The search for a genetic vulnerability gene for substance abuse has focused on dopaminergic genes, including the DRD4 receptor. In addition to clear biological mechanisms in substance abuse, many studies have found a psychological attentional bias to drug-related stimuli in substance users. This study aimed to determine whether a DRD4 gene polymorphism is associated with such attentional biases...

Recent literature documents extensive substance misuse histories among US female prison inmates. The primary purpose of the present study was to determine whether histories of personal and familial substance misuse distinguished female inmates from substance misusers in treatment. After accounting for drug-related offences, we hypothesized that the inmates would have more extensive histories of...

An interaction is taken to be the situation in which the administration of a drug or substance induces changes in the pharmacokinetics of another simultaneously administered drug – either increasing or decreasing the plasma concentration of the latter, and thus giving rise to the possibility of adverse reactions [1]. According to the primarily responsible pharmacological mechanism, H 1 antihist...

Comorbidity of substance abuse disorders (SUD) and psychiatric disorders is one of the most important areas of investigation in contemporary drug abuse treatment research. This study examined the impact of psychiatric comorbidity on the treatment of 182 adolescent drug abusers in a randomized clinical trial comparing family and individual cognitive-behavioral therapy. Three distinct groups of a...

An unidentified peak in a drug substance or drug product chromatogram raises many questions. What is the impurity? What is the source of the impurity? How much impurity is there? Can the impurity level be reduced or eliminated? Is the impurity toxic? What do we do now? The answers to these questions are typically provided by scientists in chemistry, manufacturing and controls (CMC) and nonclini...

PURPOSE To test a socialization model of polydrug use among Mexican-American and white non-Hispanic school dropouts. METHODS A sample of 910 Mexican-American and white non-Hispanic school dropouts were surveyed regarding their use of alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs, and socialization characteristics that have previously been shown to be predictive of adolescent substance use. A structural...

Women experience alarming levels of physical and sexual assault, which may lead to escalation of substance use. Reciprocally, evidence from cross-sectional studies indicates that substance use may increase risk of assault. To date, directionality of this relationship remains unclear. This issue is addressed by the present 3-wave longitudinal study in which a national probability sample of 3,006...

Although the neighborhood microsystem is recognized as an important domain for adolescent development, relative to the family and peer contexts, neighborhood factors have been understudied in relation to adolescent substance abuse. In addition, recent research suggests that risk factors for adolescent substance use may differ for African Americans when compared to Caucasian youth. This study in...

Although alcohol and drug abuse are general problems in America, there is increasing recognition of the need to focus on special populations in which substance abuse magnifies other problems. African-Americans have been particularly vulnerable to the negative social and health consequences associated with substance abuse. For example, in comparison to whites, African-Americans experience an ear...