An Automated Squint Method for Time-syncing Behavior and Brain Dynamics in Mouse Pain Studies.

Spontaneous pain has been challenging to track in real time and quantify in a way that prevents human bias. This is especially true for metrics of head pain, as in disorders such as migraine. Eye squint has emerged as a continuous variable metric that can be measured over time and is effective for predicting pain states in such assays.

Self-Awareness from Whole-Body Movements.

Humans can recognize their whole-body movements even when displayed as dynamic dot patterns. The sparse depiction of whole-body movements, coupled with a lack of visual experience watching ourselves in the world, has long implicated nonvisual mechanisms to self-action recognition. Using general linear modeling and multivariate analyses on human brain imaging data from male and female participants, we aimed to identify the neural systems for this ability.

Lightening the mind with audiovisual stimulation as an accessible alternative to breath-focused meditation for mood and cognitive enhancement.

In this randomized, controlled, and double-blind experiment with a relatively large sample (n = 262), a novel technique of audiovisual stimulation (AVS) was demonstrated to substantially improve self-reported mood states by reducing several negative affects, including anxiety and depression, and enhancing performance on mood-sensitive cognitive tasks. Most of the AVS effects were highly similar whether binaural beats were present or not and regardless of the duration of experience. Remarkably, the mood benefits from AVS closely aligned with those achieved through breath-focused meditation with additional evidence that a brief AVS exposure of approximately five minutes may be sufficient or even optimal for improving mood to a comparable or greater degree than meditation sessions of equal or longer durations (11-22 min).

Transcriptomic Evaluation of a Stress Vulnerability Network Using Single-Cell RNA Sequencing in Mouse Prefrontal Cortex.

Background: Increased vulnerability to stress is a major risk factor for several mood disorders, including major depressive disorder. Although cellular and molecular mechanisms associated with depressive behaviors following stress have been identified, little is known about the mechanisms that confer the vulnerability that predisposes individuals to future damage from chronic stress.

Methods: We used multisite in vivo neurophysiology in freely behaving male and female C57BL/6 mice (n = 12) to measure electrical brain network activity previously identified as indicating a latent stress vulnerability brain state.

Prospective associations of family conflict with alcohol expectancies in the adolescent brain cognitive development study: effects of race and ethnicity.

Introduction: Alcohol expectancies predict subsequent alcohol use and related problems among adolescents, although predictors of alcohol expectancies remain unclear. This study examined the longitudinal association between family conflict, a sociocultural factor strongly implicated in adolescent alcohol use, and positive and negative alcohol expectancies of adolescents of diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds.

Methods: Data were from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study 4.

Associations Between Family History of Alcohol and/or Substance Use Problems and Frontal Cortical Development From 9 to 13 Years of Age: A Longitudinal Analysis of the ABCD Study.

Background: Previous investigations that have examined associations between family history (FH) of alcohol/substance use and adolescent brain development have been primarily cross-sectional. Here, leveraging a large population-based sample of youths, we characterized frontal cortical trajectories among 9- to 13-year-olds with (FH+) versus without (FH-) an FH and examined sex as a potential moderator.

Methods: We used data from 9710 participants in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (release 4.

Examining Gender Differences in the Relationship Between School Bonding and Opioid Misuse Among Justice-Involved Adolescents.

Justice-involved adolescents (JIAs) have an increased risk for opioid use disorder and overdose related to opioid misuse (OM). Consequences of untreated OM include recidivism and poor educational outcomes, which can be harsher for female JIA. Therefore, identifying relevant factors and settings that reduce the risk for OM is critical.

Effects of parental mental health and family environment on impulsivity in preadolescents: a longitudinal ABCD study.

Introduction: Impulsivity is a known risk factor for the development of substance use disorders and other psychiatric conditions that is influenced by both genetics and environment. Although research has linked parental mental health to children's impulsivity, potential mediators of this relationship remain understudied. The current investigation leverages the large national Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study to assess the mediating role of family conflict - an important social context for youth development - in the relationship between parental mental health and youth impulsivity.

Single Cell Transcriptome of Stress Vulnerability Network in mouse Prefrontal Cortex.

Increased vulnerability to stress is a major risk factor for the manifestation of several mood disorders, including major depressive disorder (MDD). Despite the status of MDD as a significant donor to global disability, the complex integration of genetic and environmental factors that contribute to the behavioral display of such disorders has made a thorough understanding of related etiology elusive. Recent developments suggest that a brain-wide network approach is needed, taking into account the complex interplay of cell types spanning multiple brain regions.

The Road to Universal Coverage: Where Are We Now?

The following was written as a commentary on an article we published in our Spring 2023 issue, "'Comprehensive Healthcare for America': Using the Insights of Behavioral Economics to Transform the U. S. Healthcare System," by Paul C.

Homegrown: Parent and Sibling Substance Abuse Linked to Opioid Misuse Among Justice-Involved Children.

Opioid misuse (OM) is a priority public health concern, especially for those in correctional settings. Understanding the etiology of OM among justice-involved children (JIC) is key to resolving this crisis. On average, 12% of all children and up to 50% of JIC in the United States have experienced household substance misuse (HSM).

The Inflation Reduction Act: How Will Medicare Negotiating Drug Prices Impact Patients with Heart Disease?

Purpose Of Review: Cardiovascular medications improve health and prevent early death. However, high drug prices reduce the use of these medications and strain the health system. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 allows Medicare to negotiate drug prices with manufacturers and reduces out-of-pocket drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries.

Dissociating Language and Thought in Human Reasoning.

What is the relationship between language and complex thought? In the context of deductive reasoning there are two main views. Under the first, which we label here the language-centric view, language is central to the syntax-like combinatorial operations of complex reasoning. Under the second, which we label here the language-independent view, these operations are dissociable from the mechanisms of natural language.

The nexus between gender, parental supervision, and opioid misuse among justice-involved adolescents.

Justice-involved adolescents (JIA) are at higher risk for opioid misuse (OM) and opioid-related overdose than nonoffending adolescents. Untreated OM can lead to severe consequences (e.g.

Racial/Ethnic Differences in the Effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Substance Misuse among Justice-Involved Children.

: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are linked to substance use (SU) and substance use disorders (SUD). However, this relationship has yet to be tested among justice-involved children (JIC), and it is unclear if racial/ethnic differences exist. This study aimed to determine: (1) whether ACEs are associated with increased risk of SU and SUD among JIC; and (2) if the effects of ACEs on SU and SUD are moderated by race/ethnicity.

Black girls and referrals: racial and gender disparities in self-reported referral to substance use disorder assessment among justice-involved children.

Background: There is a higher prevalence of substance use disorder (SUD) among justice-involved children (JIC). It is critical to ensure that JIC who report current use are referred for SUD assessment and potentially life-saving treatment services. Prior research suggests that certain minoritized groups may be less likely to have ever been referred for screening, and research on intersectionality suggests that these disparities may be exacerbated for racially minoritized females.

Primary Purpose for Committing a Crime and Past-30 Day Opioid Misuse: A Statewide Sample of Justice-Involved Children.

The prevalence of opioid misuse (OM) among justice-involved children (JIC) is significantly higher than children in the general population, yet little research has examined the predictors of OM among JIC. Goldstein's "economic compulsive model" hypothesizes that JIC who commit crimes for material gain will have a higher likelihood of meeting past-30 day (P30D) OM criteria. The data in this study were cross-sectional and represented 79,960 Florida JIC.

Preventing Adolescent Opioid Misuse: Racial/Ethnic Differences in the Protective Effects of Extracurricular Activities.

Objective: Participation in extracurricular activities has been largely shown to be protective against adolescent substance use. However, research has yet to examine whether extracurricular activities are specifically protective against adolescent opioid misuse and if these protective effects vary by race/ethnicity. This study focuses on a high-risk population for drug use (i.

Sex differences in the association of adverse childhood experiences on past 30-day opioid misuse among Florida justice-involved children.

Introduction: Opioid misuse remains a chief public health concern in the United States, especially among justice-involved children and adolescents (JIC). Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are prevalent among JIC and are associated with a higher risk for opioid misuse. Justice involvement can be harsher for females, who tend to have higher ACE scores and experience more physiological and psychological risk factors than males.

Ultrasonic Deep Brain Neuromodulation in Acute Disorders of Consciousness: A Proof-of-Concept.

The promotion of recovery in patients who have entered a disorder of consciousness (DOC; e.g., coma or vegetative states) following severe brain injury remains an enduring medical challenge despite an ever-growing scientific understanding of these conditions.

Neural oscillations track recovery of consciousness in acute traumatic brain injury patients.

Electroencephalography (EEG), easily deployed at the bedside, is an attractive modality for deriving quantitative biomarkers of prognosis and differential diagnosis in severe brain injury and disorders of consciousness (DOC). Prior work by Schiff has identified four dynamic regimes of progressive recovery of consciousness defined by the presence or absence of thalamically-driven EEG oscillations. These four predefined categories (ABCD model) relate, on a theoretical level, to thalamocortical integrity and, on an empirical level, to behavioral outcome in patients with cardiac arrest coma etiologies.