Calcium-dependent translocation of sorcin to membranes: functional relevance in contractile tissue

AbstractSorcin, a 22 kDa calcium binding protein present in abundance in cardiac tissue and in multi-drug resistant cells and previously described as a soluble protein, is now shown to undergo a calcium-dependent translocation process from the cytosol to cellular membranes in both systems. The translocation process takes place also in E. coli BL21 cells that express recombinant sorcin, r-sorcin, and can be exploited in the purification of the protein. Calcium binding to purified r-sorcin occurs at micromolar concentrations of the metal and is accompanied by a conformational change that renders the protein soluble in the non-ionic detergent Triton X-114. This finding suggests that lipids are the target of sorcin on cellular membranes. The possible significance of the calcium-dependent translocation of sorcin in the specialized functions of sorcin-expressing cells is discussed

Sketching women in court: The visual construction of co-accused women in court drawings

This paper explores the visual construction and representation of co-accused women offenders in court drawings. It utilises three case studies of female co-defendants who appeared in the England and Wales court system between 2003 and 2013. In doing so this paper falls into three parts. The first part considers the emergence of the sub-discipline, visual criminology and examines what is known about the visual representation of female offenders. The second part presents the findings of an empirical investigation, which involved engaging in a critical, reflexive visual analysis of a selection of court drawings of three female co-offenders. The third part discusses the ways in which the court artists' interpretation, the conventions of court sketching, and motifs of female offenders as secondary actors, drew on existing myths and prejudices by representing the women as listening, remorseless ‘others’