The nonprofit case for corporate volunteering: a multi-level perspective

This article argues that the nonprofit case for corporate volunteering is complex, requiring a multi-level perspective on the outcomes for nonprofit organizations (NPOs). To develop this perspective, we adopted an inductive research approach, conducting 39 exploratory semi-structured interviews with NPO staff. We argue that NPO scholars and practitioners should disentangle individual and organizational-level outcomes resulting from interactions between corporate volunteers and NPO staff, as such micro-dynamics ultimately affect NPO services. Moreover, these outcomes are subject to conditions at the organizational level (e.g. involvement of intermediaries), as well as at the individual level (e.g. type of assignment). Our study highlights the complexity that should be considered when addressing the fundamental question of whether corporate volunteering contributes to the ability of NPOs to provide their services, and under what conditions. We therefore propose that corporate volunteer management within NPOs is inherently, albeit contingently, intertwined with the services that these organizations provide

Reduction of Mitoferrin Results in Abnormal Development and Extended Lifespan in Caenorhabditis elegans

Iron is essential for organisms. It is mainly utilized in mitochondria for biosynthesis of iron-sulfur clusters, hemes and other cofactors. Mitoferrin 1 and mitoferrin 2, two homologues proteins belonging to the mitochondrial solute carrier family, are required for iron delivery into mitochondria. Mitoferrin 1 is highly expressed in developing erythrocytes which consume a large amount of iron during hemoglobinization. Mitoferrin 2 is ubiquitously expressed, whose functions are less known. Zebrafish with mitoferrin 1 mutation show profound hypochromic anaemia and erythroid maturation arrests, and yeast with defects in MRS3/4, the counterparts of mitoferrin 1/2, has low mitochondrial iron levels and grows poorly by iron depletion. Mitoferrin 1 expression is up-regulated in yeast and mouse models of Fiedreich's ataxia disease and in human cell culture models of Parkinson disease, suggesting its involvement in the pathogenesis of diseases with mitochondrial iron accumulation. In this study we found that reduced mitoferrin levels in C. elegans by RNAi treatment causes pleiotropic phenotypes such as small body size, reduced fecundity, slow movement and increased sensitivity to paraquat. Despite these abnormities, lifespan was increased by 50% to 80% in N2 wild type strain, and in further studies using the RNAi sensitive strain eri-1, more than doubled lifespan was observed. The pathways or mechanisms responsible for the lifespan extension and other phenotypes of mitoferrin RNAi worms are worth further study, which may contribute to our understanding of aging mechanisms and the pathogenesis of iron disorder related diseases

Die Multimodalität von Diskursen und die Rekonstruktion dispositiver Konstruktionen von Wirklichkeit – ein programmatischer Vorschlag aus techniksoziologischer Perspektive

Das Verhältnis von Diskursen zur materiellen Welt ist eines der aktuellsten Themen in der Diskurstheorie und -analyse. Noch ist nicht ausdiskutiert, wie Diskurse zur materiellen Welt stehen und auf Basis welcher theoretischen wie methodischen Referenzen eine entsprechende Analyse vonstattengehen könnte. Im vorliegenden Aufsatz wird deshalb ein Vorschlag unterbreitet, der im Anschluss an den Diskursbegriff der Wissenssoziologischen Diskursanalyse (WDA) und an die materialitätstheoretischen bzw. techniksoziologischen Arbeiten Latours Diskurse als multimodale Einheiten begreift, die neben sprachlichen Äußerungen auch materiale Artefakte – und zwar als potenziell eigenlogische Wissensgeneratoren – einschließen. Die im Anschluss daran explizierte These lautet, dass die Multimodalität von Diskursen mit dem Konzept des Dispositivs adäquat diskursanalytisch einbezogen und mit einschlägigen Methoden der qualitativen Sozialforschung angemessen empirisch untersucht werden kann