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Objective: Variations in the genes encoding alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) enzymes are associated with both alcohol consumption and dependence in multiple populations. Additionally, some environmental factors have been recognized as modifiers of these relationships. This study examined the modifying effect of religious involvement on relationships between ADH gene variants and alcohol consumption-related phenotypes., Method: Subjects were African American, European American, and Hispanic American adults with lifetime exposure to alcohol (N = 7,716; 53% female) from the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism. Genetic markers included ADH1Brs1229984, ADH1B-rs2066702, ADH1C-rs698, ADH4-rs1042364, and ADH4-rs1800759. Phenotypes were maximum drinks consumed in a 24-hour period and total number of alcohol dependence symptoms according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition. Religious involvement was defined by self-reported religious services attendance., Results: Both religious involvement and ADH1B-rs1229984 were negatively associated with the number of maximum drinks consumed and the number of lifetime alcohol dependence symptoms endorsed. The interactions of religious involvement with ADH1B-rs2066702, ADH1C-rs698, and ADH4-rs1042364 were significantly associated with maximum drinks and alcohol dependence symptoms. Risk variants had weaker associations with maximum drinks and alcohol dependence symptoms as a function of increasing religious involvement., Conclusions: This study provided initial evidence of a modifying effect for religious involvement on relationships between ADH variants and maximum drinks and alcohol dependence symptoms.

Objective: Research consistently shows a positive association between racial discrimination and problematic alcohol use among African Americans, but little is known about the micro-processes linking this pernicious form of stress to drinking. One possibility is that the cumulative effects of discrimination increase individuals' likelihood of negative-mood-related drinking. In the current study, we examined whether individual differences in lifetime perceived racial discrimination among African American college students moderate relations between daily negative moods and evening alcohol consumption in both social and nonsocial contexts., Method: Data came from an online daily diary study of 441 African Americans (58% female) enrolled at a historically black college/university. Lifetime discrimination was measured at baseline. For 30 days, students reported the number of drinks they consumed the night before both socially and nonsocially, as well as their daytime level of negative mood., Results: In support of the hypotheses, only men who reported higher (vs. lower) lifetime discrimination showed a positive association between daily negative mood and that evening's level of nonsocial drinking. Contrary to expectation, women who reported higher (vs. lower) discrimination showed a negative association between daily negative mood and nonsocial drinking. Neither daily negative mood nor lifetime discrimination predicted level of social drinking., Conclusions: These findings provide further evidence that the cumulative impact of racial discrimination may produce a vulnerability to negative-mood-related drinking--but only for African American men. Importantly, these effects emerged only for nonsocial drinking, which may further explain the robust association between discrimination and problematic alcohol use.

Background: Health disparities research seeks to eliminate disproportionate negative health outcomes experienced in some racial/ethnic minority groups. This brief review presents findings on factors associated with drinking and alcohol-related problems in racial/ethnic groups., Methods: Those discussed are as follows: (i) biological pathways to alcohol problems, (ii) gene × stress interactions, (iii) neighborhood disadvantage, stress, and access to alcohol, and (iv) drinking cultures and contexts., Results: These factors and their interrelationships are complex, requiring a multilevel perspective., Conclusions: The use of interdisciplinary teams and an epigenetic focus are suggested to move the research forward. The application of multilevel research to policy, prevention, and intervention programs may help prioritize combinations of the most promising intervention targets., (Copyright © 2014 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.)

Introduction: The relationship between alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) polymorphisms and alcohol use disorders in populations of African descent has not been clearly established. This study examined the effect of ADH1B polymorphisms on alcohol metabolism and subjective response, following intravenous (IV) alcohol administration, and the influence of gender, recent drinking history, and family history of alcoholism (FHA), in nondependent African American drinkers., Materials: The sample included eighty-seven 21- to 35-year-old, light social drinkers of African descent. Participants included 39 sib pairs, 2 sibships with 3 siblings each, and 3 individuals who were not part of a sibship. Participants received infusions via the use of the clamp method that refers to the goal of controlling breath alcohol concentration in 2 randomized sessions at 0.06 g% ethanol and 0 mg% (placebo), and a battery of subjective scales at predefined time points. Dependent measures included alcohol elimination rates (AERs), alcohol disappearance rates (ADRs), subjective measures peak scores, and area under the curve. General linear model and mixed models were performed to examine the relationship between ADH1B genotype, dependent measures, and influence of covariates., Results: Participants with ADH1B1/1 genotypes showed higher number of drinks (p = 0.023) and drinks per drinking day (p = 0.009) compared with the persons with ADH1B1/3 genotype. AER (adjusted for body weight) was higher in ADH1B*1 homozygotes (p = 0.045) compared with ADH1B1/3 heterozygotes. ADR differed significantly between males and females (p = 0.002), regardless of body weight (p = 0.004) and lean body mass (p < 0.001) adjustments. Although a few subjective measures differed across genotype, all measures were higher in alcohol sessions compared with placebo sessions (p < 0.001). These observations were mediated by drinks per drinking day, gender, and FHA., Conclusions: ADH1B polymorphism had a marginal effect on alcohol pharmacokinetics following IV alcohol administration in nondependent drinkers of African descent. Session (alcohol vs. placebo) and ADH1B genotype did, however, influence subjective response to alcohol with some variation by gender, FHA, and drinks per drinking day., (Copyright © 2013 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.)

Background: The objective of this commentary is to discuss the significance of the study entitled, "Structuring a College Alcohol Prevention Program on the Low Level of Response to Alcohol Model: A Pilot Model" by Schuckit and colleagues (2012) published in this issue of the Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. The work by Schuckit and colleagues emphasizes the importance of personalizing an alcohol prevention program for college students., Methods: This pilot model is the result of over 30 years of clinical translational research on an individual's level of response to alcohol. The prevention program is efficient, simple, safe, cost-effective and self-directed., Results: The results indicate the computerized intervention was associated with decreases in drinking overall and students with a low level of response to alcohol showed greater decreases when the prevention program is personalized to focus on how level of response is affected by peer influence, alcohol expectancies, and stress management. It concludes that college students with a low level of response to alcohol will benefit from a prevention program that is personalized to this well documented endophenotype., Conclusions: The findings provide the foundation for developing future longitudinal studies of the proposed prevention program with a larger sample size on diverse campuses. In addition, as mentioned in the Discussion section, future studies could also evaluate the effectiveness of other easily measured clinical endophenotypes known to be associated with alcohol use such as impulsivity, negative effect, and maximum number of drinks per occasion., (Copyright © 2012 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.)

Statewide nursing student alcohol and other drug (AOD) use attitudes and behaviors were assessed. Response was 929/2017 (46%) (practical nursing [n = 173/301] 57.3%; diploma and associate degree in nursing [n = 282/417] 67.6%; bachelor of science in nursing [n = 474/1299] 36.5%). Nearly 44% reported inadequate substance abuse education. Past-year AOD use included tobacco 36.9%, marijuana 6.8%, sedatives 4.6%, and opioids 2.6%. Past-year AOD-related events included blackouts 19.8%, class/work under the influence 6.3%, patient care under the influence 3.9%, lowered grades/job evaluations 6.6%, and legal charges 3.6%. Heavy drinking was reported by 28.9%. Practical nursing (PN) students most often reported tobacco use and sedative use, whereas Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) students most often reported marijuana use. Family histories of alcohol-related problems and drug-related problems were reported, respectively, by 48.1% and 19.2% of respondents; 51.1% reported at least one of these. PN students most often reported such family histories. Nursing educational systems should proactively address student AOD prevention, education, and assistance.

Background: Malt liquor (ML) beverages have become increasingly popular among urban minority groups, due partly to their inexpensive price and targeted advertising. We hypothesized that nonfermented by-products contained in ML beverages will alter the pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) effects of its ethanol content. In addition, we determined the effect of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) genotypes on the PK following consumption of ML beverages., Methods: The study was conducted in 31 healthy adult African-American social drinkers, mean +/- SD age of 22.3 +/- 1.3 years, and weight of 70.7 +/- 10.9 kg. Participants were administered ethanol, in randomized order, 2-weeks apart, in the form of oral ML beverage (6%v/v), or isocaloric solution of diet soda-ethanol (DS-Etoh) beverage (6%v/v). During each session the beverage was consumed over 4 minutes and breath alcohol concentrations (BrAC) as well as subjective and behavioral effects of ethanol were evaluated over 180 minutes. Pharmacokinetic parameters of ethanol were calculated using Michaelis-Menten elimination kinetics. The effect of ML and ADH genotype on PK was evaluated using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test and the Wilcoxon signed rank test, respectively., Results: Results show a slower mean rate of absorption, K(a), (0.12 vs. 0.15 min(-1), p = 0.03) and a longer time to reach maximum concentration, T(max), (28 vs. 23 minute, p < 0.01) for the ML compared with DS-Etoh beverage. The ML beverage resulted in a larger area under the BrAC-time curve compared with DS-Etoh beverage (8.4 vs. 6.8 min g/dl, p = 0.02). There was no difference in the subjective PD effects between the 2 beverages., Conclusion: Results show that exposure to ethanol following the consumption of ML beverages is different compared to that following nonmalt beverages in African-Americans. These differences may be related to nonfermented by-products present in commercially available ML products. These PK differences do not appear to result in significant perceived alcohol PD changes, nor are they related to ADH genotype.

Attitudes and behaviors toward alcohol and other drug (AOD) use were assessed among a subgroup of allied health (AH) and physician assistant (PA) students within two university-based health professions educational institutions in a midwestern state in 1999. AH/PA student response was 423 (77.5%); this included occupational therapy (n = 81; 60.4%), physical therapy [PT] (n = 222; 98.7%), PA (n = 68; 85.0%), and other AH programs (n = 52; 48.1%). In this AH/PA group, a family history of alcohol-related problems was reported by 40.1% and drug-related problems by 11.3%, with 42.5% of respondents reporting one or both. Such histories of family alcohol and drug problems were reported by 47.8% or 18.5% of PA students, respectively. Past-year alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use were reported, respectively, by 88.1%, 26.1%, and 6.7%. The highest percentage use of marijuana was reported by PT students (9.0%). Past-year blackouts were reported by 21.9%, driving after three or more drinks or any drug use by 49.3%, attendance at class or work under the influence of AOD by 7.8%, patient care under the influence of AOD by 3.3%, lowered grades or job evaluations from AOD use by 5.0%, and AOD-related legal charges by 4.5%. "Heavy drinking" (defined as consumption of five or more drinks per occasion during the past 2 weeks) was reported by 33.2%. Inadequate AOD education was reported by 55.1%, with 63.6% of PT respondents so reporting. AH and PA educational systems should proactively address student AOD prevention, education, and assistance needs.

Objective: To delay or discourage the use of alcohol by seventh-grade students through peer-led education. Peer-Led Alcohol Education (PLAE) program objectives were to: (1) educate students about alcohol use and (2) assess the differences between pharmacy student presenters and high school student (peer) presenters., Setting: Middle schools in rural Nebraska., Design: PLAE focuses on normative beliefs, personal values, and pledging. Pharmacy students and high school students were trained to deliver alcohol education presentations to seventh-grade students. Evaluation results were compared among groups of seventh-grade students who received PLAE presentations from peer presenters and from pharmacy student presenters., Results: PLAE presentations were made to 342 seventh-grade students at 11 schools. Evaluation results suggest that pharmacy students projected more confidence in their presentations, used more creative prop selections, and were more effective communicators. High-school presenters had a greater ability to "relate" to the seventh-graders and thus were deemed more on-target with the information., Conclusion: Evaluation findings suggest that rural seventh-grade students in Nebraska perceived that the PLAE program provides useful information to aid them in their decisions regarding alcohol use.

Background: This study investigated whether Nebraska schools with Student Assistance Programs (SAP) are associated with reduced adolescent alcohol use and a higher level of academic achievement than students from schools without a SAP., Methods: In 1992, the Toward a Drug Free Nebraska (TDFN) survey was administered to 3,454 students in grades seven to twelve at eighty-three Nebraska schools. A second survey, the TDFN "team activity report" collected from each school's team, the presence of a SAP (n = 34 schools) or absence of a SAP (n = 49 schools). Student responses for alcohol use and academic achievements were linked with the presence of a SAP through use of a school identification number on both surveys., Results: Students from schools with a SAP reported a lower use of alcohol in the last thirty days, compared with students from schools without a SAP program (p < 0.05), and they also reported a significant difference in academic achievement (p < 0.05)., Conclusions: While this study used post hoc analysis of data, the results suggest lower alcohol use and higher academic achievement among students from SAP schools. Given SAPs' popularity, these trends suggest that further research should be conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of student assistance programs.

This survey assessed the alcohol and other drug (AOD) use habits and risk factors of health profession students at a midwestern university health science center. The authors administered a 75-item survey to 1,707 students in selected classrooms: 984 students responded for a return rate of 57.6%. In 1990, they found, alcohol use among the health profession students in the past year was comparable to that of undergraduate college students nationally (86%), although significantly fewer health profession students drank heavily (27% had five or more drinks in the past 2 weeks, compared with 41% of college students). The percentage of health profession students who reported using tobacco or illicit drugs was lower than the percentage of undergraduate students who used these substances. At the time of the study, 16% of the respondents may have had a potential current alcohol problem and 3.5% a potential drug problem. Pharmacy students most often reported negative consequences from their AOD use. Peer pressure influenced the drinking decisions of 55% of the respondents; students in dentistry and pharmacy experienced the least support from peers for their decisions to abstain from drinking. Family histories of alcohol problems were reported by 38% of the respondents, and family histories of drug use by 14.8%. Male health profession students, when compared with the female professional students, drank more and experienced more consequences of their drinking or drug use and were also more influenced by peers.