Human and Porcine Lumbar Endplate Injury Risk in Repeated Flexion-Compression.

Low back pain (LBP) affects 50-80% of adults at some point in their lifetime, yet the etiology of injury is not well understood. Those exposed to repeated flexion-compression are at a higher risk for LBP, such as helicopter pilots and motor vehicle operators. Animal injury models offer insight into in vivo injury mechanisms, but interspecies scaling is needed to relate animal results to human. Human (n = 16) and porcine (n = 20) lumbar functional spinal units (FSUs) were loaded in repeated flexion-compression (1 Hz) to determine endplate fracture risk over long loading exposures. Flexion oscillated from 0 to 6° and peak applied compressive stress ranged from 0.65 to 2.38 MPa for human and 0.64 to 4.68 MPa for porcine specimens. Five human and twelve porcine injuries were observed. The confidence intervals for human and porcine 50% injury risk curves in terms of stress and cycles overlapped, indicating similar failure behavior for this loading configuration. However, porcine specimens were more tolerant to the applied loading compared to human, demonstrated by a longer time-to-failure for the same applied stress. Optimization revealed that time-to-failure in human specimens was approximately 25% that of porcine specimens at a given applied stress within 0.65-2.38 MPa. This study determined human and porcine lumbar endplate fracture risks in long-duration repeated flexion-compression that can be directly used for future equipment and vehicle design, injury prediction models, and safety standards. The interspecies scale factor produced in this study can be used for previous and future porcine lumbar injury studies to scale results to relevant human injury.

Smoking Policies of Outpatient and Residential Substance Use Disorder Treatment Facilities in the United States.

Tobacco use is associated with morbidity and mortality. Many individuals who present to treatment facilities with substance use disorders (SUDs) other than tobacco use disorder also smoke cigarettes or have a concomitant tobacco use disorder. Despite high rates of smoking among those with an SUD, and numerous demonstrated benefits of comprehensive SUD treatment for tobacco use in addition to co-occurring SUDs, not all facilities address the treatment of comorbid tobacco use disorder. In addition, facilities vary widely in terms of tobacco use policies on campus. This study examined SUD facility smoking policies in a national sample of N = 16,623 SUD treatment providers in the United States in 2021. Most facilities with outpatient treatment (52.1%) and facilities with residential treatment (67.8%) had a smoking policy that permitted smoking in designated outdoor area(s). A multinomial logistic regression model found that among facilities with outpatient treatment (n = 13,778), those located in a state with laws requiring tobacco free grounds at SUD facilities, those with tobacco screening/education/counseling services, and those with nicotine pharmacotherapy were less likely to have an unrestrictive tobacco smoking policy. Among facilities with residential treatment (n = 3449), those with tobacco screening/education/counseling services were less likely to have an unrestrictive tobacco smoking policy. There is variability in smoking policies and tobacco use treatment options in SUD treatment facilities across the United States. Since tobacco use is associated with negative biomedical outcomes, more should be done to ensure that SUD treatment also focuses on reducing the harms of tobacco use.

Critical endpoints of PFOA and PFOS exposure for regulatory risk assessment in drinking water: Parameter choices impacting estimates of safe exposure levels.

USEPA issued drinking water interim health advisories (iHA) for PFOA and PFOS. The Agency's choice for critical effect, toxic point-of-departure (PoD), benchmark dose (BMD), pharmacokinetic (PK) model extrapolation to ingested dose, and use of uncertainty factors, resulted in the iHA for PFOS and PFOA being lowered from 70 ppt to 0.04-0.2 ppt. This review addresses key steps in the iHA derivation that influence changes in iHA values and suggests analysis and modeling changes for higher confidence in the iHA derivation, and re-evaluation of critical endpoint data for immunotoxicity and associated BMD modeling to derive a serum antibody PoD in the clinically adverse range. Movement from empirical PK modeling of ingested human dose to a platform that captures biological realism will more accurately reflect PFAS elimination, which impacts model-optimized ingested dose. The uncertainty factor (UF) for human variability should be reconsidered, as in utero and neonate exposures used to derive the iHA represent the likely susceptible populations. Although not part of the iHA derivation, cancer was considered in the drinking water maximum contaminant level goal (MCLG) technical evaluation. We discuss weaknesses in the cancer epidemiological data that require re-evaluation as the drinking water regulation process proceeds to a national standard.

The Human Lumbar Spine During High-Rate Under Seat Loading: A Combined Metric Injury Criteria.

Modern changes in warfare have shown an increased incidence of lumbar spine injuries caused by underbody blast events. The susceptibility of the lumbar spine during these scenarios could be exacerbated by coupled moments that act with the rapid compressive force depending on the occupant's seated posture. In this study, a combined loading lumbar spine vertebral body fracture injury criteria (Lic) across a range of postures was established from 75 tests performed on instrumented cadaveric lumbar spine specimens. The spines were predominantly exposed to axial compressive forces from an upward vertical thrust with 64 of the tests resulting in at least one vertebral body fracture and 11 in no vertebral body injury. The proposed Lic utilizes a recommended metric (κ), based on prismatic beam failure theory, resulting from the combination of the T12-L1 resultant sagittal force and the decorrelated bending moment with optimized critical values of Fr,crit = 5824 N and My,crit = 1155 Nm. The 50% risk of lumbar spine injury corresponded to a combined metric of 1, with the risk decreasing with the combined metric value. At 50% injury risk the Normalized Confidence Interval Size improved from 0.24 of a force-based injury reference curve to 0.17 for the combined loading metric.

Time and temperature sensitivity of the hybrid III lumbar spine.

OBJECTIVE: Researchers have found a variety of uses for the Hybrid III (HIII) dummy that fall beyond the scope of its original purpose as an automotive crash test dummy. Some of these expanded roles for the HIII introduce situations that were not envisioned in the dummy's original design parameters, such as a relatively rapid succession of tests or outdoor testing scenarios where temperature is not easily controlled. This study investigates how the axial compressive stiffness of the HIII lumbar spine component is affected by the duration of the time interval between tests. Further, it measures the effect of temperature on the compressive stiffness of the lumbar spine through a range of temperatures relevant to indoor and outdoor testing. METHODS: High-rate axial compression tests were run on a 50th percentile male HIII lumbar component in a materials testing machine. To characterize the effects of tests recovery intervals, between-test recovery was varied from 2 hours to 1 minute. To quantify temperature effects, environmental temperature conditions of 12.5°, 25°, and 37.5 °C were tested. RESULTS: During repeated compressive loading, the force levels decreased consistently across long and short rest intervals. Even after 2 hours of rest between tests, full viscoelastic recovery was not observed. Temperature effects were pronounced, resulting in compressive force differences of 261% over the range of 12.5° to 37.5 °C. Compared to the stiffness of the lumbar at 25 °C, the stiffness at 37.5 °C fell by 40%; at 12.5 °C, the stiffness more than doubled, increasing by 115%. CONCLUSIONS: A modest decrease in temperature can be sufficient to dramatically change the response and repeatability of the lumbar HIII component in compressive loading. The large magnitude of the temperature effect has severe implications in its ability to overwhelm the contributions of targeted test variables. These findings highlight the importance of controlling, monitoring and reporting temperature conditions during HIII testing, even in indoor laboratory environments.

Cigarette Constituent Health Communications for Smokers: Impact of Chemical, Imagery, and Source.

INTRODUCTION: Communication campaigns are incorporating tobacco constituent messaging to reach smokers, yet there is a dearth of research on how such messages should be constructed or will be received by smokers. METHODS: In a 2 × 2 × 2 experiment, we manipulated three cigarette constituent message components: (1) the toxic constituent of tobacco (arsenic vs. lead) with a corresponding health effect, (2) the presence or absence of an evocative image, and (3) the source of the message (FDA vs. no source). We recruited smokers (N = 1669, 55.4% women) via an online platform and randomized them to one of the eight message conditions. Participants viewed the message and rated its believability and perceived effectiveness, the credibility of the message source, and action expectancies (ie, likelihood of seeking additional information and help with quitting as a result of seeing the message). RESULTS: We found significant main effects of image, constituent, and source on outcomes. The use of arsenic as the constituent, the presence of an evocative image, and the FDA as the source increased the believability, source credibility, and perceived effectiveness of the tobacco constituent health message. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple elements of a constituent message, including type of constituent, imagery, and message source, impact their reception among smokers. Specifically, communication campaigns targeting smokers that utilize arsenic as the tobacco constituent, visual imagery, and the FDA logo may be particularly effective in changing key outcomes that are associated with subsequent attitude and behavioral changes. IMPLICATIONS: This article describes how components of communication campaigns about cigarette constituents are perceived. Multiple elements of a tobacco constituent message, including type of constituent, image, and message source may influence the reception of messages among current smokers. Communication campaigns targeting smokers that utilize arsenic as the tobacco constituent, visual imagery, and the FDA logo may be particularly effective in changing key outcomes among smokers. The effects of such campaigns should be examined, as well as the mechanisms through which such campaigns affect change.

Potential impacts of finfish aquaculture on eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds and possible monitoring metrics for management: a case study in Atlantic Canada.

Eelgrass (Zostera marina) has been designated an Ecologically Significant Species in Atlantic Canada. The development and rapid expansion of netpen finfish aquaculture into sensitive coastal habitats has raised concerns about the impacts of finfish aquaculture on eelgrass habitats. To date, no studies have been done in Atlantic Canada to examine these impacts or to identify potential monitoring variables that would aid in the development of specific conservation and management objectives. As a first step in addressing this gap, we examined differences in environmental variables, eelgrass bed structure and macroinfauna communities at increasing distances from a finfish farm in Port Mouton Bay, a reference site in adjacent Port Joli Bay, and published survey results from other sites without finfish farms along the Atlantic Coast of Nova Scotia. Drawing on research done elsewhere and our results, we then identified possible metrics for assessing and monitoring local impacts of finfish aquaculture on eelgrass habitats. Our results suggest some nutrient and organic enrichment, higher epiphyte loads, lower eelgrass cover and biomass, and lower macroinfauna biomass closer to the farm. Moreover, community structure significantly differed between sites with some species increasing and others decreasing closer to the farm. Changes in the macroinfauna community could be linked to observed differences in environmental and eelgrass bed variables. These results provide new insights into the potential impacts of finfish aquaculture on eelgrass habitats in Atlantic Canada. We recommend a suite of measures for assessment and monitoring that take into account response time to disturbance and account for different levels of eelgrass organizational response (from physiological to community).

Time and temperature sensitivity of the Hybrid III neck.

The Hybrid III (HIII) dummy is one of the most widely used anthropomorphic test devices (ATDs) in the world, and researchers have found a variety of uses for it outside of its original purpose as an automotive crash test dummy. These expanded roles have introduced situations outside the dummy's original design parameters, where a number of tests must be run in relatively rapid succession or where it may not be possible to control the temperature of the test environment. OBJECTIVE: This study has 2 aims. The first is to determine how the duration of the time interval between tests affects the axial compression performance of the HIII neck. The second is to quantify the effect of temperature on the neck's compressive stiffness through a range of temperatures relevant to indoor or outdoor testing. METHODS: To characterize the effects of different test conditions, a series of high-rate axial compressive tests was run on a 50th percentile male HIII neck component in a materials testing machine. Between-test recovery intervals were varied from 2 h to 1 min, and temperature conditions of 0, 12.5, 25, and 37.5 °C were tested. RESULTS: Though the duration of the recovery interval had little impact on the recorded force (less than 1%), the component did exhibit considerable strain creep over the course of the test. Temperature had a strong influence on the compressive stiffness of the component. Compared to the stiffness at 25 °C (near room temperature), the stiffness of the neck at 37.5 °C fell by 15%; at 0 °C, the stiffness more than doubled. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that though the duration of the recovery interval between tests has a small influence on neck stiffness, temperature effects should not be overlooked because they influence neck compressive stiffness considerably. The relationship between recorded force and temperature is well represented by exponential decay models. These findings highlight the importance of monitoring and controlling for temperature effects during all HIII testing.

Attitudes towards Potential New Tobacco Control Regulations among U.S. Adults.

Favorable attitudes towards tobacco control policies can facilitate their implementation and success. We examined attitudes toward four potential U.S. Federal tobacco regulations (banning menthol from cigarettes, reducing nicotine levels in cigarettes, banning candy and fruit flavored electronic cigarettes, and banning candy and fruit flavored little cigars and cigarillos) and associations with individual and state variables. A nationally representative phone survey of 4337 adults assessed attitudes toward potential policies. Weighted logistic regression was used to assess relationships between attitudes and demographic factors, smoking behavior, beliefs about the government (knowledge, trust, and credibility), exposure to tobacco control campaigns, and state variables from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation (STATE) System. Most respondents supported three out of four policies. Respondents that were female, non-white, Latino, living below the poverty line, had less than high school education, were of older age, did not smoke, had higher trust in government, and were exposed to national tobacco control campaigns had higher odds of expressing favorable attitudes toward potential new tobacco regulations than did their counterparts. No state-level effects were found. While differences in attitudes were observed by individual demographic characteristics, behaviors, and beliefs, a majority of participants supported most of the potential new tobacco regulations surveyed.

Public Knowledge and Credibility Perceptions of the FDA as a Tobacco Regulator.

Introduction: Since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was granted regulatory authority over tobacco products in 2009, few studies have examined perceived credibility of the FDA in this role. The current study assessed knowledge and credibility of the FDA as a regulator of tobacco products. Methods: In a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults (N = 4758), we assessed knowledge that the FDA regulates the manufacture, distribution, and marketing of cigarettes, and credibility of the FDA as a tobacco regulator. We examined demographic differences in knowledge and credibility, and associations of knowledge and trust in government with credibility perceptions. Results: Less than half of respondents reported knowing the FDA regulates how cigarettes are sold (46.8%) and advertised (49.7%), and only 36.0% knew the FDA regulates how cigarettes are made, with few demographic differences. Respondents reported that the FDA was moderately credible in regulating tobacco. Knowledge of the FDA as a tobacco regulator and trust in government were the strongest predictors of credibility. Being of younger age, being White (compared to African American), and being male were associated with higher credibility ratings of the FDA. Conclusions: Much of the public still does not know that the FDA regulates tobacco products, and credibility perceptions are moderate. Greater knowledge of the FDA's regulatory role was associated with higher credibility; efforts that increase the public's understanding of the FDA's role as a tobacco regulator may positively impact views of the agency's credibility. This may in turn improve public reception to the FDA's messages and regulations. Implications: This study is the first to show nationally representative estimates of both knowledge and credibility of the FDA as a tobacco regulator. Our research shows further that knowledge of the FDA's tobacco regulatory roles is likely to be an important factor related to perceived credibility of the FDA. Increasing the public's knowledge of the FDA's roles may enhance the agency's credibility, which can improve public reception to messages and regulations.

Should the Legal Age for Tobacco Be Raised? Results From a National Sample of Adolescents.

Raising the minimum age of legal access to tobacco products may reduce smoking initiation and save lives. In a national telephone survey (2014-2015), US adolescents aged 13 to 17 years (N = 1,125; response rate, 66%) were asked about raising the age of legal access to tobacco products and randomized to hear one of 3 ages (19, 20, or 21 y). Most adolescents, across all US regions, favored raising the minimum age of legal access to 19 (75.7%), 20 (80.6%), or 21 (76.4%). These supportive attitudes may be useful to tobacco prevention and control practitioners who seek to reduce tobacco use among adolescents.

RNA sequencing indicates that atrazine induces multiple detoxification genes in Daphnia magna and this is a potential source of its mixture interactions with other chemicals.

Atrazine is an herbicide with several known toxicologically relevant effects, including interactions with other chemicals. Atrazine increases the toxicity of several organophosphates and has been shown to reduce the toxicity of triclosan to D. magna in a concentration dependent manner. Atrazine is a potent activator in vitro of the xenobiotic-sensing nuclear receptor, HR96, related to vertebrate constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) and pregnane X-receptor (PXR). RNA sequencing (RNAseq) was performed to determine if atrazine is inducing phase I-III detoxification enzymes in vivo, and estimate its potential for mixture interactions. RNAseq analysis demonstrates induction of glutathione S-transferases (GSTs), cytochrome P450s (CYPs), glucosyltransferases (UDPGTs), and xenobiotic transporters, of which several are verified by qPCR. Pathway analysis demonstrates changes in drug, glutathione, and sphingolipid metabolism, indicative of HR96 activation. Based on our RNAseq data, we hypothesized as to which environmentally relevant chemicals may show altered toxicity with co-exposure to atrazine. Acute toxicity tests were performed to determine individual LC50 and Hillslope values as were toxicity tests with binary mixtures containing atrazine. The observed mixture toxicity was compared with modeled mixture toxicity using the Computational Approach to the Toxicity Assessment of Mixtures (CATAM) to assess whether atrazine is exerting antagonism, additivity, or synergistic toxicity in accordance with our hypothesis. Atrazine-triclosan mixtures showed decreased toxicity as expected; atrazine-parathion, atrazine-endosulfan, and to a lesser extent atrazine-p-nonylphenol mixtures showed increased toxicity. In summary, exposure to atrazine activates HR96, and induces phase I-III detoxification genes that are likely responsible for mixture interactions.

Development of the FDA Tobacco Credibility Scale (FDA-TCS).

OBJECTIVES: Messages from organizations with high, compared to low, credibility may be more persuasive. Whereas the tobacco industry has long recognized the importance of credibility in promoting its messages and public image, the source credibility of key tobacco control organizations has gone largely unmeasured. To assess credibility of a key tobacco regulator, we developed a scale of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tobacco-related credibility. METHODS: We developed and tested 30 items reflective of the dimensions of source credibility (trust, expertise, and public interest) and FDA's tobacco regulatory roles in a sample of 1353 US adults and assessed reliability and validity. RESULTS: Factor analysis identified 3 dimensions of the FDA Tobacco Credibility Scale (FDA-TCS): public interest, trust, and expertise. The 3 subscales showed evidence of reliability and convergent validity; all subscales were correlated with general FDA credibility and trust in government. Those who knew that the FDA regulates tobacco scored higher on the trust and expertise subscales. The subscales were also associated with support for potential regulations, suggesting criterion-related validity. CONCLUSIONS: The FDA-TCS allows for an understanding of the impact of credibility on responses to the FDA's tobacco control communications and regulatory efforts.

Awareness and trust of the FDA and CDC: Results from a national sample of US adults and adolescents.

Trust in government agencies plays a key role in advancing these organizations' agendas, influencing behaviors, and effectively implementing policies. However, few studies have examined the extent to which individuals are aware of and trust the leading United States agencies devoted to protecting the public's health. Using two national samples of adolescents (N = 1,125) and adults (N = 5,014), we examined demographic factors, with a focus on vulnerable groups, as correlates of awareness of and trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the federal government. From nine different weighted and adjusted logistic regression models, we found high levels of awareness of the existence of the FDA and CDC (ranging from 55.7% for adolescents' awareness of the CDC to 94.3% for adults' awareness of the FDA) and moderate levels of trust (ranging from a low of 41.8% for adults' trust in the federal government and a high of 78.8% for adolescents' trust of the FDA). In the adolescent and adult samples, awareness was higher among non-Hispanic Blacks and respondents with low numeracy. With respect to trust, few consistent demographic differences emerged. Our findings provide novel insights regarding awareness and trust in the federal government and specific United States public health agencies. Our findings suggest groups to whom these agencies may want to selectively communicate to enhance trust and thus facilitate their communication and regulatory agendas.

Effects of Framing Proximal Benefits of Quitting and Motivation to Quit as a Query on Communications About Tobacco Constituents.

INTRODUCTION: Little is known on how to communicate messages on tobacco constituents to tobacco users. This study manipulated three elements of a message in the context of a theory-based communication campaign about tobacco constituents: (1) latency of response efficacy (how soon expected health benefits would accrue), (2) self-efficacy (confidence about quitting), and (3) interrogative cue ("Ready to be tobacco-free?"). METHODS: Smokers (N = 1669, 55.4% women) were recruited via an online platform, and were randomized to a 3 (Latency of response efficacy) × 2 (Self-efficacy) × 2 (Interrogative cue) factorial design. The dependent variables were believability, credibility, perceived effectiveness of the communication message, and action expectancies (likelihood of seeking additional information and help with quitting). RESULTS: Latency of response efficacy influenced believability, perceived effectiveness, credibility, and action expectancies. In each case, scores were higher when specific health benefits were said to accrue within 1 month, as compared to general health benefits occurring in a few hours. The interrogative cue had a marginal positive effect on perceived effectiveness. The self-efficacy manipulation had no reliable effects, and there were no significant interactions among conditions. CONCLUSIONS: Smokers appear less persuaded by a communication message on constituents where general health benefits accrue immediately (within a few hours) than specific benefits over a longer timeframe (1 month). Additionally, smokers appeared to be more persuaded by messages with an interrogative cue. Such findings may help design more effective communication campaigns on tobacco constituents to smokers. IMPLICATIONS: This paper describes, for the first time, how components of tobacco constituent messages are perceived. We now know that smokers appear to be less persuaded by communication messages where general health benefits accrue immediately (within a few hours) than specific benefits over a longer timeframe (1 month). Additionally, including an interrogative cue ("Ready to be tobacco free?") may make messages more effective, whereas the self-efficacy manipulation designed to increase confidence about quitting had no effect. While messages were universally impactful across smoker subpopulations, everyday smokers and smokers with less trust in the government may be less receptive to communication campaigns.

Attitudes Toward FDA Regulation of Newly Deemed Tobacco Products.

OBJECTIVE: To examine how smokers perceive FDA oversight of e-cigarettes, hookah, and cigars. METHODS: Current US smokers (N = 1,520) participating in a randomized clinical trial of pictorial cigarette pack warnings completed a survey that included questions about attitudes toward new FDA regulations covering newly deemed tobacco products (ie, regulation of e-cigarettes, nicotine gels or liquids used in e-cigarettes, hookah, and cigars). RESULTS: Between 47% and 56% of current smokers viewed these new FDA regulations favorably and between 17% - 24% opposed them. Favorable attitudes toward the regulations were more common among smokers with higher quit intentions (adjusted odds ratio (aOR): 1.17, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.33) and more negative beliefs about smokers (aOR: 1.18, 95% CI: 1.05, 1.33). Participants with higher education, higher income, and previous exposure to e-cigarette advertisements had higher odds of expressing positive attitudes toward the new FDA regulations (p < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Almost half of current smokers viewed FDA regulation of newly deemed tobacco products favorably. Local and state policy-makers and tobacco control advocates can build on this support to enact and strengthen tobacco control provisions for e-cigarettes, cigars, and hookah.

Source Credibility in Tobacco Control Messaging.

OBJECTIVES: Perceived credibility of a message's source can affect persuasion. This paper reviews how beliefs about the source of tobacco control messages may encourage attitude and behavior change. METHODS: We conducted a series of searches of the peer-reviewed literature using terms from communication and public health fields. We reviewed research on source credibility, its underlying concepts, and its relation to the persuasiveness of tobacco control messages. RESULTS: We recommend an agenda for future research to bridge the gaps between communication literature on source credibility and tobacco control research. Our recommendations are to study the impact of source credibility on persuasion with long-term behavior change outcomes, in different populations and demographic groups, by developing new credibility measures that are topic- and organization-specific, by measuring how credibility operates across media platforms, and by identifying factors that enhance credibility and persuasion. CONCLUSIONS: This manuscript reviews the state of research on source credibility and identifies gaps that are maximally relevant to tobacco control communication. Knowing first whether a source is perceived as credible, and second, how to enhance perceived credibility, can inform the development of future tobacco control campaigns and regulatory communications.

Comparative analysis of different survey methods for monitoring fish assemblages in coastal habitats.

Coastal ecosystems are among the most productive yet increasingly threatened marine ecosystems worldwide. Particularly vegetated habitats, such as eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds, play important roles in providing key spawning, nursery and foraging habitats for a wide range of fauna. To properly assess changes in coastal ecosystems and manage these critical habitats, it is essential to develop sound monitoring programs for foundation species and associated assemblages. Several survey methods exist, thus understanding how different methods perform is important for survey selection. We compared two common methods for surveying macrofaunal assemblages: beach seine netting and underwater visual census (UVC). We also tested whether assemblages in shallow nearshore habitats commonly sampled by beach seines are similar to those of nearby eelgrass beds often sampled by UVC. Among five estuaries along the Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada, our results suggest that the two survey methods yield comparable results for species richness, diversity and evenness, yet beach seines yield significantly higher abundance and different species composition. However, sampling nearshore assemblages does not represent those in eelgrass beds despite considerable overlap and close proximity. These results have important implications for how and where macrofaunal assemblages are monitored in coastal ecosystems. Ideally, multiple survey methods and locations should be combined to complement each other in assessing the entire assemblage and full range of changes in coastal ecosystems, thereby better informing coastal zone management.

Communicating program outcomes to encourage policymaker support for evidence-based state tobacco control.

Tobacco use, the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S., can be reduced through state-level tobacco prevention and cessation programs. In the absence of research about how to communicate the need for these programs to policymakers, this qualitative study aimed to understand the motivations and priorities of policymakers in North Carolina, a state that enacted a strong tobacco control program from 2003-2011, but drastically reduced funding in recent years. Six former legislators (three Democrats, three Republicans) and three lobbyists for health organizations were interviewed about their attitudes towards tobacco use, support of state-funded programs, and reactions to two policy briefs. Five themes emerged: (1) high awareness of tobacco-related health concerns but limited awareness of program impacts and funding, (2) the primacy of economic concerns in making policy decisions, (3) ideological differences in views of the state's role in tobacco control, (4) the impact of lobbyist and constituent in-person appeals, and (5) the utility of concise, contextualized data. These findings suggest that building relationships with policymakers to communicate ongoing program outcomes, emphasizing economic data, and developing a constituent advocacy group would be valuable to encourage continued support of state tobacco control programs.