Using Demand Curves to Quantify the Reinforcing Value of Social and Solitary Drinking.

Background: Young adults typically drink in social settings and report high levels of episodic heavy drinking despite a range of adverse consequences. Behavioral economics posits that this may reflect a reinforcer pathology in which alcohol is overvalued relative to other reinforcers. Theoretically, the value of alcohol is related to both the direct pharmacological effects of alcohol (euphoria, sedation) and the associated social reinforcement, but to date no studies have differentiated the value of social vs.

Pilot trial investigating a brief behavioral economic intervention as an adjunctive treatment for alcohol use disorder.

Objective: Behavioral economic research suggests that increasing the salience of a delayed reward may improve capacity for delaying gratification and increase behavior allocated toward obtaining larger, delayed substance-free reward rather than smaller, more immediate reward such as alcohol use. This study aimed to improve the efficacy of outpatient alcohol use disorder (AUD) treatment by adding elements that target behavioral economic mechanisms of change.

Method: Forty-one (N = 41) adults in outpatient AUD treatment were recruited and 37 participants were retained at follow-up.

Temporal precedence of self-regulation over depression and alcohol problems: Support for a model of self-regulatory failure.

Alcohol use is highly comorbid with depression, especially among college students, whose rates of both phenomena are higher than in the general population. The self-medication hypothesis (i.e.

Pilot Evaluation of a Tablet-Based Application to Improve Quality of Care in Child Mental Health Treatment.

Mental health systems need scalable solutions that can reduce the efficacy-effectiveness gap and improve mental health outcomes in community mental health service settings. Two major challenges to delivery of high-quality care are providers' fidelity to evidence-based treatment models and children's and caregivers' engagement in the treatment process. We developed a novel, tablet-based application designed to enhance via technology the quality of delivery of trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy (TF-CBT).

A Mobile Phone-Based Brief Intervention With Personalized Feedback and Text Messaging Is Associated With Reductions in Driving After Drinking Among College Drinkers.

Objective: Driving after drinking (DAD) among college students remains a significant public health concern and is perhaps the single riskiest drinking-related behavior. Counselor-delivered and web-based Brief Alcohol Interventions (BAIs) have been shown to reduce DAD among college students, but to date no study has evaluated the efficacy of a single-session mobile phone-based BAI specific to DAD. The present study examined whether a driving-specific BAI delivered via mobile phone would significantly decrease DAD among college students compared to an informational control.

Self-regulation as a mediator of the effects of a brief behavioral economic intervention on alcohol-related outcomes: A preliminary analysis.

Behavioral economic theory suggests that increased engagement in constructive, substance-free activities that are in the service of long-term goals (e.g., college graduation, career development, health) can decrease alcohol use and related problems.

Evaluating Behavioral Economic Models of Heavy Drinking Among College Students.

Background: Heavy drinking among college students is a significant public health concern that can lead to profound social and health consequences, including alcohol use disorder. Behavioral economics posits that low future orientation and high valuation of alcohol (alcohol demand) combined with deficits in alternative reinforcement increase the likelihood of alcohol misuse. Despite this, no study has examined the incremental utility of all 3 variables simultaneously in a comprehensive model.

Access to environmental reward mediates the relation between posttraumatic stress symptoms and alcohol problems and craving.

Symptoms of posttraumatic stress (PTS) show significant comorbidity with alcohol use, but little is known about the mechanisms that might account for this comorbidity. Deficits in reward functioning have long been implicated in alcohol misuse and more recently in PTS reactions, but no study has examined whether reward deprivation may serve as a transdiagnostic risk factor for comorbid PTS-alcohol misuse. The current cross-sectional study sought to test the behavioral economic hypothesis that reward deprivation would be related to both PTS symptoms and alcohol problems, and would mediate the relation between PTS symptoms and alcohol problems in college students.

Protective behavioral strategies mediate the relationship between behavioral economic risk factors and alcohol-related problems.

Behavioral economic measures of alcohol reward value and future orientation have received support as predictors of alcohol consumption, alcohol-related problems, and response to intervention. Protective behavioral strategies (PBS) have been shown to be a significant mediator between a variety of risk factors and alcohol-related problems. The current article examines direct and mediating associations between measures of alcohol reward value (proportionate substance-related activity participation and enjoyment) and future orientation, use of PBS, and alcohol-related problems.

Future so bright? Delay discounting and consideration of future consequences predict academic performance among college drinkers.

College student drinking is a major public health concern and can result in a range of negative consequences, from acute health risks to decreased academic performance and drop out. Harm reduction interventions have been developed to reduce problems associated with drinking but there is a need to identify specific risk/protective factors related to academic performance among college drinkers. Behavioral economics suggests that chronic alcohol misuse reflects a dysregulated behavioral process or reinforcer pathology-alcohol is overvalued and the value of prosocial rewards are sharply discounted due, in part, to their delay.

Alcohol Demand, Future Orientation, and Craving Mediate the Relation Between Depressive and Stress Symptoms and Alcohol Problems.

Background: Elevated depression and stress have been linked to greater levels of alcohol problems among young adults even after taking into account drinking level. This study attempts to elucidate variables that might mediate the relation between symptoms of depression and stress and alcohol problems, including alcohol demand, future time orientation, and craving.

Methods: Participants were 393 undergraduates (60.

Deficits in Access to Reward Are Associated with College Student Alcohol Use Disorder.

Background: Reward deprivation has been implicated in major depressive disorder and severe substance abuse, but its potential relation to alcohol use disorder (AUD) symptoms in non-treatment-seeking young adult drinkers is less clear. Depression is often comorbid with alcohol misuse, so relations of AUD with reward deprivation might be due in part to the presence of depressive symptoms in young adults. Behavioral economic theory views addiction as a state that is related in part to deficits in drug-free rewards, and therefore requires an investigation into whether reward deprivation has a direct relation to alcohol misuse that is, at least partially, independent of mood.

Clinical Decision-Making Following Disasters: Efficient Identification of PTSD Risk in Adolescents.

The present study aimed to utilize a Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) approach in order to improve clinical decision-making for adolescents at risk for the development of psychopathology in the aftermath of a natural disaster. Specifically we assessed theoretically-driven individual, interpersonal, and event-related vulnerability factors to determine which indices were most accurate in forecasting PTSD. Furthermore, we aimed to translate these etiological findings by identifying clinical cut-off recommendations for relevant vulnerability factors.

Development and Pilot Evaluation of a Tablet-Based Application to Improve Quality of Care in Child Mental Health Treatment.

Background: Children need access to high quality mental health care. Effective treatments now exist for a wide range of mental health conditions. However, these interventions are delivered with variable effectiveness in traditional mental health service settings.

Hematopoietic stem cells develop in the absence of endothelial cadherin 5 expression.

Rare endothelial cells in the aorta-gonad-mesonephros (AGM) transition into hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) during embryonic development. Lineage tracing experiments indicate that HSCs emerge from cadherin 5 (Cdh5; vascular endothelial-cadherin)(+) endothelial precursors, and isolated populations of Cdh5(+) cells from mouse embryos and embryonic stem cells can be differentiated into hematopoietic cells. Cdh5 has also been widely implicated as a marker of AGM-derived hemogenic endothelial cells.

Associations Among Parental Stress, Child Competence, and School-Readiness: Findings from the PACE Study.

Perceived parental stress has been consistently shown to negatively impact child functioning and ability to cope with stressful situations. Utilizing data from the parenting our children to excellence program, the current study examined the relationships among perceived parenting stress, coping competence, and school readiness in a sample of African American and Caucasian parents of preschool children (age 3-6) considered at high risk for child physical abuse. We hypothesized that child competence would mediate the relation between perceived parental stress and children's school readiness.

Bounce Back Now! Protocol of a population-based randomized controlled trial to examine the efficacy of a Web-based intervention with disaster-affected families.

Disasters have far-reaching and potentially long-lasting effects on youth and families. Research has consistently shown a clear increase in the prevalence of several mental health disorders after disasters, including depression and posttraumatic stress disorder. Widely accessible evidence-based interventions are needed to address this unmet need for youth and families, who are underrepresented in disaster research.

Frequency of mutations in individuals with breast cancer referred for BRCA1 and BRCA2 testing using next-generation sequencing with a 25-gene panel.

Background: Next-generation sequencing (NGS) allows for simultaneous sequencing of multiple cancer susceptibility genes and, for an individual, may be more efficient and less expensive than sequential testing. The authors assessed the frequency of deleterious germline mutations among individuals with breast cancer who were referred for BRCA1 and BRCA2 (BRCA1/2) gene testing using a panel of 25 genes associated with inherited cancer predisposition.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study using NGS in 2158 individuals, including 1781 who were referred for commercial BRCA1/2 gene testing (cohort 1) and 377 who had detailed personal and family history and had previously tested negative for BRCA1/2 mutations (cohort 2).

KISS1R signals independently of Gαq/11 and triggers LH secretion via the β-arrestin pathway in the male mouse.

Hypothalamic GnRH is the master regulator of the neuroendocrine reproductive axis, and its secretion is regulated by many factors. Among these is kisspeptin (Kp), a potent trigger of GnRH secretion. Kp signals via the Kp receptor (KISS1R), a Gαq/11-coupled 7-transmembrane-spanning receptor.

Providers' perspectives regarding the development of a web-based depression intervention for Latina/o youth.

Latina/o youth appear to be at significant risk for depression and, of concern, is the high underutilization of mental health services observed in this population. There is a tremendous need for novel intervention methods to better serve the unique needs of this population. This article describes the development of Rise Above (Siempre Sale el Sol), a Web-based, self-help, depression intervention for Latina/o adolescents funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.

Development and preliminary evaluation of a behavioural HIV-prevention programme for teenage girls of Latino descent in the USA.

National data suggests that teenage girls of Latino descent in the USA are disproportionately affected by HIV, with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting the rate of new infections being approximately four times higher compared to White women of comparable age . This paper highlights the need for an effective single-sex HIV-prevention programme for teenage girls of Latino descent and describes the development and preliminary evaluation of Chicas Healing, Informing, Living and Empowering (CHILE), a culturally-tailored, HIV-prevention programme exclusively for teenage girls of Latino descent that was adapted from Sisters Informing, Healing, Living and Empowering (SiHLE), an evidence-based HIV- prevention program that is culturally tailored for African American young women. Theatre testing, a pre-testing methodology to assess consumer response to a demonstration of a product, was utilised to evaluate the relevance and utility of the HIV programme as well as opportunities for the integration of cultural constructs.

Dynamic kisspeptin receptor trafficking modulates kisspeptin-mediated calcium signaling.

Kisspeptin receptor (KISS1R) signaling plays a critical role in the regulation of reproduction. We investigated the role of kisspeptin-stimulated KISS1R internalization, recycling, and degradation in the modulation of KISS1R signaling. Kisspeptin stimulation of Chinese hamster ovary or GT1-7 cells expressing KISS1R resulted in a biphasic increase in intracellular Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)]i), with a rapid acute increase followed by a more sustained second phase.