretory pathway is important in embryonic and tissue contexts where cells are subjected to mechanical strain

Something Old, Something New: A Preliminary Investigation of Hirschi's Redefined Self-Control

Gottfredson and Hirschi's general theory of crime has generated an impressive array of theoretical and empirical research. One particular area of research has concerned the definition and operationalization of self-control. Recently, Hirschi has redefined self-control as the tendency to consider the full range of potential costs of a particular act, and suggests that such inhibiting factors vary in both number and salience in how they relate to criminal activity. This study reports the results of an original data collection effort designed to measure Hirschi's redefined and reconceptualized self-control concept and compares its predictive ability to the most commonly used attitudinal measure of self-control. Results suggest that Hirschi's redefined self-control concept, and our measurement of it, is significantly and negatively associated with two types of criminal acts, and it eliminates the direct effect of a commonly used attitudinal measure of self-control. As a point of theoretical extension, we offer that self-control should be considered in a situational manner. Future theoretical and empirical directions are outlined

The General Factor of Self-Control and Cost Consideration: A Critical Test of the General Theory of Crime

The general theory of crime proposes that the components that make up self-control increase crime by “affecting the calculation of the consequences of one’s acts” (i.e., cost consideration). Despite receiving empirical attention, little is known about the validity of this aspect of the theory because a general factor of self-control has not been empirically linked to cost consideration. As recent research supports the existence of a general factor, this study examines the impact of a general factor and specific factors on cost consideration and offending intentions. Results support the existence of a general factor, which has a large direct effect on offending intentions, but only a small indirect effect, in contrast to the theory’s predictions. Implications for the theory and future research are presented.</jats:p

Functional Synthetic Biology

Synthetic biologists have made great progress over the past decade in developing methods for modular assembly of genetic sequences and in engineering biological systems with a wide variety of functions in various contexts and organisms. However, current paradigms in the field entangle sequence and functionality in a manner that makes abstraction difficult, reduces engineering flexibility and impairs predictability and design reuse. Functional Synthetic Biology aims to overcome these impediments by focusing the design of biological systems on function, rather than on sequence. This reorientation will decouple the engineering of biological devices from the specifics of how those devices are put to use, requiring both conceptual and organizational change, as well as supporting software tooling. Realizing this vision of Functional Synthetic Biology will allow more flexibility in how devices are used, more opportunity for reuse of devices and data, improvements in predictability and reductions in technical risk and cost.</p

Functional Synthetic Biology

Synthetic biologists have made great progress over the past decade in developing methods for modular assembly of genetic sequences and in engineering biological systems with a wide variety of functions in various contexts and organisms. However, current paradigms in the field entangle sequence and functionality in a manner that makes abstraction difficult, reduces engineering flexibility and impairs predictability and design reuse. Functional Synthetic Biology aims to overcome these impediments by focusing the design of biological systems on function, rather than on sequence. This reorientation will decouple the engineering of biological devices from the specifics of how those devices are put to use, requiring both conceptual and organizational change, as well as supporting software tooling. Realizing this vision of Functional Synthetic Biology will allow more flexibility in how devices are used, more opportunity for reuse of devices and data, improvements in predictability and reductions in technical risk and cost