Community Newsletter – March 2023

Welcome to the March Issue of the IAS Newsletter!

IAS is March-ing forth with our 2023 projects! We are so excited to share the progress we’ve made thus far in 2023. Did you know there have been over 20 addiction related papers published by our IAS faculty members in 2023? We are also working towards broadening our education and community engagement initiatives by connecting with the USC student community. Stay tuned for more updates!

In case you missed it, Dr. Mark Prince presented at the February Distinguished Speaker Series on the topic of “State-of-the-science cannabis research assessment issues and methods.” Dr. Prince discussed the complexities of assessing quantity, dose, and potency of cannabis use, as well as the many ways that cannabis use can be defined. He also presented on the results of Automatic Real Time Data collection and offered recommendations for next steps in future cannabis research. Watch the Zoom recording of this enlightening talk here.

This month, Joseph Palamar, PhD will be presenting at our March Distinguished Speaker Series with a talk titled “Monitoring of Seizure Data to Inform Surveillance of Fentanyl Use in the United States.” Dr. Palamar is an Associate Professor at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Department of Population Health. He focuses on the epidemiology of drug use in the general population and in the electronic dance music scene with a particular focus on use of party drugs and novel psychoactive substances. In this talk, Dr. Palamar will discuss the efficacy of seizure data as an indicator of fentanyl use or availability and will present trends in seizures of fentanyl powder and pills through 2022. Dr. Palamar will also present new findings suggesting that fentanyl seizure rates can predict mortality rates. Register here to attend the talk on March 8, 2023 at 12pm PST. See below for more details.
 
The final deadline to apply to the Master of Addiction Science program is approaching! If you or someone you know is interested in studying addiction science at the graduate level, please help spread the word about our upcoming Virtual Information Session on Thursday, March 9^th at 6pm PST! This session is open to all students, faculty, staff, academic advisors, and anyone interested in learning more about this unique program. Scan the QR code on the flyer below to register or register here! Registration is required to attend.

Another date to keep in mind is March 10^th. That date marks the deadline to submit abstracts for our upcoming Early Career Addiction Science Showcase! This event showcases early career researchers’ (Undergraduate, Post Baccalaureate, Master’s, PhD or other graduate students, Postdoctoral scholars, or Junior Faculty) cutting-edge research in addiction science. Empirical findings that have not been previously published are showcased at an annual event with podium presentations by each researcher. Topics include, but are not limited to: Clinical research, epidemiology, health policy/regulatory science, pharmacology, pre-clinical research, social and behavioral sciences, prevention/treatment research, and concepts in etiology. We expect this year’s showcase to be just as invigorating as the last. Click here for more information and to submit your abstracts before the portal closes! The showcase will be held on Tuesday, April 25, 2023 from 11am-3pm PST so mark your calendars!

Other exciting news – The EndTobacco Program is hosting an Eliminate Tobacco Use Summit on Thursday, April 27^th both virtually and in-person in Dallas, Texas! Additionally, four states (Missouri, New Jersey, Texas and Virginia) are holding individual summits on April 21^st and 28^th. These summits are open to the public. The Summit highlights real-world strategies and actions that can be shared among institutes of higher education, health systems, coalitions, and advocacy partners to advance tobacco control actions in our communities. There will be an amazing lineup of speakers from FDA Center for Tobacco Products, University of Southern California TCORS, and Virginia Commonwealth University discussing tobacco-related inequities and actions to create tobacco-free cultures. The day will close by hearing from outstanding college students across the nation who are active and engaged in campus life. Anyone from institutes of higher education, health systems, community colleges, state and local health departments, community coalitions, state and national advocacy organizations are invited to join. Email endtobacco@mdanderson.org for questions or more information.

As always, we are very appreciative of your continued support of the Institute for Addiction Science and look forward to continuing to share our ongoing and upcoming projects and activities with you.

Warmest Regards,
Adam Leventhal, John Clapp, Daryl Davies, Ricky Bluthenthal, Terry Church, Vickie Williams, Loba Ojo, and Jillian Boelke

Below are selected publications from the previous month (February 2023) from faculty members and scholars of the Institute for Addiction Science. 

Chenoweth, M. J., Lerman, C., Knight, J., & Tyndale, R. F. (2023). Influence of cyp2a6 genetic variation, nicotine dependence severity, and treatment on smoking cessation success. Nicotine & Tobacco Research. https://doi.org/10.1093/ntr/ntac268 

Fitzke, R. E., Tran, D. D., Hummer, J. F., Davis, J. P., Prince, M. A., Prindle, J. J., Lee, D. S., & Pedersen, E. R. (2023). High spirits? exploring “Halloweekend” alcohol and cannabis use among heavy-drinking college students. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. https://doi.org/10.15288/jsad.22-00284 

Jafarzadeh, N. S., Bello, M. S., Wong, M., Cho, J., & Leventhal, A. M. (2023). Associations between anxiety symptoms and barriers to smoking cessation among African Americans who Smoke Cigarettes Daily. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 109808. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2023.109808 

Kirkpatrick, M. G., Dormanesh, A., Unger, J. B., & Allem, J.-P. (2023). Cartoon marketing exposure decreases perceived risks of e-cigarette use in adolescents. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology. https://doi.org/10.1037/pha0000642 

Lebeaut, A., Pedersen, E. R., Francis, D. J., Zvolensky, M. J., & Vujanovic, A. A. (2023). Evaluation of an integrated personalized feedback intervention for hazardous drinkers with elevated anxiety sensitivity and PTSD symptoms: Protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications, 32, 101088. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conctc.2023.101088 

Lee, J. O., Lee, W. J., Kritikos, A. F., Jin, H., Leventhal, A. M., Pedersen, E. R., Cho, J., Davis, J. P., Kapteyn, A., Wilson, J. P., & Pacula, R. L. (2023). Regular cannabis use during the first year of the pandemic: Studying trajectories rather than prevalence. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2023.01.035 

Pang, R. D., Wang, S. D., Tucker, C. J., Zadoorian, L., Weinberger, A. H., D’Orazio, L., & Kirkpatrick, M. G. (2023). Emotion regulation expectancies and smoking cessation factors: A daily diary study of California adults who smoke cigarettes during a practice quit attempt. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 109810. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2023.109810 

Rogers, C. J., Forster, M., Sussman, S., Steinberg, J., Barrington-Trimis, J. L., Grigsby, T. J., & Unger, J. B. (2023). The impact of childhood trauma on problematic alcohol and drug use trajectories and the moderating role of Social Support. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(4), 2829. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20042829 

Stone, M. D., Braymiller, J. L., Strong, D. R., Cwalina, S. N., Dimofte, C. V., & Barrington-Trimis, J. L. (2023). Differentiating reasons for young adult e-cigarette use using maximum difference choice models. Nicotine & Tobacco Research. https://doi.org/10.1093/ntr/ntad017 

Zheng, Y., Meyer, Z., Unger, J. B., & Rijsdijk, F. (2023). Gene–environment interplay linking perceived parental supervision and peer drunkenness with Chinese adolescent alcohol initiation. Child Development. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13902

This section highlights a few news articles from the month highlighting research or programming from an IAS member or IAS research program, as well as articles related to addiction science. 

California’s Marijuana Market Is Crumbling
Wall Street Journal, February 15th, 2023

Narcan Is Safe to Sell Over the Counter, Advisers to the F.D.A Conclude
The New York Times, February 15th, 2023

What to know about alcohol use disorder and how to get treatment
USA Today, February 17th, 2023

Opinion | Inside New York City’s Radical Approach to America’s Overdose Crisis
The New York Times, February 22nd, 2023
 

Continue the USC Day of SCupport by visiting the Trietler Family’s donation page! By making a gift to the USC Institute for Addiction Science, you will be transforming and unifying the field of addiction science and substantially improving the lives of those touched by addiction. Thank you for your donation!