Substance Use and Its Relationship With Attachment and Early Maladaptive Schemes in Adolescents in Ecuador.

Given the scarcity of studies addressing substance consumption and its relationship with attachment styles and early maladaptive schemas in adolescents, the present study is proposed. Aims of this study are to analyze the relationship among attachment styles, early maladaptive schemas, and substance use; test the predictive role of attachment styles on substance use; and observe the mediating role of early maladaptive schemas in the relationship between attachment and substance use. The sample consisted of 1533 adolescents from Ecuador (53.9% males) aged between 14 and 18 years (M = 15.76; SD = 1.25). The attachment styles of security, value to parental authority, parental permissiveness, parental interference, self-sufficiency and resentment against parents, childhood trauma, and family concern predict substance use (tobacco, alcohol, tranquilizers/sedatives or sleeping pills, hashish or marijuana, cocaine, GHB or liquid ecstasy, ecstasy, amphetamines/speed, hallucinogens, heroin, inhalants/volatiles), and the mediating role of early maladaptive schemas is confirmed (explained variance up to 33.33%). Identifying risk or vulnerability factors, such as attachment and early maladaptive schemas related to substance consumption, is especially relevant for designing and implementing preventive interventions in the adolescent population.

Latent classes of gambling in youths: The role of comorbidity, alexithymia and stressful life events by sex. / Clases latentes de juego problemático en jóvenes: El papel de la comorbilidad, la alexitimia y los acontecimientos vitales estresantes en función del sexo.

Alexithymia is related with propensity towards impulsive behavioral responses, rather than cognitive regulation of stressful events. Youth is a particularly vulnerable time for the confluence of these variables, which may impact the severity of gambling disorders (GD). However, sex differences have hardly been explored. This study aimed, firstly, to explore the frequency of GD among young people, as well as the presence of GD with other comorbid addictions. Secondly, latent classes were examined on the basis of gambling risk and their relationship to other addictive behaviors, alexithymia and stressful life events. Thirdly, we analyzed whether class membership was predicted by sex and age. The sample was composed of 360 participants between the ages of 18 and 35, the majority female. The results obtained revealed that alcohol abuse was the most prevalent addictive behavior both for problem and non-problem gamblers of both sexes. Group membership analyses showed the presence of two latent classes based on gambling risk. One of them was characterized by gambling risk, comorbidity, alexithymia, and stressful life events, and mainly predicted by being male. The other model was characterized by no gambling risk, lower levels of stressful life events and alexithymia, and mainly predicted by being female. This second profile presents a risk of alcohol abuse and compulsive buying. We highlight the need to introduce a gender perspective both in the interpretation of research findings and in the clinical application of treatments. CAST: La comorbilidad, la alexitimia y los acontecimientos vitales estresantes desempeñan un papel importante en la salud mental de los jóvenes. Este estudio ha tenido como objetivo, en primer lugar, explorar la frecuencia del trastorno de juego (TJ) en los jóvenes, así como la presencia del TJ  con otras adicciones comórbidas. En segundo lugar, se pretendía analizar un modelo de perfil basado en el riesgo de juego y su relación con las otras conductas adictivas, la alexitimia y los acontecimientos vitales estresantes. En tercer lugar, se analizó si la pertenencia a cada perfil era predicha por el sexo y la edad. La muestra estaba compuesta por 360 participantes. Los resultados obtenidos revelaron que el abuso de alcohol era la conducta adictiva más prevalente tanto para los jugadores problemáticos como para los no problemáticos de ambos sexos. Los análisis de pertenencia de clase mostraron la presencia de dos modelos de perfil de juego. El primeor de ellos se caracterizaba por el riesgo de juego, la comorbilidad, la alexitimia y los acontecimientos vitales estresantes, y estaba principalmente predicho por la condición sexo-varón. El otro modelo se caracteriza por la ausencia de riesgo de juego, niveles más bajos de acontecimientos vitales estresantes y alexitimia, y se predice principalmente por ser mujer.  En este segundo perfil hay riesgo de abuso de alcohol y de compra compulsiva. Destacamos la necesidad de introducir una perspectiva de género tanto en la interpretación de los resultados de la investigación como en la aplicación clínica de los tratamientos.

La alexitimia se relaciona con la propensión a las respuestas conductuales impulsivas, en lugar de una regulación cognitiva de los acontecimientos estresantes. La juventud es una etapa de especial vulnerabilidad para la confluencia de estas variables, pudiendo repercutir en la severidad del trastorno de juego (TJ). No obstante, las diferencias entre sexos apenas han sido exploradas. Este estudio tuvo como objetivo, en primer lugar, explorar la frecuencia de TJ en los jóvenes, así como la presencia de TJ con otras adicciones comórbidas. En segundo lugar, se examinó el riesgo de juego y su relación con las otras conductas adictivas, la alexitimia y los acontecimientos vitales estresantes. En tercer lugar, se analizó si la pertenencia a una determinada clase latente era predicha por el sexo y la edad. La muestra estaba compuesta por 360 participantes, con edades comprendidas entre los 18 y 35 años, siendo la mayoría mujeres. Los resultados obtenidos revelaron que el abuso de alcohol era la conducta adictiva más prevalente, tanto para los jugadores problemáticos como para los no problemáticos de ambos sexos. Los análisis de pertenencia de grupo mostraron la presencia de dos clases latentes en base al riesgo de juego. El primero de ellos se caracterizaba por el riesgo de juego, la comorbilidad, la alexitimia y los acontecimientos vitales estresantes, y estaba principalmente predicho por la condición sexo-varón. El otro modelo se caracterizaba por la ausencia de riesgo de juego, niveles más bajos de acontecimientos vitales estresantes y alexitimia, y se predice principalmente por la condición sexo-mujer. En este segundo perfil se halló riesgo de abuso de alcohol y de compra compulsiva. Señalamos la necesidad de introducir una perspectiva de género tanto en la interpretación de los resultados de la investigación como en la aplicación clínica de los tratamientos.

Sex-comparative study of gambling disorder regarding alexithymia and symptoms of depression, anxiety and hostility.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Alexithymia and psychological symptomatology have been closely associated with gambling disorder (GD). However, sex differences remain underexplored. This study aims, firstly, to explore the differences between groups (GD and no-GD) and sexes (women vs. men) in alexithymia and psychological symptomatology (depression, anxiety and hostility). Secondly, the relationship between alexithymia and psychological symptomatology was analysed by gambling and sex groups. Thirdly, it examines the moderation role of sex and gambling in the relationship between alexithymia and each psychological symptom. METHOD: The sample was composed of 80 people with GD diagnosis and 80 without GD (40 women and 40 men in each group). RESULTS: The results showed that alexithymia is positively related to depression, anxiety and hostility, with significantly higher scores in people with GD. Moderation analyses showed a threefold interaction, in which higher alexithymia was related to higher depression for men with GD but not for GD-women. However, in women with GD, depression levels are higher than in people without GD and tend to be more stable over time, despite the lack of effect of alexithymia. CONCLUSIONS: These results provide evidence indicating that dysfunctional psychological symptomatology affects people with GD to a greater extent than people without GD, but also that the aetiology and effect of underlying vulnerability factors on gambling is different according to sex. The need of prevention and treatment programmes that consider different psychological aspects depending on sex is reinforced.

Emotional dependence as a predictor of emotional symptoms and substance abuse in individuals with gambling disorder: differential analysis by sex.

INTRODUCTION: Emotional dependence, anxious-depressive symptoms and substance use have been associated with gambling disorder (GD). Although anxiety and depression have been predominantly related to female gamblers and substance abuse to male gamblers, the role of emotional dependence in GD is unknown. Moreover, sex differences remain underexplored. OBJECTIVES: First, to explore possible differences in emotional dependence, anxious-depressive symptoms and substance abuse by group (GD and non-GD) and sex (women vs men). Second, to analyse the predictive role of emotional dependence in alcohol and drug abuse and anxious-depressive symptoms in patients with GD as a function of sex. METHODS: Instruments to measure gambling (SOGS), emotional dependence (CDE), anxious-depressive symptoms (SCL-90-R) and substance abuse (MULTICAGE CAD-4) were administered to 108 people with GD diagnosis (60 women and 48 men) and 429 without GD (342 women and 87 men). STUDY DESIGN: The research is an analytical cross-sectional study. RESULTS: The results showed that the group with GD scored significantly higher than the non-GD group on alcohol abuse, symptoms of depression and anxiety, and emotional dependence, but not on drug abuse. In the group with GD, emotional dependence predicted alcohol and drug abuse in women, and emotional dependence predicted anxiety and depressive symptoms in men. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that women with GD who consume alcohol or drugs would benefit from therapies addressing loneliness, borderline expression, attention-seeking and affective expression. Men with GD who report anxious-depressive symptomatology would benefit from therapeutic strategies to deal with separation anxiety and attention-seeking.

Looking at Sex Differences in Gambling Disorder: The Predictive Role of the Early Abandonment Schema, Gambling Motives and Alexithymia in Depression.

A growing body of research indicates differences between men and women with gambling disorder. However, although alexithymia, gambling motives or abandonment have been associated with GD, women's clinical profile remains unexplored. This study aims, firstly, to explore mean differences in gambling motives (i.e. enhancement, coping and social [SOC]), the early maladaptive abandonment schema, alexithymia and depression in women and men with GD. Secondly, to analyse the correlation between the aforementioned variables as a function of sex. Thirdly, to examine the predictive role of gambling motives, early abandonment schema and alexithymia in depression as a function of sex. Lastly, to analyse the mediating role of COP between the early maladaptive abandonment schema and depression in women with GD, and the mediating role of ENH and the early maladaptive abandonment schema between alexithymia and depression in men with GD. The sample comprised 108 adults with GD diagnosis, of whom 60 were women and 48 were men. Regression and mediation analyses were carried out to explore possible sex differences in GD, through the SPSS programme. Results showed that depressive symptoms are predicted by alexithymia in men with GD and by the early maladaptive abandonment schema in women with GD. Regarding mediation analyses, the results suggest that COP mediated the relationship between early abandonment schema and depressive symptoms in females; and ENH and abandonment schema mediated the relationship between alexithymia and depressive symptoms in males. These results provide evidence of the relevance of considering sex differences when establishing therapeutic strategies in GD rehabilitation.

Cyberbullying and Gambling Disorder: Associations with Emotion Regulation and Coping Strategies.

The presence of unsuitable coping and emotion regulation strategies in young populations with gambling disorder (GD) and in those who have experienced cyberbullying victimization has been suggested. However, this association has not been explored in depth. In this study, our aim was to analyze individual differences in emotion regulation, coping strategies, and substance abuse in a clinical sample of adolescents and young adult patients with GD (n = 31) and in a community sample (n = 250). Furthermore, we aimed to examine the association between cyberbullying and GD. Participants were evaluated using the Cyberbullying Questionnaire-Victimization, the Canadian Adolescent Gambling Inventory, the Coping Strategies Inventory, the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test and the Drug Use Disorders Identification Test. Structural Equation Modeling was used to explore associations between these factors in a community sample and in a clinical group. In both groups, exposure to cyberbullying behaviors was positively associated with higher emotion dysregulation and the use of maladaptative coping styles. Our findings uphold that adolescents and young adults who were victims of cyberbullying show difficulties in emotion regulation and maladaptive coping strategies when trying to solve problems. The specific contribution of sex, age, gambling severity, emotion regulation, and coping strategies on cyberbullying severity is also discussed. Populations at vulnerable ages could potentially benefit from public prevention policies that target these risk factors.

Alexithymia and Emotion Regulation Strategies in Adolescent Gamblers with and Without At-Risk Profiles.

Alexithymia, difficulties in emotion regulation, and negative affect play an important role in adolescents who present pathological gambling. Therefore, the objectives of the present study were, firstly, to analyze the differences between alexithymia, difficulties in emotion regulation, and positive and negative affect in adolescents with and without risk of gambling problems. Secondly, the relationships between all the variables of the study in adolescents with and without risk of problem gambling were analyzed separately. Thirdly, we analyzed the mediating role of positive and negative affect in the relationship between alexithymia and dysfunctional emotion regulation strategies (ERS) in adolescents at risk of gambling problems. The sample was composed of 206 adolescents with ages ranging from 12 to 18 years (M = 15.52; SD = 1.43). They were divided into two groups according to the score obtained in the South Oaks Gambling Screen-Revised for Adolescents (SOGS-RA). Thus, 84 were included in the group without risk of gambling problems and 122 in the group at risk of gambling problems. The results obtained revealed higher scores in negative affect and pathological gambling in the group at risk of gambling problems. Likewise, positive relationships between alexithymia, maladaptive emotion regulation strategies (MERS), and affect were found. Mediation analyses showed that difficulties in identifying feelings were indirectly related to greater use of dysfunctional ERS through their relationship with negative affect in at-risk gamblers.

Gambling and Attachment: The Mediating Role of Alexithymia in Adolescents and Young Adults.

Attachment and alexithymia play a central role in the appearance and persistence of pathological gambling and related comorbid addictive behaviours among adolescents and young adults. The aim of the present study was to explore the differences between problem gamblers and non-problem gamblers in gambling severity, spending, video gaming, alcohol and drugs use, attachment, and alexithymia, as well as the interaction among these variables. The study sample included 560 participants non-problem gamblers (mean age = 15.49 years) and 54 problem gamblers (mean age = 16.43 years). Gambling disorder (SOGS-RA), drugs, alcohol, video games and spending (MULTICAGE CAD-4), attachment (IPPA), and alexithymia (TAS-20) were measured. Student's t, Pearson's r, and multiple mediation analyses were conducted. Problem gamblers scored significantly higher in all substance and non-substance addictive behaviours and alexithymia; as well as significantly lower scores in mother and father attachment scales. Moreover, gambling was negatively associated to father and mother attachment, and positively associated to alexithymia. Finally, alexithymia was found to mediate between parental attachment and gambling, spending, videogame, drug and alcohol abuse, especially in the case of mother attachment. This study demonstrated that adolescent and young adult problem gamblers show higher comorbid addictions than non-problem gamblers, in the same way as higher levels of alexithymia and poorer father attachment. Given that higher comorbidity in early ages is associated with worse prognosis and higher psychopathology in adult life, early detection and treatment purposes becomes essential.

Exploring the Predictive Value of Gambling Motives, Cognitive Distortions, and Materialism on Problem Gambling Severity in Adolescents and Young Adults.

Gambling motives and cognitive distortions are thought to be associated because both coping and financial motives to gamble appear to be predictors of gambling related cognitive distortions. Therefore, there is an argument to be made that gambling motives, cognitive distortions, and materialism share common attributes and might be related to problem gambling severity. The present paper aims to examine the relationship between these three variables, both in a clinical and community setting, to see if they can predict gambling severity. A sample of 250 participants from the general population and 31 participants from the clinical population was recruited. The results showed that the clinical sample scored higher on gambling severity, cognitive distortions, materialism, and gambling motives. It also showed that low scores in enhancement motives and higher scores in social motives and gambling related cognitions predicted gambling severity in older gamblers, whereas for younger patients, gambling severity was best predicted by higher scores in materialism and coping motives, and lower scores for enhancement and social motives. In the community sample, gambling severity correlated with gambling related cognitive distortions and with gambling motives (except for social and coping motives within the women subsample). These results testify to the importance of materialism, cognitive distortions, and gambling motives as risk factors for problem gambling both in community and clinical samples.

The Severity of Gambling and Gambling Related Cognitions as Predictors of Emotional Regulation and Coping Strategies in Adolescents.

People with gambling disorder (GD) exhibit distorted cognitions and superstitious beliefs more often than the general population. Similarly, difficulties in coping and emotion dysregulation are more prevalent among those with GD, and could determine the onset of GD in particularly vulnerable groups such as adolescents. This study examines the relationship between gambling severity and gambling-related cognitions with coping strategies and emotion regulation. Also, it explores how accurately gambling severity and gambling-related cognitions were able to predict emotion regulation and coping strategies. Two groups were recruited and analyzed: a community sample comprising 250 adolescents and young adults from secondary education schools, and a clinical sample of 31 patients with similar age characteristics seeking treatment for GD. The participants from the clinical sample scored higher on gambling severity, emotion dysregulation, cognitive biases, and maladaptive coping strategies. In the community sample, cognitive biases mediated the relationship between sex and emotion dysregulation and disengagement. People with GD use more often than controls maladaptive emotion regulation strategies to manage negative emotional states. This perspective emphasizes the need to focus on coping with emotions, as opposed to coping with problems, as the best approach to tackle gambling problems.

Buying-shopping disorder, emotion dysregulation, coping and materialism: a comparative approach with gambling patients and young people and adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: The comorbidity between gambling disorder (GD) and buying-shopping disorder (BSD) has led to explore the core features that could be interacting between them. The main aim of this study was to examine the differences in both conditions considering emotion dysregulation, coping and materialism, as well as the relationship between these variables and their interaction with age and sex. METHODS: A community sample (n = 281 adolescents) and a sample of individuals with GD (n = 31) was compared. Both samples were split into a group with BSD and a group without it. RESULTS: The prevalence of participants who met the criteria for BSD was higher in the GD sample than in the community sample; the GD sample also presented higher values in the psychological variables studied. In the community sample group, positive associations were found between BSD severity and materialism and emotion dysregulation levels. In the GD sample, BSD severity was higher for participants who reported higher levels in materialism and lower scores in coping strategies. Variables impacted BSD severity differently according to sex and age covariates. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the interaction of the variables could be useful to design prevention and treatment approaches addressed to specific groups of age and sex. KEY POINTS Buying-shopping disorder (BSD) has been compared in clinical and community samples. The clinical sample was constituted by Gambling disorder (GD) patients. The variables emotion dysregulation, coping and materialism have been considered. Variables impacted BSD severity differently according to sex and age covariates.

Biomedical Diagnostics Enabled by Integrated Organic and Printed Electronics.

Organic and printed electronics integration has the potential to revolutionize many technologies, including biomedical diagnostics. This work demonstrates the successful integration of multiple printed electronic functionalities into a single device capable of the measurement of hydrogen peroxide and total cholesterol. The single-use device employed printed electrochemical sensors for hydrogen peroxide electroreduction integrated with printed electrochromic display and battery. The system was driven by a conventional electronic circuit designed to illustrate the complete integration of silicon integrated circuits via pick and place or using organic electronic circuits. The device was capable of measuring 8 µL samples of both hydrogen peroxide (0-5 mM, 2.72 × 10-6 A·mM-1) and total cholesterol in serum from 0 to 9 mM (1.34 × 10-8 A·mM-1, r2 = 0.99, RSD < 10%, n = 3), and the result was output on a semiquantitative linear bar display. The device could operate for 10 min via a printed battery, and display the result for many hours or days. A mobile phone "app" was also capable of reading the test result and transmitting this to a remote health care provider. Such a technology could allow improved management of conditions such as hypercholesterolemia.

Promotores' perspectives on a male-to-male peer network.

Little documentation exists about male community health workers (promotores) networks. The experiences of promotores can provide input on how to attract, train, supervise and maintain male promotores in CHW programs. We present the experience and perspectives of promotores who participated in a male promotores network assisting Latino immigrant men in an emerging Latino community. All promotores in this community-based participatory study received payment for work 10 hours a week. We conducted qualitative interviews with all promotores starting the program, after 5 and 13 months. Three main themes emerged: 1) Men decided to become promotores to help others, yet appreciated being paid. 2) Promotores' learning experience was ongoing and was facilitated by a cooperative dynamic among them. Learning how to listen was crucial for promotores 3) Promotores experienced difficulty separating their personal lives form their role as a promotor We conclude that paying promotores facilitates the fulfillment of their drive to serve the community. Enhancing listening abilities needs to be part of promotores' training curricula. Finally, it is advisable to build a project with many opportunities for promotores and project staff to share professional and non-professional time and discuss their challenges.

A Male Promotores Network for Latinos: Process Evaluation From a Community-Based Participatory Project.

Background Lay health advisor (LHA) interventions with Latino men are rare, especially in emerging Latino communities. We present a process evaluation of a male LHA network aiming at connecting Latino men to various kinds of services and to the Latino community. It assesses the feasibility of (1) maintaining a steering coalition; (2) hiring, training, and retaining male LHA; and (3) recruiting and assisting underserved participants. Methods Project management data and LHA debriefings were analyzed qualitatively and compared to a logic model and evaluation table prepared before the project started. Results The community coalition steered the project during its implementation. Eleven men attended the initial LHA training. Two thirds of them reflected the community in educational level. One third did not and required extra mentoring from the other LHA to recruit participants. LHA requested topics for monthly trainings according to their needs in the field, including housing, sexual health, and immigration. LHA enrolled 182 participants. Participants' needs went beyond health issues. Therefore, LHA needed to forge new collaborations with local social service organizations. Conclusions Recruiting male LHA is feasible. LHA and the community coalition can suggest adaptations to fit the local context.

Exercise Addiction and Intimate Partner Violence: The Role of Impulsivity, Self-Esteem, and Emotional Dependence.

Given the scarcity of studies linking exercise addiction to intimate partner violence, the present study aims to analyze the relationship between these variables and examine the potential mediating roles of emotional dependence, impulsivity, and self-esteem. This is a non-experimental, cross-sectional correlational design study. The sample comprised 887 university students (86% women, mean age 20.82 years, SD = 3.63). Elevated levels of exercise addiction were associated with increased impulsivity, emotional dependence, and exerted violence, as well as decreased self-esteem and perceived violence. Mediation models were tested, explaining 7% of the variance in received violence, 13% of the variance in exerted violence, and 6% of the variance in perceived violence. Higher levels of exercise addiction were linked to increased received and exerted violence and decreased perceived violence, attributed to the positive impact of exercise addiction on emotional dependence. This study highlights the mediating roles of self-esteem and impulsivity in the relationship between exercise addiction and partner violence. Identifying risk or vulnerability factors such as emotional dependence, impulsivity, and self-esteem related to exercise addiction and interpersonal partner violence is especially relevant for designing and implementing preventive interventions in the general young population.

The Mediating Effect of Coping Strategies and Emotion Regulation in the Relationship between Impulsivity, Metacognition, and Eating Disorders.

BACKGROUND: Risk factors for eating disorders are multifaceted and complex, so it is crucial to elucidate the role of executive functions, including impulsivity and metacognition, and coping strategies in the severity of eating behaviors. The study aims were threefold: (1) to analyze gender differences in impulsivity, metacognition, coping strategies, emotion regulation, and eating disorders; (2) to examine the correlation between the study variables; and (3) to test the mediating role of coping and emotion-regulation strategies in the relationship between metacognition, impulsivity, and eating disorders. METHODS: A total of 1076 participants (Mage = 21.78, SD = 5.10; 77.7% women) completed a set of questionnaires. Two mediation analyses were conducted to test the mediating role of coping strategies, including emotion regulation, in the relationship between executive functions (i.e., impulsivity and metacognition) and eating disorders. RESULTS: Women displayed higher coping strategies, specifically emotional expression, wishful thinking, and social support, whereas men presented greater social withdrawal. Mediational analyses showed a significant association between impulsivity, metacognition, and eating disorders, whose relationship was partially mediated by coping strategies and mainly by emotion regulation. CONCLUSION: Interventions based on coping strategies and emotion regulation could be a feasible and effective option to deal with eating disorders among the young population.

NFC-enabled potentiostat and nitrocellulose-based metal electrodes for electrochemical lateral flow assay.

Rapid detection of pathogens at the point-of-need is crucial for preventing the spread of human, animal and plant diseases which can have devastating consequences both on the lives and livelihood of billions of people. Colorimetric, lateral flow assays consisting of a nitrocellulose membrane, are the preferred format today for low-cost on-site detection of pathogens. This assay format has, however, historically suffered from poor analytical performance and is not compatible with digital technologies. In this work, we report the development of a new class of digital diagnostics platform for precision point-of-need testing. This new versatile platform consists of two important innovations: i) A wireless and batteryless, microcontroller-based, low-cost Near Field Communication (NFC)-enabled potentiostat that brings high performance electroanalytical techniques (cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry, square wave voltammetry) to the field. The NFC-potentiostat can be operated with a mobile app by minimally trained users; ii) A new approach for producing nitrocellulose membranes with integrated electrodes that facilitate high performance electrochemical detection at the point-of-need. We produced an integrated system housed in a 3D-printed phone case and demonstrated its use for the detection of Maize Mosaic Virus (MMV), a plant pathogen, as a proof-of-concept application.

Time-resolved chemical monitoring of whole plant roots with printed electrochemical sensors and machine learning.

Traditional single-point measurements fail to capture dynamic chemical responses of plants, which are complex, nonequilibrium biological systems. We report TETRIS (time-resolved electrochemical technology for plant root environment in situ chemical sensing), a real-time chemical phenotyping system for continuously monitoring chemical signals in the often-neglected plant root environment. TETRIS consisted of low-cost, highly scalable screen-printed electrochemical sensors for monitoring concentrations of salt, pH, and H2O2 in the root environment of whole plants, where multiplexing allowed for parallel sensing operation. TETRIS was used to measure ion uptake in tomato, kale, and rice and detected differences between nutrient and heavy metal ion uptake. Modulation of ion uptake with ion channel blocker LaCl3 was monitored by TETRIS and machine learning used to predict ion uptake. TETRIS has the potential to overcome the urgent "bottleneck" in high-throughput screening in producing high-yielding plant varieties with improved resistance against stress.

Exploring the psychosocial characteristics of women with gambling disorder through a qualitative study.

Introduction: Gambling disorder is a behavioral addiction that has been primarily male, but in the last few years, the age of onset has been equated between the sexes. The profile of female gamblers could be different from that of men. Consequently, this study analyzes the testimonies of women with gambling disorder to determine their specific characteristics (gambling motives, gambling preferences, and associated pathologies). Method: The sample comprises 18 women with gambling disorder aged between 30 and 68. Three discussion groups were held, and a "blind" inductive process was carried out to extract categories. The Atlas.Ti 22.0 program was used to recode and analyze the data. Results: Results show that women may start gambling due to abuse suffered in childhood, and often family members initiate women into gambling. Likewise, the onset of gambling could be a maladaptive way to manage negative emotions. Also highlighted is the predominance of feelings of social stigmatization, which can be reflected in women's choice of games where they are not visible. Comorbidity with other disorders such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, personality disorders, and the use of other substances are noteworthy. Discussion: The factors explaining why female gamblers do not seek treatment compared to male gamblers are analyzed. More studies on women's experience with gambling are needed to address the specific characteristics of gambling disorder in women.

Latent classes of eating disorders and addictions by sex: Implication of alexithymia and stressful life events in youths.

Introduction: Eating disorders (EDs) and behavioural addictions show common psychological vulnerability factors such as alexithymia and stressful life events (SLE). This study aims, firstly, to explore the prevalence and latent profiles of participants based on their risk of suffering EDs, gambling disorder (GD), alcohol and/or drug abuse, and compulsive buying (CB) by sex. Secondly, it aimed to test whether alexithymia and having experienced SLE are associated with group membership. Methods: The sample was predominantly drawn from university students and social networks. It was composed of 352 young adults between 18 and 35 years old, of whom 77.8% were women and 22.2% men. Results: The results showed that the most prevalent disorders of the sample were alcohol, EDs, CB, drugs and GD, respectively. Moreover, latent class analyses were conducted based on the risk of suffering EDs or addictions by sex. Three main profiles were found: 'Men with addictions', 'Healthy women' and 'Women with EDs'. Finally, differences in SLE and alexithymia levels were tested by latent classes. "Men with addictions" and "Women with EDs" had higher scores on alexithymia and SLE than the group of "Healthy women". However, the group of "Women with EDs" (class 3) reported significantly higher levels of SLE and alexithymia than the other two groups. Discussion and conclusion: In conclusion, we discuss the possibility that some vulnerability factors operate generally and transdiagnostically in EDs and addictive disorders. The identification of clinical phenotypes could complement and deepen prediction, prevention and treatment research in clinical settings. The need to take sex and gender differences into account is reinforced.