23196089
Antisocial behavior, substance use, and somatization in families of adolescent drug abusers and adolescent controls.
Symptoms of conduct disorder (CD), antisocial personality disorder (ASP), alcohol abuse, drug abuse, and somatization were tabulated for the families of 35 delinquent, substance-abusing (multiple-problem) adolescent male probands and 35 age-matched control males. Alcohol abuse, CD/ASP, and somatization were assessed with either the Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS) (for participants aged 18 and up) or the Diagnostic Interview for Children and Adolescents (DICA) (for participants aged 12 to 17). Drug abuse for all participants was assessed with the Substance Abuse Module (SAM) of the Comprehensive Interview for Diagnostic Evaluation (CIDE). As expected, proband groups had significantly more (p < .0001) CD/ASP, alcohol abuse, and drug abuse symptoms than control groups. A significant (p < .01) positive correlation among CD/ASP, alcohol abuse, and drug abuse was found for each group. Somatization was not differentially associated with proband status. It was concluded that identifying male multiple-problem youths also identifies families with a high incidence of similar problems.
22385130
An update on the Florida State Twin Registry.
The Florida State Twin Registry began in 2002 through a pilot study of personality disorders and executive cognitive functioning in adult twins. Since 2006, the registry has grown substantially as part of the Learning Disability Research Center at Florida State University that recently began its second funding cycle through the National Institute of Child Health and Development. An update on the Florida State Twin Registry sample, focus, and measures is provided, as well as future directions.
5250005
Common genetic and nonshared environmental factors contribute to the association between socioemotional dispositions and the externalizing factor in children.
BACKGROUND
Childhood behavioral disorders including conduct disorder (CD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often co-occur. Prior twin research shows that common sets of genetic and environmental factors are associated with these various disorders and they form a latent factor called Externalizing. The developmental propensity model posits that CD develops in part from socioemotional dispositions of prosociality, negative emotionality, and daring; and recent research has supported the expected genetic and environmental associations between these dispositions and CD. This study examined the developmental propensity model in relation to the broader Externalizing factor that represents the covariance among behavior disorders in children.


METHODS
Parents of 686 six- to twelve-year-old twin pairs rated them on symptoms of CD, ADHD, and ODD using the disruptive behavior disorder scale and on prosociality, negative emotionality, and daring using the child and adolescent dispositions scale. A latent factor multivariate Cholesky model was used with each disposition latent factor comprised of respective questionnaire items and the Externalizing factor comprised of symptom dimensions of CD, ADHD inattention, ADHD hyperactivity/impulsivity, and ODD.


RESULTS
Results supported the hypothesis that the socioemotional dispositions and the Externalizing factor have genetic factors in common, but there was not a single genetic factor associated with all of the constructs. As expected, nonshared environment factors were shared by the dispositions and externalizing factor but, again, no single nonshared environmental factor was common to all constructs. A shared environmental factor was associated with both negative emotionality and externalizing.


CONCLUSIONS
The developmental propensity model was supported and appears to extend to the broader externalizing spectrum of childhood disorders. Socioemotional dispositions of prosociality, negative emotionality, and (to a lesser extent) daring may contribute to the covariation among behavioral disorders and perhaps to their comorbid expression through common sets of primarily genetic but also environmental factors.
24035579
Substance Use Disorders and Cluster B Personality Disorders: Physiological, Cognitive, and Environmental Correlates in a College Sample
Substance use disorders (SUDs) and Cluster B personality disorders (PDs) are both marked by impulsivity and poor behavioral control and may result in part from shared neurobiological or executive cognitive functioning deficits. To examine the potential utility of such models in explaining variance in SUDs and PDs at the lower end of symptom expression and impairment, 123 (73 female) volunteer college students were administered 2 measures of executive cognitive functioning; a task assessing autonomic reactivity to aversive noise blasts; a life events and a peer substance use measure; and structured clinical interviews to assess symptoms of substance abuse/dependence and antisocial, borderline, histrionic, and narcissistic PDs. As expected, symptoms of SUDs and PDs were significantly positively correlated. Antisocial PD, alcohol and cannabis use disorder symptoms were significantly positively related to proportion of friends who use alcohol and drugs regularly and drug use among romantic partners. Number of negative life events was positively related to PD symptoms and to alcohol use disorder symptoms. Executive cognitive functioning was not related to SUD and PD symptoms in the expected direction. Findings suggest that, among higher functioning young adults, environmental factors may be particularly relevant to our understanding of SUDs and certain PDs.
3707230
Personality trait differences in boys and girls with clinical or sub-clinical diagnoses of conduct disorder versus antisocial personality disorder.
This study tested differences in personality traits measured by the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) in a community sample of adolescents with definite or probable conduct disorder (CD) diagnoses that did not progress to a diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) by early adulthood (n=43), those with definite or probable ASPD that persisted into early adulthood (n=68), or controls with neither a CD nor an ASPD diagnosis (n=716) to examine whether antisocial behaviour disorders that differed in course were associated with differences in personality traits. As expected, boys and girls with ASPD were significantly different from controls on constraint, and those with ASPD were significantly lower on constraint than those with only CD. The results suggest that individual differences in certain personality traits may contribute to differences in the type of antisocial behaviour disorder that emerges and thereby to the course of antisocial behaviour.
43587475
Development of substance dependence in two delinquency subgroups and nondelinquents from a male twin sample.
OBJECTIVE
The effect of delinquency subtype on the development of substance dependence symptoms was examined. It was proposed that early-onset delinquents possess characteristics that increase their likelihood of developing substance dependence problems earlier and more rapidly than late-onset delinquents and nondelinquents.


METHOD
The development of alcohol, nicotine, and cannabis dependence symptoms (DSM-III-R) was examined over a 6-year period of adolescence (age 11-17) among 36 early-onset delinquent, 86 late-onset delinquent, and 25 nondelinquent boys from a large epidemiological twin sample. Multilevel/random coefficients models were used to compare groups on the rate of growth in number of symptoms over time.


RESULTS
As expected, early-onset delinquents showed an earlier onset and a faster rate of increase in the number of cannabis and nicotine dependence symptoms than late-onset delinquents and controls. Both delinquent groups had a more rapid increase in alcohol dependence symptoms than controls.


CONCLUSIONS
The data showed that early-onset delinquency is associated with earlier onset of substance use disorder symptoms and more rapid acceleration of problems with drugs than late-onset delinquency. Treatments for boys with early-onset delinquency should account for their increased risk for drug use problems in adolescence and the potential effects of those problems on the course of antisocial behavior.
20214634
Preparation of free-standing films from kafirin protein microparticles: mechanism of formation and functional properties.
A method of preparing free-standing films using kafirin microparticles made by phase separation from acetic acid is described. Film preparation involved the suspension of the microparticles in acetic acid solution containing plasticizer. On evaporation of the acetic acid, a complete, smooth, flexible, transparent film was formed. A minimum concentration of acid was required to form a cohesive film relative to the concentration of kafirin. This was approximately 10.8:1, percent acetic acid to percent kafirin. Film formation appears to be by controlled aggregation of kafirin microparticles, followed by dissolution of the microparticles in acetic acid and drying into a cohesive film. The functional properties of microparticle films were generally superior to films cast directly from a solution of kafirin, at the same protein content. Kafirin microparticle films were very thin (<15 microm), relatively strong but not very extensible, with better water barrier properties and lower protein digestibility than conventionally cast kafirin films.
24529809
Multiple-electrode nerve cuffs for low-velocity and velocity-selective neural recording
In the paper, a method using multiple-electrode nerve cuffs is presented that enables electroneurographic signals (ENG) to be recorded selectively by action potential velocity. The theory uses a one-dimensional model of the electrodes in the cuff. Using this model, the transfer function for a single tripole is derived, and it is shown that more than one tripole signal can be recorded from within a cuff. When many tripole signals are available and are temporally aligned by artificial delays and summed, there is a significant increase in the amplitude of the recorded action potential, depending on the cuff length and the action potential velocity, with the greatest gain occurring for low velocities. For example, a cuff was considered that was constrained by surgical considerations to 30 mm between the end electrodes. For action potentials with a velocity of 120 ms−1, it was shown that, as the number of tripoles increased from one, the peak energy spectral density of the recorded output increased by a factor of about 1.6 with three tripoles, whereas, for 20 ms−1, the increase was about 19, with ten tripoles. The time delays and summation act as a velocity-selective filter. With consideration of the energy spectral densities at frequencies where are maximum (to give the best signal-to-noise ratio), the tuning curves are presented for these velocity-selective filters and show that useful velocity resolution is possible using this method. For a 30 mm cuff with nine tripoles, it is demonstrated that it is possible to resolve at least five distinct velocity bands in the range 20–120 ms−1.
24886138
Comparison and characteristics of motor vehicle accident (MVA) and non-MVA driving fears.
Prior research has revealed the diagnostic complexity among people who report driving fears. However, the focus on survivors of motor vehicle accidents (MVAs) and diagnostic samples may have inadvertently led to a relative neglect of the broader driving-fearful population. No studies could be located that compared MVA survivors with those who had not experienced an MVA. The aim of the present study was to address these deficits by comparing the characteristics of MVA and non-MVA driving-fearfuls and also exploring a range of characteristics associated with driving fears. One hundred and ninety media-recruited driving-fearfuls completed a questionnaire that assessed severity of anxiety and avoidance associated with a variety of driving situations. It was found that fear levels were similar to samples of driving phobics and MVA victims. There were no significant differences between MVA and non-MVA respondents on various measures of fear severity. In addition, the sample rated a high level of anxiety when driving with someone who criticizes their driving. Implications of the findings are discussed, along with suggestions for assessment and treatment of those with driving-related fears.
30168021
Predicting the microbial exposure risks in urban floods using GIS, building simulation, and microbial models.
London is expected to experience more frequent periods of intense rainfall and tidal surges, leading to an increase in the risk of flooding. Damp and flooded dwellings can support microbial growth, including mould, bacteria, and protozoa, as well as persistence of flood-borne microorganisms. The amount of time flooded dwellings remain damp will depend on the duration and height of the flood, the contents of the flood water, the drying conditions, and the building construction, leading to particular properties and property types being prone to lingering damp and human pathogen growth or persistence. The impact of flooding on buildings can be simulated using Heat Air and Moisture (HAM) models of varying complexity in order to understand how water can be absorbed and dry out of the building structure. This paper describes the simulation of the drying of building archetypes representative of the English building stock using the EnergyPlus based tool 'UCL-HAMT' in order to determine the drying rates of different abandoned structures flooded to different heights and during different seasons. The results are mapped out using GIS in order to estimate the spatial risk across London in terms of comparative flood vulnerability, as well as for specific flood events. Areas of South and East London were found to be particularly vulnerable to long-term microbial exposure following major flood events.
42563847
Driving fear and driving skills: comparison between fearful and control samples using standardised on-road assessment.
The present study explores driving skills in a group of 50 media-recruited driving-fearful and 50 control drivers, all of whom were women. Participants completed an on-road practical driving assessment with a professional driving instructor. Diagnostic as well as pre-post self-report and instructor driving assessments were conducted. Fearful drivers made more errors on the driving assessment than controls. However, the pattern of errors was identical for both groups, indicating that fear and anxiety may be associated with the number rather than the type of driving errors made. These differences remained when factors such as driving history, current driving frequency, and diagnosis were controlled using case selection. More research is needed to replicate the findings in more diverse samples. Additional work should also aim to clarify the specific role of driving skills in driving fear, which will facilitate treatment planning for exposure-based treatments and help identify cases where driving skills assessment may be appropriate.