Scripting Stranger Sexual Offenses Against Women.

This study identifies the first crime script for unsolved stranger sexual offenses against women. The purpose is to better understand the crime-commission process of solved and unsolved stranger sexual offenses and identify potential points of intervention for prevention purposes. Crime script analysis was performed on 542 solved (n = 265) and unsolved (n = 277) cases based on police data in Queensland, Australia, followed by a comparison between solved and unsolved crime scripts. Results showed that unsolved offenses tended to be associated with the following factors: the offender fleeing/desisting, using minimal force, less intrusive sexual outcomes, and less verbal engagement with the victim. In these cases, there was a lack of information regarding forensic evidence, behavioral clues, and eyewitness leads. This highlights the relevance of focusing on situational crime prevention and policing strategies that may deter stranger sexual crimes at the earliest stages of the script.

Situational Crime Prevention in Sexual Offenses Against Women: Offenders Tell Us What Works and What Doesn't.

This study examined the perceived effectiveness of situational crime prevention (SCP) in sexual assault as rated by 140 offenders convicted for sex offenses against women in Australia. Participants were presented with three scenarios and asked to rate the perceived effectiveness of SCP techniques relating to guardianship, victim self-protective behavior, and crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED). Results indicate that the effectiveness of SCP methods was perceived to vary across different contexts. For offenses occurring in the private setting of an offender's home, victim self-protective behavior was seen as most effective, followed by guardianship and CPTED. In public settings, although the perceived effectiveness of victim self-protective behavior remained the same, guardianship and CPTED were rated as significantly more effective. Further variations were identified regarding specific strategies. Findings highlight the nuances of offender decision making in different situations and environments, and provide the first empirical comparisons of SCP perceptions among sex offenders.

Sexual Violence and Abuse Against Children: A First Review Through the Lens of Environmental Criminology.

Most criminal justice responses to address sexual violence and abuse against children are aimed at identifying and incarcerating offenders or at best, trying to prevent them from reoffending. This policy situation, primarily characterized by tertiary intervention strategies, is exacerbated by a lack of evidence-based knowledge about the circumstances in which this phenomenon occurs. This specific information can inform certain types of primary and secondary prevention strategies. In this study, we are taking the first steps to address this situation by (a) organising and reviewing for the first time the empirical knowledge on this phenomenon according to questions asked by environmental criminologists and crime analysts, that is, the who, what, where, when, and how this phenomenon occurs, and (b) discussing directions for future research. By engaging in this exercise, we argue that environmental criminology can substantially contribute to understanding and informing prevention practices in the field of sexual violence and abuse against children.

Regulation of steroid production: analysis of Cyp11a1 promoter.

CYP11A1 is a key enzyme in steroid synthesis abundantly expressed in the adrenal, testis, ovary, and placenta. This article reviews recent studies on cis-regulatory elements and trans-regulators of the CYP11A1 promoter, with special focus on their tissue-specific regulation. Trans-regulators include tissue-specific factors such as SF-1, DAX-1, TReP-132, LBP, and GATA that regulate tissue-specific expression of CYP11A1. These tissue-specific factors interact with factors commonly present in most cells like AP-1, Sp1, and AP-2 to bring CYP11A1 transcription to full potential. These transcription factors stimulate CYP11A1 transcriptional activity through interaction with their specific cis-elements or through protein-protein interaction. The cis-element on the Cyp11a1 promoter was further characterized in vitro and in vivo. Mutation of the proximal SF-1-binding site results in down regulation of CYP11A1 in the adrenal and testis but not in the ovary and placenta, leading to attenuated corticosterone circadian rhythms and blunted stress response.

Leptin interferes with adrenocorticotropin/3',5'-cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) signaling, possibly through a Janus kinase 2-phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt-phosphodiesterase 3-cAMP pathway, to down-regulate cholesterol side-chain cleavage cytochrome P450 enzyme in human adrenocortical NCI-H295 cell line.

CONTEXT: Obesity has adverse effects on adrenocortical functions. Adipocyte-derived leptin, a biomarker molecule of obesity, may directly control adrenal steroidogenesis via an unclear mechanism. OBJECTIVE: We studied the mechanism underlying leptin action on adrenal steroidogenesis in human adrenocortical NCI-H295 tumor cell line. METHODS: Levels of progesterone, cortisol, and cAMP were determined by ELISA. Western blotting was used to detect protein amounts of P450 side-chain cleavage (P450scc), Janus kinase 2 (JAK2), Akt, and their phosphorylated forms. The mRNA expressions of P450scc and leptin receptors were measured by RT-PCR and real-time PCR. P450scc promoter activity was analyzed with a luciferase reporter system. RESULTS: Cholera toxin mimicked ACTH action by increasing adrenal cAMP levels and steroid secretion. Leptin did not affect basal release but significantly inhibited ACTH/cholera toxin-induced steroid secretion. The concomitant inhibitions by leptin on cholera toxin-induced protein and ACTH/cholera toxin-induced mRNA expression of P450scc were confirmed. Leptin inhibited ACTH/cholera toxin-induced CYP11A1 promoter activity via a known cAMP-responsive region located between -1.7 and -1.5 kb. Leptin activated phosphorylations of JAK2 and Akt. Inhibitory effects of leptin on ACTH/cholera toxin-induced cAMP levels, CYP11A1 promoter activity, and steroid secretion were blunted by either inhibitor of JAK2 (AG490) or phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt (wortmannin) as well as inhibitors of cAMP-degrading phosphodiesterases (PDEs), including nonspecific 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine and PDE3-specific SKF94836. Leptin failed to affect the inductions of CYP11A1 promoter activity and steroid secretion by PDE-nonhydrolyzable N(6)-monobutyryl-cAMP. CONCLUSIONS: Leptin interferes with ACTH/cAMP signaling, possibly through a cAMP-degrading mechanism involving activation of JAK2, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, and PDE3, to down-regulate P450scc expression and consequent adrenal steroidogenesis.