Ethnic and Cultural Factors in Substance Abuse.

Health care providers must recognize the importance of multicultural training in any effective diagnostic, treatment, or prevention service for substance abuse among adolescents. Current estimates indicate that by the year 2020, minorities will constitute 40% of all school-age Americans. The authors examine the cultural differences among the four major ethnic groups-African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian/Pacific Islanders, and Native/Alaskan Americans-and then discuss the design of programs targeted at each.

Clinical correlates of MMPI depression scales.

We investigated whether Scale 2 (Depression [D]) and the Wiggins Content Scale of Depression (DEP) of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) have different clinical correlates when only one of these two scales is elevated. According, a group of patients who elevated DEP higher than Scale 2 (DEP > 2) were compared with a group of patients who elevated Scale 2 higher than DEP (2 > DEP). The patients with DEP > 2 were rated as being less severe than the patients with 2 > DEP on the following Brief Psychiatric Rating Scales: Somatic Concern (SOM), Emotional Withdrawal (WDRA), Depressive Mood (DEP), and Blunted Affect (AFF). The patients with DEP > 2 were rated as more severe on Excitement (EXC). The patients with DEP > 2 were more likely to receive the Axis I diagnoses of: bipolar disorder, manic, and alcohol abuse. Schizophrenia was equally probable for patients in the two groups. It appears that these two MMPI scales of depression have different clinical correlates when either one scale or the other is elevated.

Memory modulation with peripherally acting cholinergic drugs.

Physostigmine (PHYSO), in doses as low as 0.003 mg/kg IP, antagonized scopolamine (SCOP, 3 mg/kg) induced amnesia of step-through passive avoidance in mice. The peripherally acting acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor neostigmine (NEO) was also found to reliably, though less strongly, antagonize the SCOP induced amnesia at a dose of 0.03 mg/kg. The NEO antagonism of the SCOP amnesia could be reversed with SCOP (0.3, 1, and 3 mg/kg) and mecamylamine (MECA, 1, 3, and 10 mg/kg), muscarinic and nicotinic antagonists, respectively, which are active both peripherally and centrally, as well as with M-SCOP (0.3 and 1 mg/kg) and hexamethonium (HEX, 1 and 3 mg/kg), muscarinic and nicotinic antagonists, respectively, which are active only in the periphery. In contrast to the ability of these four compounds to attenuate the SCOP amnesia, only the centrally acting compounds SCOP (3 mg/kg) and MECA (10 mg/kg) induced an amnesia when administered alone. These findings suggest that the induction of amnesia of passive avoidance involves central cholinergic systems, whereas the NEO, and possibly PHYSO, reversal of the SCOP induced amnesia is mediated peripherally by both muscarinic and nicotinic receptors. It is hypothesized that the release of adrenal catecholamines, the influence of which on memory processes is well known, and secondarily glucose, may be responsible for the NEO antagonism of the SCOP amnesia.

Food records: a predictor and modifier of weight change in a long-term weight loss program.

Overriding concerns about the accuracy of self-reported food records have overshadowed discussion of their practical value as a self-management, intervention tool. This study examined the relationship between keeping food records and subsequent weight loss in a large-scale, conservative weight loss program. Keeping food records was a better predictor of weight loss than were baseline body mass index, exercise, and age. Monthly as well as cumulative weight loss was directly related to the number of days in which food records were kept. The strong, linear relationship between food record patterns and weight loss suggests that in spite of legitimate concern about the accuracy and representativeness of self-reported food records, they have considerable power as a predictor of success in achieving weight loss.

Interrelations between structure and function in the vocal repertoire of Saimiri. Asking the monkeys themselves where to split and where to lump.

The identification of units used in primate vocal behaviour and the isolation of components essential for intraspecific communication (i.e. having a function) from possibly inessential ones (i.e. having no function) is an absolute prerequisite to a successful analysis of primate vocalizations. For most calls special methods are required because neither the essentials of structure nor their relation to function are known, nor the context involved. For calls without any distinct frequency modulation we showed that the animals utter calls containing categorical amplitude changes. The changes within one call are either very small or very large. The positions or the very large amplitude changes within a call depend on the social situation the animals were subjected to and affect the immediately succeeding vocalization of the conspecific. This proves that in vocal communication discrete components are produced (structure) as well as used (function).