A test of alcohol dose effects on multiple behavioral measures of impulsivity

Anhedonia and impulsivity in college alcohol use: A path analysis

OBJECTIVE

Alcohol use is a substantial problem among college students and has several negative consequences. The current study examined the associations between anhedonia and alcohol use and related problems via impulsive behavior (e.g., negative urgency, sensation seeking). We parsed anhedonia into four specific facets: consummatory, anticipatory, recreational, and social anhedonia.

PARTICIPANTS

Six hundred and forty college students aged 18-25 were included in the final analysis.

METHOD

Data were collected via Amazon Mechanical Turk. Self-report inventories assessing for anhedonia, alcohol use, impulsive behavior, and depressed mood were utilized.

RESULTS

Recreational consummatory anhedonia was negatively associated with alcohol use and alcohol-related problems through negative urgency. Recreational consummatory anhedonia also had significant negative associations with alcohol consumption via sensation seeking. Further, social anticipatory anhedonia was positively associated with alcohol use and related problems via negative urgency.

CONCLUSIONS

This study highlights important associations between anhedonia, impulsivity, and alcohol use and related problems.

The Continuing Challenges of Studying Parallel Behaviours in Humans and Animal Models

The use of animal models continues to be essential for carrying out research into clinical phenomena, including addiction. However, the complexity of the clinical condition inevitably means that even the best animal models are inadequate, and this may go some way to account for the apparent failures of discoveries from animal models, including the identification of potential novel therapies, to translate to the clinic. We argue here that it is overambitious and misguided in the first place to attempt to model complex, multifacetted human disorders such as addiction in animals, and especially in rodents, and that all too frequently "validity" of such models is limited to superficial similarities, referred to as "face validity", that reflect quite different underlying phenomena and biological processes from the clinical situation. Instead, a more profitable approach is to identify (a) well-defined intermediate human behavioural phenotypes that reflect defined, limited aspects of, or contributors to, the human clinical disorder, and (b) to develop animal models that are homologous with those discrete human behavioural phenotypes in terms of psychological processes, and underlying neurobiological mechanisms. Examples of past and continuing weaknesses and suggestions for more limited approaches that may allow better homology between the test animal and human condition are made.

Consuming oral cannabidiol prior to a standard alcohol dose has minimal effect on breath alcohol level and subjective effects of alcohol

RATIONALE

Cannabidiol (CBD) is found in the cannabis plant and has garnered attention as a potential treatment for alcohol use disorder (AUD). CBD reduces alcohol consumption and other markers of alcohol dependence in rodents, but human research on CBD and alcohol is limited. It is unknown whether CBD reduces drinking in humans, and mechanisms through which CBD could impact behavioral AUD phenotypes are unknown.

OBJECTIVES

This study explores effects of oral CBD on breath alcohol level (BrAC), and subjective effects of alcohol in human participants who report heavy drinking.

METHODS

In this placebo-controlled, crossover study, participants consumed 30 mg CBD, 200 mg CBD, or placebo CBD before receiving a standardized alcohol dose. Participants were blind to which CBD dose they received at each session and completed sessions in random order. Thirty-six individuals completed at least one session and were included in analyses.

RESULTS

Differences in outcomes across the three conditions and by sex were explored using multilevel structural equation models. BrAC fell fastest in the placebo condition, followed by 30 mg and 200 mg CBD. Stimulation decreased more slowly in the 200 mg CBD condition than in placebo (b =  - 2.38, BCI [- 4.46, - .03]). Sedation decreased more slowly in the 30 mg CBD condition than in placebo (b =  - 2.41, BCI [- 4.61, - .09]). However, the magnitude of condition differences in BrAC and subjective effects was trivial.

CONCLUSIONS

CBD has minimal influence on BrAC and subjective effects of alcohol. Further research is needed to test whether CBD impacts alcohol consumption in humans, and if so, what mechanism(s) may explain this effect.

Circadian preference is associated with multiple domains of trait and state level impulsivity

Impulsivity is a multidimensional construct with well-documented risk for substance use problems at both the trait- and state levels. A circadian preference towards eveningness has been linked to trait-level, global impulsivity, but whether this association holds true across multiple dimensions of impulsivity and whether actual sleep timing shows parallel associations with impulsivity remain unclear. Here, we extend existing literature by investigating whether eveningness is associated with multiple facets of both trait- and state-level impulsivity. We also examined these associations utilizing daily measures of sleep timing and duration and explored whether they differed by sex and/or race. All participants were moderate-to-heavy social drinkers aged 21-35. Primary analyses included 78 participants (100% White male participants: Sample 1) with circadian preference data (Composite Scale of Morningness: CSM) and sleep timing (midsleep) and duration assessed via daily self-report over 10 days. Five facets of impulsivity were assessed via the UPPS-P, both at baseline (full scale; trait-level) and up to 6 times per day over 10 days (reduced scale; state-level). Linear regression and mixed-effects models were used to examine between- and within-person associations of impulsivity with measures of circadian preference, timing, and duration, accounting for covariates. Exploratory analyses combined Sample 1 with an additional more diverse sample (Sample 2), resulting in a total of 182 participants (29.1% self-identified as Black, 29.7% as female) with daily self-report sleep timing and duration only (no circadian preference). Primary between-person models found that eveningness was associated with multiple facets of impulsivity, at trait (lack of perseverance) and state levels (negative and positive urgency, lack of perseverance, and lack of premeditation), while average midsleep and duration were generally unrelated to impulsivity. Primary within-person models largely paralleled the between-person findings. Exploratory analyses in the larger combined Samples 1 and 2 (without circadian preference) found that later midsleep timing was associated with greater mean state-level impulsivity across multiple facets, associations that may differ by race and sex. In a sample of White male participants, circadian preference for eveningness was strongly associated with multiple facets of impulsivity, at both trait- and state-levels, which may contribute to risk for substance use. Preliminary findings suggest sex and race differences in sleep-impulsivity associations, but future research with objective sleep/circadian measures in larger, more diverse samples will be important to clarify implications for sleep-focused prevention and/or treatment of substance use.

Interactions between impulsivity and MDPV self-administration in rats

Synthetic cathinones, such as 3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), are recreational drugs of abuse often identified in 'bath salts' preparations. Humans report compulsive patterns of bath salts use, and previous work suggests that a subset of rats develop unusually high levels of MDPV self-administration. This study aims to test the hypothesis that high levels of impulsivity (e.g., inability to withhold responding for a sucrose reward) will predispose rats to high levels of MDPV self-administration relative to rats with lower levels of impulsivity. The 1-choice serial reaction time task (1-CSRTT) was used to assess impulsivity (i.e., premature responding) in 10 female and 10 male Sprague Dawley rats. Rats were then allowed to self-administer 0.032 mg/kg/inf MDPV or 0.32 mg/kg/inf cocaine, after which full dose-response curves for MDPV (0.001-0.1 mg/kg/inf) or cocaine (0.01-1 mg/kg/inf) were generated under a FR5 schedule of reinforcement. After a history of self-administering MDPV or cocaine, impulsivity was reassessed under the 1-CSRTT, prior to evaluating the acute effects of MDPV (0.032-0.32 mg/kg) or cocaine (0.1-1 mg/kg) on impulsivity. Level of impulsivity was not correlated with subsequent levels of either MDPV or cocaine self-administration, and level of drug self-administration was also not correlated with subsequent levels of impulsivity, although acute administration of MDPV and cocaine did increase premature responding. In failing to find direct relationships between either impulsivity and subsequent drug-taking behaviour, or drug-taking behaviour and subsequent assessments of impulsivity, these findings highlight the complexity inherent in the associations between impulsive behaviour and drug-taking behaviour in both animal models and humans.

Large-scale brain network activation during emotional inhibitory control: Associations with alcohol misuse in college freshmen

BACKGROUND

The transition to college is associated with increased risk of alcohol misuse and a consequent increase in negative, alcohol-related social and health impacts. Traits associated with ongoing brain maturation during this period, including impulsivity in emotional contexts, could contribute to risky alcohol use.

METHODS

This functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study examined brain network activation strength during an emotional inhibitory control task (Go-NoGo), which required participants to ignore background images with negative or neutral emotional valence during performance. Participants were 60 college freshmen (aged 18-20 years, 33 women). Survey measures, completed at baseline and one-year follow-up (follow-up n = 52, 29 women), assessed alcohol misuse alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT), alcohol/substance use counseling center assessment of psychological symptoms (C-CAPS), and negative consequences of alcohol use young adult alcohol consequences questionnaire (YAACQ). Measures were examined relative to network activation strength, on the Negative NoGo > Neutral NoGo contrast, of four large-scale brain networks implicated in top-down regulation of cognition and attention: right and left lateral frontoparietal networks (rL-FPN; lL-FPN), dorsal attention network (DAN), and salience network (SN).

RESULTS

Activation strength of DAN was negatively associated with scores on the AUDIT (p = 0.013) and YAACQ (p = 0.004) at baseline, and with C-CAPS score at baseline and follow-up (p = 0.002; p = 0.005), and positively associated with accuracy on NoGo trials with negative backgrounds (p = 0.014). Activation strength of rL-FPN was positively associated with C-CAPS score at follow-up (p = 0.003). SN activation strength was negatively associated with accuracy on NoGo trials with negative (p < 0.001) and neutral (p = 0.002) backgrounds and with the accuracy difference between negative versus neutral NoGo trials (p = 0.003).

CONCLUSION

These findings suggest that less engagement of large-scale brain circuitry that supports top-down attentional control, specifically during negative emotions, is associated with more problematic drinking in emerging adults who attend college. This pattern of network activation may serve as a risk marker for ongoing self-regulation deficits during negative emotion that could increase risk of problematic alcohol use and negative impacts of drinking.

Trajectories of state impulsivity domains before and after alcohol consumption in the naturalistic environment

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Studies have demonstrated that ecological momentary assessment (EMA) can effectively capture within-person variations in impulsive states and that this relates to alcohol use. The current study aimed to examine the daily trajectories of five facets of impulsivity prior to and following drinking initiation. Additionally, we explored how race, sex, baseline trait impulsivity facets, and ADHD may moderate this relation.

DESIGN AND SETTING

EMA was used to collect real-time data at 6 semi-random time points and self-initiated reports of drinking onset throughout the day over a 10-day period Measurements Five state and trait impulsivity facets were assessed via the UPPS-P. Naturalistic alcohol use, ADHD history, and demographic characteristics were also assessed PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 135 adult drinkers from a larger study examining alcohol response for Black and White adults with and without a history of childhood ADHD FINDINGS: Generalized estimating equations showed that the linear trajectory of negative urgency significantly increased prior to drinking. Following drinking initiation, the linear trajectory of sensation seeking significantly decreased. There was not significant change in the trajectories of positive urgency, lack of premeditation and lack of perseverance before or after drinking initiation. Additionally, race and ADHD history moderated the trajectory of sensation seeking and race moderated the trajectory of lack of planning.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings highlight the possibility of identifying proximal changes in impulsivity facets prior to and after initiation of drinking. Results can be used to inform real-time interventions that target risk periods to ultimately decrease alcohol use.

Effects of binge drinking and the anti-inflammatory drug indomethacin on spatial memory and cognitive flexibility in mice

In previous research, we found that chronic-intermittent ethanol administration (CIEA), a model of binge drinking, impaired emotional memory in mice, and this impairment was counteracted by the anti-inflammatory drug indomethacin. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of CIEA on spatial memory and cognitive flexibility in adolescent mice of both sexes. Animals were randomly assigned to one of four groups for each sex: SS (saline + saline), SA (saline + alcohol), SI (saline + indomethacin), and AI (alcohol + indomethacin). They were injected with saline, ethanol (3 g/kg) or indomethacin (10 mg/kg) for the first three days of each week, throughout three weeks. 96 h after treatment, subjects learnt a standard water maze task on five consecutive days (4-day training and 1-day probe trial). One day later, mice underwent a reversal task for evaluating spatial cognitive flexibility. Animals receiving alcohol (SA and AI groups) did not differ from controls (SS groups) during the standard task, but animals treated with indomethacin performed better than controls, both in the acquisition trials and the probe trial. During the reversal task, no significant differences between alcohol groups and controls were observed, but the indomethacin group showed significant lower escape latencies than controls. No sex differences were found in either task. In conclusion, binge drinking does not impair spatial memory or spatial cognitive flexibility, while the anti-inflammatory indomethacin improves both, showing that the effects of alcohol and indomethacin on spatial memory (dependent on hippocampus) are different to those they exert on emotional memory (dependent on amygdala).

Alcohol and the Brain

Alcohol works on the brain to produce its desired effects, e.g., sociability and intoxication, and hence the brain is an important organ for exploring subsequent harms. These come in many different forms such as the consequences of damage during intoxication, e.g., from falls and fights, damage from withdrawal, damage from the toxicity of alcohol and its metabolites and altered brain structure and function with implications for behavioral processes such as craving and addiction. On top of that are peripheral factors that compound brain damage such as poor diet, vitamin deficiencies leading to Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. Prenatal alcohol exposure can also have a profound impact on brain development and lead to irremediable changes of fetal alcohol syndrome. This chapter briefly reviews aspects of these with a particular focus on recent brain imaging results. Cardiovascular effects of alcohol that lead to brain pathology are not covered as they are dealt with elsewhere in the volume.

Prospective memory deficits following acute alcohol consumption

BACKGROUND

Prospective memory is a critical neurocognitive capacity that refers to the ability to execute delayed intentions. To date, few studies have investigated the effects of acute alcohol consumption on prospective memory, and important questions remain about the mechanisms that might underpin acute alcohol-induced prospective memory impairment.

AIMS

The current study sought to clarify the nature and magnitude of prospective memory difficulties following acute alcohol consumption and to test the degree to which any problems with prospective remembering might be a secondary consequence of broader cognitive impairment. This study also investigated whether there were potential sex differences.

METHODS

In all, 124 healthy adult social drinkers were assigned to either the alcohol (n = 61) or placebo (n = 63) condition. Participants were administered a dose of 0.6 g/kg alcohol or a matched placebo drink and then asked to complete a measure of prospective memory. A broader neurocognitive test battery was also administered.

RESULTS

Relative to the placebo condition, acute alcohol intoxication led to significant impairment on all prospective memory tasks, with effects mostly large in magnitude. These difficulties could not be explained by broader problems in retrospective memory, executive function or episodic future thinking. In addition, females recorded a higher blood alcohol concentration than males; however, no sex differences in prospective memory performance were identified following acute alcohol use.

CONCLUSION

The results show that acutely, even a moderate dose of alcohol substantially impairs prospective memory function. These findings have potentially important implications for understanding many of the maladaptive behaviours associated with acute alcohol consumption.

Impulsivity and the effects of alcohol in women with a history of childhood sexual abuse: A pilot study

Women with a history of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) are at greater risk to develop alcohol use disorders. Whereas impulsivity has been postulated as a behavioral mechanism linking childhood trauma and alcohol use, few studies have comprehensively examined impulsivity in women with CSA. We compared women with a history of CSA (n = 21) and control women who did not endorse CSA or other major traumas (CON; n = 21) on self-report measures of impulsivity and risk taking. Additionally, performance on behavioral impulsivity and subjective response to alcohol were examined before and after acute alcohol (0.00, 0.50, 0.75 g/kg) administration. Overall, women with CSA responded more impulsively than CON women on the immediate and delayed-memory tasks (measures of response initiation) and the GoStop task (a measure of response inhibition). Whereas alcohol produced dose-related increases in impulsive responding on the immediate memory task in both groups, alcohol-induced increases in response inhibition on the GoStop task were evident only in the CSA group. In contrast, women with CSA exhibited less risk taking than the CON group on the balloon analogue risk task. Alcohol produced dose-related increases on several subjective response measures (e.g., alcohol liking) in both groups; however, these ratings tended to be greater in women with CSA. These preliminary data suggest that women with CSA may be more impulsive. Importantly, impulsivity can lead to hazardous drinking, and alcohol consumption can further increase impulsivity, putting women with CSA at increased risk for sexual revictimization, particularly in the context of alcohol use. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Moderate acute alcohol use impairs intentional inhibition rather than stimulus-driven inhibition

Moderate alcohol intake may impair stimulus-driven inhibition of motor actions in go/no-go and stop-signal tasks. Exposure to alcohol-related cues has been found to exacerbate this impairment. By contrast, the effect of alcohol use on intentional inhibition, or the capacity to voluntarily suspend an action, has rarely been investigated. We examined whether and how moderate alcohol intake affects stimulus-driven inhibition (stop-signal task) and intentional inhibition (chasing bottles task), during exposure to alcohol-related stimuli. One hundred and eleven participants were randomly assigned to an alcohol (male: 0.55 g/kg, female: 0.45 g/kg), placebo, or control group. For the stop-signal task, ANOVAs were performed on stop-signal reaction time (SSRT) and go RT with Pharmacological and Expectancy Effects of Alcohol, Stimulus Category (alcohol-related or neutral), and Sex as factors. For the chasing bottles task, multilevel survival analysis was performed to predict whether and when intentional inhibition was initiated, with the same factors. For the stop-signal task, Sex moderated the Pharmacological Effect of Alcohol on SSRT: only for females, alcohol consumption shortened SSRT. In the non-alcohol groups, males had shorter SSRT than females. Concerning intentional inhibition, the alcohol group initiated intentional inhibition less often, especially when stimuli were non-alcohol related. These findings indicate that (1) stimulus-driven inhibition and intentional inhibition reflect different aspects of response inhibition; (2) moderate alcohol intake negatively affects intentional inhibition (but not stimulus-driven inhibition). Speculatively, the observed impairment in intentional inhibition might underlie the lack of control over alcohol drinking behavior after a priming dose. This study highlights the potential role of intentional inhibition in the development of addiction.

Intoxication Effects on Impulsive Alcohol Choice in Heavy Drinkers: Correlation With Sensation Seeking and Differential Effects by Commodity

BACKGROUND

The preference for immediate rewards and high sensation seeking are both potent risk factors for alcohol use disorder (AUD), but how they interact during intoxication is poorly understood. To model decision making linked to AUD risk, we tested heavy drinkers for impulsive choice (delay discounting with alcohol:money or money:money) and behavioral sensation seeking using a novel odor choice task. Laboratory tasks measured actual behavior with real contingencies. Our goals were to determine, in heavy drinkers, (i) alcohol's effects on delay discounting, and (ii) how AUD risk factors relate to delay discounting, and (iii) how delay discounting with alcohol choices compares with strictly monetary choices.

METHODS

Thirty-five heavy drinkers (≥2 binges per month; age = 22.8 ± 2.2; 20 male; 5.8 ± 2.3 drinks/drinking day) performed cross-commodity discounting (CCD) of immediate alcohol vs. delayed money, a monetary delay discounting (DD), and behavioral sensation-seeking tasks. CCD and DD were performed while sober and during controlled alcohol infusion targeting 0.08 g/dl. The behavioral sensation-seeking task presented binary choices of odorants varying in intensity and novelty, and the risk of exposure to a malodorant.

RESULTS

CCD and DD behaviors were highly correlated across conditions, mean r = 0.64. Alcohol increased delayed reward preference in DD, p = 0.001, but did not alter mean CCD, p > 0.16. However, alcohol-induced changes in CCD correlated with behavioral sensation seeking, such that higher sensation seekers' immediate alcohol preference increased when intoxicated, p = 0.042; self-reported sensation seeking was uncorrelated, ps > 0.08. Behavioral sensation seeking also correlated with "want" alcohol following a priming dose targeting 0.035 g/dl, p = 0.021. CCD and DD did not correlate with self-reported drinking problems or other personality risk traits.

CONCLUSIONS

Alcohol increased impulsive alcohol choice in high sensation seekers, suggesting an interaction that may underlie impaired control of drinking, at least in a subset of heavy drinkers-consistent with models highlighting high novelty/sensation-seeking AUD subtypes. Discounting behavior overall appears to be a generalized process, and relatively stable across methods, repeated testing, and intoxication. These findings further support the utility of behavioral tasks in uncovering key behavioral phenotypes in AUD.

A Case-Control Study on Behavioral Addictions and Neurocognition: Description of the BANCO and BANCO2 Protocols

INTRODUCTION

Only two behavioral addictions (BAs) are currently recognized in international classifications (gambling disorder: GbD; gaming disorder: GmD), while some of them await further investigation (food addiction: FA; sexual addiction: SA). Neurocognitive functioning is considered a risk factor for BAs. Research is quite abundant for GbD and highlights specific deficits in several cognitive functions. Nevertheless, grey areas still exist. The aim of this research programme is to investigate the neurocognitive profiles of patients presenting with various BAs and to establish parallels between different forms of BA to achieve a common addiction concept.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

This research program is composed of two studies sharing the same methodology but focusing on different samples: the BANCO study aims to include 30 individuals with a GbD, whereas the BANCO2 study aims to include 30 individuals with a GmD, 30 with a SA, and 30 with a FA. Moreover, for each BA group, 30 healthy controls will be recruited, matched by sex, age and education level. Several cognitive tasks will be completed by participants. Cue reactivity and physiological responses, as well as clinical data regarding addiction characteristics and personality, will also be investigated. A composite score based on the cognitive tasks will be computed using principal component analysis (PCA). Overall cognitive performance and detailed performance on the different cognitive tasks will be compared between individuals with BAs and their matched healthy controls using linear models with random effects. Comparisons will also be made between BA groups to investigate specific alterations associated with each disorder.

DISCUSSION

The results of this research programme will impact both research and clinical areas by (i) providing new knowledge for discussions regarding the inclusion of BAs under the spectrum of addictive disorders; (ii) improving understanding of addiction mechanisms in general; (iii) providing clarity in the grey areas in neurocognitive research on BAs and improving the understanding of less studied BAs, (iv) guiding clinicians to propose therapeutic alternatives and complementary programmes.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

BANCO study (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03202290); BANCO2 study (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03967418).

Momentary patterns of impulsivity and alcohol use: A cause or consequence?

BACKGROUND

Impulsivity is a robust risk factor for alcohol use, but significant gaps remain in our understanding of the way that impulsivity relates to alcohol harms. Most prior research has been limited to between-level differences; thus, within-person variability in impulsivity at the momentary level and its bidirectional association with alcohol use has not been examined. The present research used a 14-day ecological momentary assessment (EMA) design to determine the bidirectionality of impulsivity and alcohol use and alcohol problems.

METHODS

Participants were 89 (47 women) heavy-drinking college students. The mean age was 19.80 (SD = 1.76) years. Participants completed a baseline questionnaire and 14 consecutive days of momentary reports sent in the morning, afternoon, and evening; participants also completed two user-initiated reports during a drinking occasion at the beginning and the end of their drinking.

RESULTS

Multilevel modeling results indicated that greater levels of impulsivity experienced during the day was not associated with alcohol use or problems experienced that night. However, level of alcohol use and the number of alcohol problems experienced predicted greater variability in impulsivity the next day.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, this study was the first to examine the bidirectional relationship between impulsivity and alcohol use using EMA. Findings supported impulsivity's conceptualization as a state construct and fluctuations in alcohol use behaviors coinciding with states of impulsivity the next day after drinking. Findings from the present study contributed to conceptual daily process models of drinking by identifying how alcohol behaviors unfold in the real world.

Reduced attentional capture by reward following an acute dose of alcohol

RATIONALE

Previous research has shown that physically salient and reward-related distractors can automatically capture attention and eye gaze in a visual search task, even though participants are motivated to ignore these stimuli.

OBJECTIVES

To examine whether an acute, low dose of alcohol would influence involuntary attentional capture by stimuli signalling reward.

METHODS

Participants were assigned to the alcohol or placebo group before completing a visual search task. Successful identification of the target earned either a low or high monetary reward but this reward was omitted if any eye gaze was registered on the reward-signalling distractor.

RESULTS

Participants who had consumed alcohol were significantly less likely than those in the placebo condition to have their attention captured by a distractor stimulus that signalled the availability of high reward. Analysis of saccade latencies suggested that this difference reflected a reduction in the likelihood of impulsive eye movements following alcohol.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that alcohol intoxication reduces the capacity to attend to information in the environment that is not directly relevant to the task at hand. In the current task, this led to a performance benefit under alcohol, but in situations that require rapid responding to salient events, the effect on behaviour would be deleterious.

No effect of moderate alcohol intake on the detection of concealed identity information in the laboratory

The Concealed Information Test (CIT) enables the detection of certain (e.g., crime-relevant or personal) information, even if participants aim to conceal their knowledge. The current preregistered study investigated whether previously observed impairing effects of alcohol intoxication on participants’ performance in a reaction time CIT (RT CIT) field study also translate to a laboratory environment. In contrast to the previous study of Suchotzki and Gamer (Sci Rep 8:7825, 2018) in which alcohol consumption was voluntary and self-administered, the current study used a randomized assignment of participants to either an alcohol group (n = 88; receiving a drink with 3 cl alcohol) or a sober control group (n = 89; receiving a drink with just some alcohol drops to hide group assignment). After drink administration, participants completed an RT CIT, in which they were instructed to hide knowledge of their own identity. Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was estimated via breath alcohol ratio. In contrast to the previous field study, results revealed no differences in CIT-performance between intoxicated and sober participants. Aside from questioning the robustness of the result of the previous field study, our results also point to a number of interesting theoretical explanations for the discrepancy between both results, which are elaborated in the discussion.

Neuroprotective Effects of Grape Seed Procyanidins on Ethanol-Induced Injury and Oxidative Stress in Rat Hippocampal Neurons

Aims

Ethanol is a small molecule capable of interacting with numerous targets in the brain, the mechanisms of which are complex and still poorly understood. Studies have revealed that ethanol-induced hippocampal neuronal injury is associated with oxidative stress. Grape seed procyanidin (GSP) is a new type of antioxidant that is believed to scavenge free radicals and be anti-inflammatory. This study evaluated the ability and mechanism by which the GSP improves ethanol-induced hippocampal neuronal injury.

Methods

Primary cultures of hippocampal neurons were exposed to ethanol (11, 33 and 66 mM, 1, 4, 8, 12 and 24 h) and the neuroprotective effects of GSP were assessed by evaluating the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and cell morphology.

Results

Our results indicated that GSP prevented ethanol-induced neuronal injury by reducing the levels of MDA and LDH, while increasing the activity of SOD. In addition, GSP increased the number of primary dendrites and total dendritic length per cell.

Conclusion

Together with previous findings, these results lend further support to the significance of developing GSP as a therapeutic tool for use in the treatment of alcohol use disorders.

Effects of Age and Acute Moderate Alcohol Consumption on Electrophysiological Indices of Attention

OBJECTIVE

Despite increased attention to risks and benefits associated with moderate drinking lifestyles among aging adults, relatively few empirical studies focus on acute alcohol effects in older drinkers. Using electroencephalographic indices of early attention modulation (P1 and N1) and later stimulus processing (P3), we investigated whether acute alcohol consumption at socially relevant doses differentially influences neurocognitive performance in older, relative to younger, moderate drinkers.

METHOD

Younger (25-35 years; n = 97) and older (55-70 years; n = 87) healthy drinkers were randomly assigned to receive one of three alcohol doses (placebo, .04 g/dl, or .065 g/dl target breath alcohol concentrations). Repeated-measures analysis of variance examined the effects of age, alcohol dose concentration, and their potential interaction on P1/P3 amplitudes and N1 latency during completion of a directed attend/ignore task.

RESULTS

Age-specific effects on P1 amplitudes varied by instruction set, with alcohol-associated decreases in amplitude among older drinkers in response to task-relevant stimuli and increases to irrelevant stimuli, F(2, 141) = 2.70, p = .07, ηp2 = .04. In contrast, N1 analyses demonstrated alcohol-related latency reductions among older, relative to younger, adults, F(2, 83) = 3.42, p = .04. Although no Age × Alcohol interactions were detected for P3, main effects indicated dose-dependent amplitude reductions for relevant stimuli, F(2, 144) = 5.73, p < .01, ηp2 = .08.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results underscore the impact of acute moderate alcohol consumption on attentional functioning, highlighting age-dependent sensitivity in electrophysiological indices of early attentional processing. Given the import of attentional functioning to quality of life and increases in drinking among a rapidly expanding aging population, these findings have broad public health relevance.

State-Level Impulsivity, Affect, and Alcohol: A Psychometric Evaluation of the Momentary Impulsivity Scale Across Two Intensive Longitudinal Samples

We reexamined the psychometric properties of the Momentary Impulsivity Scale (MIS) in two young adult samples using daily diary (N=77) and ecological momentary assessment (N=147). A one-factor between- and within-person structure was supported, though "I felt impatient" loaded poorly within-person. MIS scores consistently related to emotion-driven trait impulsivity; however, MSSDs of MIS scores were unrelated to outcomes after accounting for aggregate MIS scores. We observed positive, within-person correlations with negative, but not positive, affect. Between-person MIS scores correlated with alcohol problems, though within-person MIS-alcohol relations were inconsistent. MIS scores were unrelated to laboratory-based impulsivity tasks. Findings inform the assessment of state-level impulsivity in young adults. Future research should prioritize expanding the MIS to capture the potential multidimensionality of state-level impulsivity.

Emotional memory impairment produced by binge drinking in mice is counteracted by the anti-inflammatory indomethacin

The Binge Drinking (BD) pattern of alcohol consumption, prevalent in adolescents and young adults, has been associated with memory impairment. In addition, evidence shows that alcohol abuse causes neuroinflammation, which may contribute to the brain damage produced by alcohol and explain its cognitive consequences. In this study, we evaluated the effectiveness of the anti-inflammatory indomethacin in counteracting the memory impairment produced by alcohol (ethanol) in adolescent mice of both sexes. Animals were randomly assigned to one of four groups for each sex: SS (saline + saline), SA (saline + alcohol), SI (saline + indomethacin) and AI (alcohol + indomethacin). They were injected acutely (Experiment 1) or chronically intermittent (Experiment 2) with saline, ethanol (3 g/kg) and indomethacin (10 mg/kg). All subjects were evaluated in an inhibitory avoidance task 96 h after treatment. With acute administration, SA groups showed significantly lower Test latencies than SS groups, while AI groups had similar latencies to controls. The chronic-intermittent administration of alcohol, an animal model of BD, produced significant emotional memory impairment -blocking learning in males- which was counteracted by indomethacin, as the AI groups had similar latencies to the SS groups. No significant differences were observed in locomotor activity or analgesia. In conclusion, alcohol BD (one or several episodes) impairs emotional memory in mice. This impairment is not secondary to the effects of alcohol BD on locomotor activity or pain sensitivity, and it is counteracted by indomethacin. Therefore, the memory impairment produced by alcohol BD seems to be mediated, in part, by neuroinflammatory processes. These findings open a window for new treatments for alcohol use disorders.

Sex differences in binge drinking and suicide attempts in a nationally representative sample

OBJECTIVE

Prevalence of suicide continues to present a major public health problem, particularly among women. Identifying risk factors for suicide is vital to reduce the number of suicide deaths per year. Alcohol use is a well-known risk factor for suicidal behavior, but the association between binge drinking and suicide attempts across genders is less clear.

METHODS

The current study used combined 2008-2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health data (n = 269,078) to examine the association between binge drinking and suicidal ideation and suicide attempts across sex.

RESULTS

Logistic regression analyses revealed that binge drinking was associated with suicide attempts in females (OR = 1.37, 95% CI: 1.09-1.73) but not in males (OR = 1.07, 95% CI: 0.80-1.43). Binge drinking was not associated with suicidal ideation in either males or females.

CONCLUSIONS

Identifying and addressing binge drinking in women may be useful as part of a suicide prevention strategy.

Recruitment and disruption of ventral pallidal cue encoding during alcohol seeking

A critical area of inquiry in the neurobiology of alcohol abuse is the mechanism by which cues gain the ability to elicit alcohol use. Previously, we found that cue-evoked activity in rat ventral pallidum robustly encodes the value of sucrose cues trained under both Pavlovian and instrumental contingencies, despite a stronger relationship between cue-evoked activity and behavioral latency after instrumental training (Richard et al., 2018, Elife, 7, e33107). Here, we assessed: (a) ventral pallidal representations of Pavlovian versus instrumental cues trained with alcohol reward, and (b) the impact of non-associative alcohol exposure on ventral pallidal representations of sucrose cues. Decoding of cue identity based on ventral pallidum firing was blunted for the Pavlovian alcohol cue in comparison to both the instrumental cue trained with alcohol and either cue type trained with sucrose. Further, non-associative alcohol exposure had opposing effects on ventral pallidal encoding of sucrose cues trained on instrumental versus Pavlovian associations, enhancing decoding accuracy for an instrumental discriminative stimulus and reducing decoding accuracy for a Pavlovian conditioned stimulus. These findings suggest that alcohol exposure can drive biased engagement of specific reward-related signals in the ventral pallidum.

Trajectories of Dynamic Risk Factors as Predictors of Violence and Criminality in Patients Discharged From Mental Health Services: A Longitudinal Study Using Growth Mixture Modeling

Background: Individuals with severe mental illnesses are at greater risk of offenses and violence, though the relationship remains unclear due to the interplay of static and dynamic risk factors. Static factors have generally been emphasized, leaving little room for temporal changes in risk. Hence, this longitudinal study aims to identify subgroups of psychiatric populations at risk of violence and criminality by taking into account the dynamic changes of symptomatology and substance use. Method: A total of 825 patients from the MacArthur Violence Risk Assessment Study having completed five postdischarge follow-ups were analyzed. Individuals were classified into outcome trajectories (violence and criminality). Trajectories were computed for each substance (cannabis, alcohol, and cocaine, alone or combined) and for symptomatology and inputted as dynamic factors, along with other demographic and psychiatric static factors, into binary logistic regressions for predicting violence and criminality. Best predictors were then identified using backward elimination, and receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves were calculated for both models. Results: Two trajectories were found for violence (low versus high violence). Best predictors for belonging in the high-violence group were low verbal intelligence (baseline), higher psychopathy (baseline) and anger (mean) scores, persistent cannabis use (alone), and persistent moderate affective symptoms. The model's area under the curve (AUC) was 0.773. Two trajectories were also chosen as being optimal for criminality. The final model to predict high criminality yielded an AUC of 0.788, retaining as predictors male sex, lower educational level, higher score of psychopathy (baseline), persistent polysubstance use (cannabis, cocaine, and alcohol), and persistent cannabis use (alone). Both models were moderately predictive of outcomes. Conclusion: Static factors identified as predictors are consistent with previously published literature. Concerning dynamic factors, unexpectedly, cannabis alone was an independent co-occurring variable, as well as affective symptoms, in the violence model. For criminality, our results are novel, as there are very few studies on criminal behaviors in nonforensic psychiatric populations. In conclusion, these results emphasize the need to further study the predictors of crime, separately from violence and the impact of longitudinal patterns of specific substance use and high affective symptoms.

Depressive symptoms and factors associated with depression and suicidal behavior in substances user in treatment: Focus on suicidal behavior and psychological problems

AIM

To investigate the prevalence of depressive symptoms, psychological problems, suicidal behaviour and their associations in substance users in treatment.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study, with 307 substance users in an out-patient treatment facility, was undertaken. Socio-demographic data, psychoactive substances used, depressive symptoms, and suicide information were obtained.

RESULTS

70% of participants were depressed; of those, 8.1% were either under the influence of drugs or in withdrawal. Suicidal ideation was found to be present in those who had anxiety, were nervous, had depressive symptoms, or were under drug influence or in withdrawal.

CONCLUSION

It is important to identify potential suicidal risk factors and implement the management of these conditions in substance users.

Working Memory Performance Following Acute Alcohol: Replication and Extension of Dose by Age Interactions

OBJECTIVE

Despite the substantial number of older adult drinkers, few studies have examined acute alcohol effects in aging samples. We have explored these interactions across a variety of neurobehavioral domains and modalities and have consistently observed age-contingent vulnerabilities to alcohol-associated decrements in neurobehavioral functions. However, these studies have not been sufficiently powered to address sex differences, and, thus far, no attempt has been made to replicate results. The current study addresses these gaps.

METHOD

The study used a double-blind, placebo-controlled, factorial design with two age groups (older, 55-70 years; younger, 25-35 years) and three doses (target breath alcohol concentrations: .00, .04, and .065 g/dl). Replication analyses used an independent sample (n = 90) to replicate age-contingent alcohol effects reported by Boissoneault (n = 90). Samples were combined (N = 180; 91 women) to enable sex analyses. The dependent measure was performance efficiency in a visual working memory task.

RESULTS

A complex interaction between sex, age, and dose, F(2, 178) = 4.15, p = .02, appeared driven by age-contingent divergence in working memory performance, which was most pronounced between women at the .065 dose, t(28) = 4.61, p < .01, d = 1.68. Replication analyses revealed a pattern of age differences consistent with previous results, although the previously reported age by alcohol interaction failed to reach statistical significance.

CONCLUSIONS

Results provide further support for the hypothesis that neurobehavioral effects of acute alcohol are age dependent and offer evidence that this interaction may be moderated by sex. Extensions of this work are needed to identify underlying processes and ascertain the functional impact of these effects on the health and well-being of aging adult drinkers.

Facets of impulsivity and alcohol use: What role do emotions play?

Alcohol misuse is a major public concern. Impulsivity has been recognised as a significant risk factor predisposing for the initiation of alcohol use, continuation and excessive alcohol use. Evidence suggests that impulsivity is also a result of both acute alcohol intoxication and long-term alcohol abuse. The multifaceted character of impulsivity and the various ways of assessing it in humans and animal models, hampers the full understanding of how impulsivity relates to alcohol use and misuse. Therefore, in this review we evaluate recent developments in the field, trying to disentangle the contribution of different impulsivity subtypes as causes and effects of alcohol use. Moreover, we review a growing body of evidence, including brain imaging, suggesting the importance of emotional states in engaging in alcohol consumption, particularly in highly impulsive individuals. We also present recent insights into how emotional processing is manifested in alcoholism and binge drinking and suggest novel approaches to treatment and prevention opportunities which target emotional-regulation as well as emotional perception and insight.

Resveratrol alleviates ethanol-induced neuroinflammation in vivo and in vitro: Involvement of TLR2-MyD88-NF-κB pathway

Excessive ethanol (EtOH) intake affects cognitive function and leads to permanent learning and memory deficits. EtOH-induced neuroinflammation plays an important role in EtOH neurotoxicity. Studies have shown that EtOH activates microglia and induces an inflammatory response. Resveratrol (Rsv) is a natural polyphenol found in a wide variety of plants and fruits, and produces the neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects in the central nervous system. However, effect of Rsv on EtOH-induced neuroinflammation is still unknown. We investigated the anti-inflammatory effect of Rsv in the context of EtOH-induced neurotoxicity and the molecular mechanisms potentially involved in the effect. The results showed that treatment of rats with Rsv prevented the deficits of spatial reference memory induced by EtOH and mitigated EtOH-induced neuroinflammation by inhibiting microglial activation and decreasing the levels of inflammatory cytokines including interleukin-1β, interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor α. The further studies indicated that Rsv reduced TLR2 expression in vivo and in vitro, and downregulated expression of myeloid differentiation primary response 88 (MyD88) and phosphorylation of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB). These data demonstrate that Rsv alleviates the ethanol-induced neuroinflammation via inhibition of TLR2-MyD88-NF-κB signal pathway.

Alcohol affects the P3 component of an adaptive stop signal task ERP

BACKGROUND

The P3 component of the event-related potential (ERP) has been particularly useful in alcohol research for identifying endophenotypes of alcohol-use disorder (AUD) risk in sober subjects. However, practice and/or fatigue reduce P3 amplitude, limiting the ability to ascertain acute and adaptive effects of alcohol exposure. Here, we report acute alcohol effects on P3 amplitude and latency using an adaptive stop signal task (aSST).

METHODS

One hundred forty-eight non-dependent moderate to heavy social drinkers, ages 21 to 27, participated in two single-blind, alcohol or placebo, counterbalanced sessions approximately 1 week apart. During each session, subjects performed an adaptive stop signal task (aSST) at 1) baseline, 2) upon reaching the target 60 mg/dL breath alcohol concentration or at the equivalent time during the placebo session, and 3) approximately 135 min later while the breath alcohol concentration was clamped. Here, we report on differences between baseline and first subsequent measurements across the experimental sessions. During each aSST run, the stop signal delay (SSD, the time between stop and go signals) adjusted trial-by-trial, based on the subject's performance.

RESULTS

The aSST reliably generated a STOP P3 component that did not change significantly with repeated task performance. The pre-infusion SSD distribution was bimodal, with mean values several hundred msec apart (FAST: 153 msec and SLOW: 390 msec). This suggested different response strategies: FAST SSD favoring "going" over "stopping", and SLOW SSD favoring "stopping" over "going". Exposure to alcohol at 60 mg/dL differentially affected the amplitude and latency of the STOP P3 according to SSD group. Alcohol significantly reduced P3 amplitude in the SLOW SSD compared to the FAST SSD group, but significantly increased P3 latency in the FAST SSD compared to the SLOW SSD group.

CONCLUSIONS

The aSST is a robust and sensitive task for detecting alcohol-induced changes in inhibition behavior as measured by the P3 component in a within-subject design. Alcohol was associated with P3 component changes, which varied by SSD group, suggesting a differential effect as a function of task strategy. Overall, the data support the potential utility of the aSST in the detection of alcohol response-related AUD risk.

Alcohol effects on response inhibition: Variability across tasks and individuals

Considerable research has investigated the acute effects of alcohol on response inhibition, but a number of issues remain unresolved. Given that most studies use only a single laboratory task to assess inhibition, it is often difficult to determine whether alcohol's effects are task specific or generalize across measures of the same construct. Moreover, relatively few studies have directly compared effects of alcohol under ascending and descending blood alcohol concentrations (BACs), and those that have often failed to disentangle BAC limb effects from the effects of repeated testing. This study was intended to provide a test of alcohol's effects on behavioral inhibition using multiple laboratory measures in a relatively large sample and comparing effects under ascending and descending BAC. Young adults (N = 216) completed three commonly used inhibition tasks (Stroop, antisaccade, and stop-signal) at baseline and again 1-3 weeks later under one of three beverage conditions (alcohol, placebo or control) and one of two BAC limb conditions (ascending/descending or descending only). Findings indicated considerable specificity in alcohol's effects. Relative to control and placebo conditions, antisaccade performance suffered under both ascending and descending BAC and stop-signal reaction time (RT) suffered only under descending BAC. The Stroop RT interference effect was not affected by alcohol, though alcohol did impair response accuracy on incongruent Stroop trials. Baseline performance moderated effects of alcohol on both antisaccade accuracy and Stroop interference, suggesting the importance of individual differences. The current findings suggest that more specificity is required in characterizing acute effects of alcohol on inhibitory control. (PsycINFO Database Record

The reliability paradox: Why robust cognitive tasks do not produce reliable individual differences

Individual differences in cognitive paradigms are increasingly employed to relate cognition to brain structure, chemistry, and function. However, such efforts are often unfruitful, even with the most well established tasks. Here we offer an explanation for failures in the application of robust cognitive paradigms to the study of individual differences. Experimental effects become well established - and thus those tasks become popular - when between-subject variability is low. However, low between-subject variability causes low reliability for individual differences, destroying replicable correlations with other factors and potentially undermining published conclusions drawn from correlational relationships. Though these statistical issues have a long history in psychology, they are widely overlooked in cognitive psychology and neuroscience today. In three studies, we assessed test-retest reliability of seven classic tasks: Eriksen Flanker, Stroop, stop-signal, go/no-go, Posner cueing, Navon, and Spatial-Numerical Association of Response Code (SNARC). Reliabilities ranged from 0 to .82, being surprisingly low for most tasks given their common use. As we predicted, this emerged from low variance between individuals rather than high measurement variance. In other words, the very reason such tasks produce robust and easily replicable experimental effects - low between-participant variability - makes their use as correlational tools problematic. We demonstrate that taking such reliability estimates into account has the potential to qualitatively change theoretical conclusions. The implications of our findings are that well-established approaches in experimental psychology and neuropsychology may not directly translate to the study of individual differences in brain structure, chemistry, and function, and alternative metrics may be required.

Alcohol facilitates detection of concealed identity information

The Concealed Information Test (CIT) is a well-validated means to detect whether someone possesses certain (e.g., crime-relevant) information. The current study investigated whether alcohol intoxication during CIT administration influences reaction time (RT) CIT-effects. Two opposing predictions can be made. First, by decreasing attention to critical information, alcohol intoxication could diminish CIT-effects. Second, by hampering the inhibition of truthful responses, alcohol intoxication could increase CIT-effects. A correlational field design was employed. Participants (n = 42) were recruited and tested at a bar, where alcohol consumption was voluntary and incidental. Participants completed a CIT, in which they were instructed to hide knowledge of their true identity. BAC was estimated via breath alcohol ratio. Results revealed that higher BAC levels were correlated with higher CIT-effects. Our results demonstrate that robust CIT effects can be obtained even when testing conditions differ from typical laboratory settings and strengthen the idea that response inhibition contributes to the RT-CIT effect.

Impulsive dispositions and alcohol: what we know, how we know it, and where to go from here

BACKGROUND

Relations between impulsigenic traits and alcohol-related outcomes have been the focus of much research, yet precise relations remain elusive. Historically, research used broadband conceptualizations of impulsivity, which yielded inconclusive findings. Attempts to ameliorate this problem led to more work on narrowband assessments of impulsivity. Despite that several narrowband self-report measures exist, few demonstrate adequate psychometric properties. Given the limits of self-report, researchers have also utilized laboratory-based measures of impulsive dispositions; however, this seems to have contributed more uncertainty to the literature.

REVIEW

We review commonly used self-report and laboratory-based measures of narrowband impulsivity, as well as assessments of alcohol-related constructs (e.g., consumption and consequences). We discuss remaining issues in impulsivity and alcohol assessment, which limit understanding of how impulsigenic traits influence alcohol-related behaviors. Cutting-edge conceptualizations and assessment of state-level impulsivity are also discussed.

CONCLUSIONS

More work is necessary to further this area of research, including establishing consistent nomenclature and a cohesive conceptualization of impulsigenic traits as they relate to alcohol use and alcohol use disorders.

A test of the psychometric characteristics of the BIS-Brief among three groups of youth

The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) is the most widely administered trait impulsiveness questionnaire. Recently a shorter, unidimensional version of the instrument was developed for adults (BIS-Brief). While psychometric characteristics of the BIS-Brief support its use among adults, it also may be more appropriate for youth samples than the complete BIS-11 because it less burdensome and omits items about activities not usually encountered by children and adolescents. This article describes a test of psychometric characteristics of the BIS-Brief among youth. To measure a sufficiently wide range of scores, analyses were conducted based on secondary data analysis of data sets pooled from 3 distinct youth cohorts aged 10-17: healthy controls (Control; n = 356); those who had a family history of substance use disorder (FH+; n = 302); and psychiatric inpatients (Patients; n = 322). Model fit for the BIS-Brief was good but varied somewhat depending on the respondent cohort. There was a strong correlation between test and re-test BIS-Brief both within a single day and at 6 months, and also a strong correlation between BIS-Brief and BIS-11 scores. Concurrent validity was supported by correlation with questionnaire measures, which tended to be more robustly associated with BIS-Brief than behavioral measures. Both BIS-Brief and BIS-11 forms were similarly associated with other convergent measures. In conclusion, the BIS-Brief is a shorter version of the BIS-11 that reduces participant burden and with psychometric properties that support its use among youth populations. (PsycINFO Database Record

Validity of the Reaction Time Concealed Information Test in a Prison Sample

Detecting whether a suspect possesses incriminating (e.g., crime-related) information can provide valuable decision aids in court. To this means, the Concealed Information Test (CIT) has been developed and is currently applied on a regular basis in Japan. But whereas research has revealed a high validity of the CIT in student and normal populations, research investigating its validity in forensic samples in scarce. This applies even more to the reaction time-based CIT (RT-CIT), where no such research is available so far. The current study tested the application of the RT-CIT for an imaginary mock crime scenario both in a sample of prisoners (n = 27) and a matched control group (n = 25). Results revealed a high validity of the RT-CIT for discriminating between crime-related and crime-unrelated information, visible in medium to very high effect sizes for error rates and reaction times. Interestingly, in accordance with theories that criminal offenders may have worse response inhibition capacities and that response inhibition plays a crucial role in the RT-CIT, CIT-effects in the error rates were even elevated in the prisoners compared to the control group. No support for this hypothesis could, however, be found in reaction time CIT-effects. Also, performance in a standard Stroop task, that was conducted to measure executive functioning, did not differ between both groups and no correlation was found between Stroop task performance and performance in the RT-CIT. Despite frequently raised concerns that the RT-CIT may not be applicable in non-student and forensic populations, our results thereby do suggest that such a use may be possible and that effects seem to be quite large. Future research should build up on these findings by increasing the realism of the crime and interrogation situation and by further investigating the replicability and the theoretical substantiation of increased effects in non-student and forensic samples.

Impairment of manual but not saccadic response inhibition following acute alcohol intoxication

BACKGROUND

Alcohol impairs response inhibition; however, it remains contested whether such impairments affect a general inhibition system, or whether affected inhibition systems are embedded in, and specific to, each response modality. Further, alcohol-induced impairments have not been disambiguated between proactive and reactive inhibition mechanisms, and nor have the contributions of action-updating impairments to behavioural 'inhibition' deficits been investigated.

METHODS

Forty Participants (25 female) completed both a manual and a saccadic stop-signal reaction time (SSRT) task before and after a 0.8g/kg dose of alcohol and, on a separate day, before and after a placebo. Blocks in which participants were required to ignore the signal to stop or make an additional 'dual' response were included to obtain measures of proactive inhibition as well as updating of attention and action.

RESULTS

Alcohol increased manual but not saccadic SSRT. Proactive inhibition was weakly reduced by alcohol, but increases in the reaction times used to baseline this contrast prevent clear conclusions regarding response caution. Finally, alcohol also increased secondary dual response times of the dual task uniformly as a function of the delay between tasks, indicating an effect of alcohol on action-updating or execution.

CONCLUSIONS

The modality-specific effects of alcohol favour the theory that response inhibition systems are embedded within response modalities, rather than there existing a general inhibition system. Concerning alcohol, saccadic control appears relatively more immune to disruption than manual control, even though alcohol affects saccadic latency and velocity. Within the manual domain, alcohol affects multiple types of action updating, not just inhibition.

Effects of binge drinking and hangover on response selection sub-processes-a study using EEG and drift diffusion modeling

Effects of binge drinking on cognitive control and response selection are increasingly recognized in research on alcohol (ethanol) effects. Yet, little is known about how those processes are modulated by hangover effects. Given that acute intoxication and hangover seem to be characterized by partly divergent effects and mechanisms, further research on this topic is needed. In the current study, we hence investigated this with a special focus on potentially differential effects of alcohol intoxication and subsequent hangover on sub-processes involved in the decision to select a response. We do so combining drift diffusion modeling of behavioral data with neurophysiological (EEG) data. Opposed to common sense, the results do not show an impairment of all assessed measures. Instead, they show specific effects of high dose alcohol intoxication and hangover on selective drift diffusion model and EEG parameters (as compared to a sober state). While the acute intoxication induced by binge-drinking decreased the drift rate, it was increased by the subsequent hangover, indicating more efficient information accumulation during hangover. Further, the non-decisional processes of information encoding decreased with intoxication, but not during hangover. These effects were reflected in modulations of the N2, P1 and N1 event-related potentials, which reflect conflict monitoring, perceptual gating and attentional selection processes, respectively. As regards the functional neuroanatomical architecture, the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) as well as occipital networks seem to be modulated. Even though alcohol is known to have broad neurobiological effects, its effects on cognitive processes are rather specific.

Impulsive Personality and Alcohol Use: Bidirectional Relations Over One Year

OBJECTIVE

Impulsive personality traits have been found to be robust predictors of substance use and problems in both cross-sectional and longitudinal research. Studies examining the relations of substance use and impulsive personality over time indicate a bidirectional relation, where substance use is also predictive of increases in later impulsive personality. The present study sought to build on these findings by examining the bidirectional relations among the different impulsive personality traits assessed by the UPPS-P Impulsive Behavior Scale, with an interest in urgency (the tendency to act rashly when experiencing strong affect).

METHOD

Participants were 525 first-year college students (48.0% male, 81.1% White), who completed self-report measures assessing personality traits and a structured interview assessing past and current substance use. Data collection took place at two different time points: the first occurred during the participants' first year of college, and the second occurred approximately 1 year later. Bidirectional relations were examined using structural equation modeling.

RESULTS

Time 1 (T1) positive urgency predicted higher levels of alcohol use at Time 2 (T2), whereas T1 lack of perseverance predicted lower levels of alcohol use at T2. T1 alcohol use predicted higher levels of positive urgency, negative urgency, sensation seeking, and lack of premeditation at T2.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings provide greater resolution in characterizing the bidirectional relation between impulsive personality traits and substance use.

Effects of acute alcohol intoxication on executive functions controlling self-regulated behavior

Alcohol consumption may lead to deficits in the executive functions that govern self-regulation. These deficits could lead to risk-taking behaviors; therefore, it is important to determine the magnitude of these deficits on executive functioning. The purpose of this experiment was to investigate the acute effects of alcohol on three of the executive functions that are hypothesized to affect self-regulation, which are inhibition, set shifting, and working memory, using a mixed-methods study design. The participants were 75 moderate or heavy drinkers between the ages of 21 and 35 who were randomized into one of three beverage conditions (control, placebo, or 0.65-g alcohol dose/kg body weight). Performance on working memory, set shifting, and inhibition were measured pre- and post-beverage consumption. The results showed only a significant interaction in the working memory data, as there was an increase in performance post-beverage relative to pre-beverage for the control participants as compared to the alcohol and placebo participants. It was concluded that the dose of alcohol (BAC = 0.063%) given to moderate to heavy drinkers was not sufficient to cause significant impairment in the executive functions tested. The results were further discussed and methodological concerns were considered, such as the low BAC achieved, practice effects, and insensitivity of tasks.

Gambling disorder: Association between duration of illness, clinical, and neurocognitive variables

Background and aims Gambling disorder (GD) may have its onset in a wide range of ages, from adolescents to old adults. In addition, individuals with GD tend to seek treatment at different moments in their lives. As a result of these characteristics (variable age at onset and variable age at treatment seeking), we find subjects with diverse duration of illness (DOI) in clinical practice. DOI is an important but relatively understudied factor in GD. Our objective was to investigate clinical and neurocognitive characteristics associated with different DOI. Methods This study evaluated 448 adults diagnosed with GD. All assessments were completed prior to treatments being commenced. Results Our main results were: (a) there is a negative correlation between DOI and lag between first gambling and onset of GD; (b) lifetime history of alcohol use disorder (AUD) is associated with a longer duration of GD; (c) the presence of a first-degree relative with history of AUD is associated with a more extended course of GD; and (d) there is a negative correlation between DOI and quality of life. Discussion This study suggests that some important variables are associated with different DOI. Increasing treatment-seeking behavior, providing customized psychological interventions, and effectively managing AUD may decrease the high levels of chronicity in GD. Furthermore, research on GD such as phenomenological studies and clinical trials may consider the duration of GD in their methodology. DOI might be an important variable when analyzing treatment outcome and avoiding confounders.

A meta-analysis of acute use of alcohol and the risk of suicide attempt

BACKGROUND

No review has used a meta-analytic approach to estimate common odds ratios (ORs) for the effect of acute use of alcohol (AUA) on suicide attempts. We aim to report the results of the first meta-analysis of controlled epidemiological studies on AUA and suicide attempt.

METHOD

The English-language literature on Medline, PsycINFO and Google Scholar was searched for original articles and critical review on AUA and suicide attempt (period 1996-2015). Studies had to report an OR estimate for this association. Common ORs and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) from random effects in meta-analyses for any AUA and two levels of alcohol use on suicide attempt were calculated.

RESULTS

In all, seven studies provided OR estimates for the likelihood of suicide attempt by AUA, compared with those who did not drink alcohol. Studies used case-control (n 3) and case-crossover designs (n 4). Meta-analysis revealed a common OR of 6.97 (95% CI 4.77-10.17) for any AUA. Using four studies, 'low levels of acute drinking' resulted in an OR of 2.71 (95% CI 1.56-4.71) and 'high levels' had an OR of 37.18 (95% CI 17.38-79.53).

CONCLUSIONS

AUA is associated with increased likelihood of a suicide attempt, particularly at high doses. Such data should be incorporated into estimates of the burden of disease associated with alcohol use, which are currently limited by a consideration of only alcohol's chronic effects. Future research should focus on the mechanisms through which AUA confers risk for attempt.

Acute effects of methylphenidate on impulsivity and attentional behavior among adolescents comorbid for ADHD and conduct disorder

Adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Conduct Disorder (CD) experience deficits in neuropsychological measures of attention, inhibition, and reward processes. Methylphenidate treatment for ADHD and CD has acute effects on these processes. Some of these same aspects of performance are separately described in the Behavioral Model of Impulsivity, which uses a modified approach to measurement. This study characterized the acute effects of methylphenidate attention, initiation, inhibition, and reward processes described in this model of impulsivity. Thirty-one adolescents from the United States of America with comorbid ADHD and CD completed measures of impulsivity (response initiation, response inhibition, and consequence) and attention following placebo, 20 mg, and 40 mg of a long-acting dose of methylphenidate. Methylphenidate effects on attentional performance was more robust than on any of the measures of impulsivity. Adolescent performance from this behavioral perspective is interpreted in the context of divergence from previous neuropsychological tests of acute methylphenidate effects.

Acute effects of cocaine and cannabis on response inhibition in humans: an ERP investigation

Substance abuse has often been associated with alterations in response inhibition in humans. Not much research has examined how the acute effects of drugs modify the neurophysiological correlates of response inhibition, or how these effects interact with individual variation in trait levels of impulsivity and novelty seeking. This study investigated the effects of cocaine and cannabis on behavioural and event-related potential (ERP) correlates of response inhibition in 38 healthy drug using volunteers. A double-blind placebo-controlled randomized three-way crossover design was used. All subjects completed a standard Go/NoGo task after administration of the drugs. Compared with a placebo, cocaine yielded improved accuracy, quicker reaction times and an increased prefrontal NoGo-P3 ERP. Cannabis produced opposing results; slower reaction times, impaired accuracy and a reduction in the amplitude of the prefrontal NoGo-P3. Cannabis in addition decreased the amplitude of the parietally recorded P3, while cocaine did not affect this. Neither drugs specifically affected the N2 component, suggesting that pre-motor response inhibitory processes remain unaffected. Neither trait impulsivity nor novelty seeking interacted with drug-induced effects on measures of response inhibition. We conclude that acute drug effects on response inhibition seem to be specific to the later, evaluative stages of response inhibition. The acute effects of cannabis appeared less specific to response inhibition than those of cocaine. Together, the results show that the behavioural effects on response inhibition are reflected in electrophysiological correlates. This study did not support a substantial role of vulnerability personality traits in the acute intoxication stage.

Cannabis and alcohol use, affect and impulsivity in psychiatric out-patients' daily lives

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Cannabis and alcohol are the most commonly used (il)licit drugs world-wide. We compared the effects of cannabis and alcohol use on within-person changes in impulsivity, hostility and positive affect at the momentary and daily levels, as they occurred in daily life.

DESIGN

Observational study involving ecological momentary assessments collected via electronic diaries six random times a day for 28 consecutive days.

SETTING

Out-patients' everyday life contexts in Columbia, MO, USA.

PARTICIPANTS

Ninety-three adult psychiatric out-patients (85% female; mean = 30.9 years old) with borderline personality or depressive disorders, who reported using only cannabis (n = 3), only alcohol (n = 58) or both (n = 32) at least once during the study period.

MEASUREMENTS

Real-time, standard self-report measures of impulsivity, hostility and positive affect, as impacted by momentary reports of cannabis and alcohol use.

FINDINGS

Cannabis use was associated with elevated feelings of impulsivity at the day level [b = 0.83, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.17-1.49] and increased hostility at the momentary (b = 0.07, 95% CI = 0.01-0.12) and person (b = 0.81, 95% CI = 0.15-1.47) level. Alcohol use was associated with elevated feelings of impulsivity at the momentary (b = 0.42, 95% CI = 0.13-0.71) and day levels (b = 0.82, 95% CI = 0.22-1.41) and increased positive affect at the momentary (b = 0.12, 95% CI = 0.06-0.18) and day (b = 0.33, 95% CI = 0.16-0.49) levels.

CONCLUSIONS

Cannabis and alcohol use are associated with increases in impulsivity (both), hostility (cannabis) and positive affect (alcohol) in daily life, and these effects are part of separate processes that operate on different time-scales (i.e. momentary versus daily).

Behavioral Impulsivity Does Not Predict Naturalistic Alcohol Consumption or Treatment Outcomes

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to determine if behavioral impulsivity under multiple conditions (baseline, after alcohol consumption or after serotonin depletion) predicted naturalistic alcohol use or treatment outcomes from a moderation-based contingency management intervention.

METHOD

The current data analysis pulls information from three phases of a large study: 1) Phase 1 examined baseline and the effects of alcohol use and serotonin depletion on three types of behavioral impulsivity: response initiation (IMT task), response inhibition (GoStop task), and delay discounting (SKIP task); 2) Phase 2 involved 28 days of naturalistic drinking; and 3) Phase 3 involved 3 months of contingency management. During phases 2 and 3 alcohol use was measured objectively using transdermal alcohol monitors. The results of each individual phase has been previously published showing that at a group level the effects of alcohol consumption on impulsivity were dependent on the component of impulsivity being measured and the dose of alcohol consumed but serotonin depletion had no effect on impulsivity, and that a moderation-based contingency management intervention reduced heavy drinking.

RESULTS

The current analysis combining data from those who completed all three phases (n = 67) showed that impulsivity measured at baseline, after alcohol consumption, or after serotonin depletion did not predict naturalistic drinking or treatment outcomes from a moderation-based CM treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

Contingency management interventions may prove to be an effective intervention for impulsive individuals, however, normal variations in measured impulsivity do not seem to relate to normal variations in drinking pattern or response to moderation-based contingency management.

Cholinesterase inhibitors, donepezil and rivastigmine, attenuate spatial memory and cognitive flexibility impairment induced by acute ethanol in the Barnes maze task in rats

Central cholinergic dysfunction contributes to acute spatial memory deficits produced by ethanol administration. Donepezil and rivastigmine elevate acetylcholine levels in the synaptic cleft through the inhibition of cholinesterases—enzymes involved in acetylcholine degradation. The aim of our study was to reveal whether donepezil (acetylcholinesterase inhibitor) and rivastigmine (also butyrylcholinesterase inhibitor) attenuate spatial memory impairment as induced by acute ethanol administration in the Barnes maze task (primary latency and number of errors in finding the escape box) in rats. Additionally, we compared the influence of these drugs on ethanol-disturbed memory. In the first experiment, the dose of ethanol (1.75 g/kg, i.p.) was selected that impaired spatial memory, but did not induce motor impairment. Next, we studied the influence of donepezil (1 and 3 mg/kg, i.p.), as well as rivastigmine (0.5 and 1 mg/kg, i.p.), given either before the probe trial or the reversal learning on ethanol-induced memory impairment. Our study demonstrated that these drugs, when given before the probe trial, were equally effective in attenuating ethanol-induced impairment in both test situations, whereas rivastigmine, at both doses (0.5 and 1 mg/kg, i.p.), and donepezil only at a higher dose (3 mg/kg, i.p.) given prior the reversal learning, attenuated the ethanol-induced impairment in cognitive flexibility. Thus, rivastigmine appears to exert more beneficial effect than donepezil in reversing ethanol-induced cognitive impairments—probably due to its wider spectrum of activity. In conclusion, the ethanol-induced spatial memory impairment may be attenuated by pharmacological manipulation of central cholinergic neurotransmission.

The impact of cognitive impairment and impulsivity on relapse of alcohol-dependent patients: implications for psychotherapeutic treatment

Recent models of the development of addiction propose a transition from a pleasure-driven to a heavily automatized behaviour, marked by a loss of cognitive control. This study investigated the deficits in different components of cognitive functions including behavioural inhibition in response to alcohol-related stimuli in alcohol-dependent patients (ADP) and healthy controls (HC). The aims of the study were to identify which particular cognitive functions are impaired in ADP. Furthermore, we analysed the association between cognitive deficits and relapse rates and the reversibility of cognitive deficits under abstinence in a 6-month follow-up period. Ninety-four recently detoxified ADP and 71 HC completed the cognitive tasks as well as questionnaire measures assessing drinking behaviour and personality traits. Compared with HC, ADP showed poorer performance in response initiation, response inhibition, complex-sustained attention and executive functions. Impairment in response inhibition was a significant predictor for relapse, yet the strongest predictor was the interaction between the number of previous detoxifications and response-inhibition deficits. The results of a moderation analysis showed that patients with many previous detoxifications and large deficits in response inhibition showed the highest relapse risk. These findings indicate that interventions should take into account inhibitory deficits especially in ADP with a high number of previous detoxifications.

Alcohol Increases Delay and Probability Discounting of Condom-Protected Sex: A Novel Vector for Alcohol-Related HIV Transmission

BACKGROUND

Alcohol use, especially at binge levels, is associated with sexual HIV risk behavior, but the mechanisms through which alcohol increases sexual risk taking are not well-examined. Delay discounting, that is, devaluation of future consequences as a function of delay to their occurrence, has been implicated in a variety of problem behaviors, including risky sexual behavior. Probability discounting is studied with a similar framework as delay discounting, but is a distinct process in which a consequence is devalued because it is uncertain or probabilistic.

METHODS

Twenty-three, nondependent alcohol users (13 male, 10 female; mean age = 25.3 years old) orally consumed alcohol (1 g/kg) or placebo in 2 separate experimental sessions. During sessions, participants completed tasks examining delay and probability discounting of hypothetical condom-protected sex (Sexual Delay Discounting Task, Sexual Probability Discounting Task) and of hypothetical and real money.

RESULTS

Alcohol decreased the likelihood that participants would wait to have condom-protected sex versus having immediate, unprotected sex. Alcohol also decreased the likelihood that participants would use an immediately available condom given a specified level of sexually transmitted infection (STI) risk. Alcohol did not affect delay discounting of money, but it did increase participants' preferences for larger, probabilistic monetary rewards over smaller, certain rewards.

CONCLUSIONS

Acute, binge-level alcohol intoxication may increase sexual HIV risk by decreasing willingness to delay sex in order to acquire a condom in situations where one is not immediately available, and by decreasing sensitivity to perceived risk of STI contraction. These findings suggest that delay and probability discounting are critical, but heretofore unrecognized, processes that may mediate the relations between alcohol use and HIV risk.