Beyond School Climate: Validating the School as a Protective Factor-Brief Survey.

BACKGROUND: The conceptual framework for School as a Protective Factor approach was presented in a companion article in this issue of the journal. The current article describes the validation of the School as a Protective Factor-Brief (SPF-Brief), a 13-item survey measuring the 3 core constructs and 13 defining characteristics of this framework. METHODS: The SPF-Brief was validated through 2 studies. The developmental study used a longitudinal design including 1349 participants who completed surveys over 5 semesters, while the validation study used a cross-sectional design with 2775 participants. Both studies included middle and high school students. Factor analysis, growth model analysis, criterion-related validation, and outcome analysis were employed. RESULTS: Analyses provided strong evidence supporting the reliability and validity of the instrument and conceptual framework. Higher SPF-Brief scores were associated with higher math grades, English grades, and quality of life, as well as lower rates of anxiety, depression, conduct disorder, alcohol, e-cigarette, tobacco, and cannabis use. Effect size estimates ranged from moderate to strong. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest the utility of the SPF-Brief instrument and the School as a Protective Factor framework. Together, they may offer advantages to the traditional school climate approach.

Possible role of caffeine in nicotine use onset among early adolescents: Evidence from the Young Mountaineer Health Study Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Preventing nicotine use onset among children and youth is an important public health goal. One possible contributor that has received little empirical investigation is caffeine use. The goal of this study was to examine the possible contribution of caffeine to nicotine onset during early adolescence. METHODS: We used data from the Young Mountaineer Health Study Cohort. Survey data were collected from 1,349 (response rate: 80.7%) 6th grade students (mean age at baseline 11.5 years) in 20 middle schools in West Virginia during the fall of 2020 and spring of 2021. We limited our analyses to students reporting never having used any form of nicotine at baseline. Logistic regression was employed in analyses. RESULTS: Approximately 8% of participants reported having used nicotine at least once between baseline and the follow-up, and 4.7% reported solely using electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) and no other forms of nicotine. In multivariable analyses, we controlled for many environmental, social, and behavioral variables known to influence nicotine use such as alcohol use, peer substance use, and perceived access to nicotine. We formulated our main independent variable, caffeine consumption, as continuous deciles. Any nicotine use, as well as ENDS use only at follow-up, were modeled as dependent variables. Caffeine was significantly associated with nicotine use in both models with ORs of 1.15 (1.04-1.27) and 1.13 (1.00-1.28). CONCLUSIONS: Caffeine consumption among 6th grade non-nicotine users was associated with nicotine use at approximately 6-months follow-up.

Caffeine consumption and onset of alcohol use among early adolescents.

Preventing or delaying the onset of alcohol use among children and youth is an important public health goal. One possible factor in alcohol use onset among early adolescents is caffeine. The aim of this study was to assess the possible contribution of caffeine to the onset of alcohol use during early adolescence. We used data from the Young Mountaineer Health Study Cohort. Survey data were collected from 1349 (response rate: 80.7%) 6th grade students (mean age at baseline 11.5 years) in 20 middle schools in West Virginia during the fall of 2020, and again approximately 6 months later in spring of 2021. We limited our analyses to students reporting never having used any form of alcohol at baseline. Logistic regression was employed in multivariable analyses and both Odds Ratios and Relative Risks reported. At follow-up, almost 14% of participants reported having consumed alcohol at least once and 57% used caffeine of 100 mg + daily. In multivariable analyses we controlled for social and behavioral variables known to impact tobacco use. Caffeine use was operationalized as a three-level factor: no use, <100 mg per day, and 100 + mg per day, with the latter being the approximate equivalent of the minimum of a typical cup of coffee or can of energy drink. Caffeine use of 100 mg + per day was significantly related to alcohol use at 6-months follow-up (OR: 1.79, RR: 1.56, p = .037). We conclude that caffeine consumption among 11-12-year-old adolescents may be a factor in early onset of alcohol use.

Application of 3-nitrooxypropanol and canola oil to mitigate enteric methane emissions of beef cattle results in distinctly different effects on the rumen microbial community.

BACKGROUND: The major greenhouse gas from ruminants is enteric methane (CH4) which in 2010, was estimated at 2.1 Gt of CO2 equivalent, accounting for 4.3% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. There are extensive efforts being made around the world to develop CH4 mitigating inhibitors that specifically target rumen methanogens with the ultimate goal of reducing the environmental footprint of ruminant livestock production. This study examined the individual and combined effects of supplementing a high-forage diet (90% barley silage) fed to beef cattle with the investigational CH4 inhibitor 3-nitrooxypropanol (3-NOP) and canola oil (OIL) on the rumen microbial community in relation to enteric CH4 emissions and ruminal fermentation. RESULTS: 3-NOP and OIL individually reduced enteric CH4 yield (g/kg dry matter intake) by 28.2% and 24.0%, respectively, and the effects were additive when used in combination (51.3% reduction). 3-NOP increased H2 emissions 37-fold, while co-administering 3-NOP and OIL increased H2 in the rumen 20-fold relative to the control diet. The inclusion of 3-NOP or OIL significantly reduced the diversity of the rumen microbiome. 3-NOP resulted in targeted changes in the microbiome decreasing the relative abundance of Methanobrevibacter and increasing the relative abundance of Bacteroidetes. The inclusion of OIL resulted in substantial changes to the microbial community that were associated with changes in ruminal volatile fatty acid concentration and gas production. OIL significantly reduced the abundance of protozoa and fiber-degrading microbes in the rumen but it did not selectively alter the abundance of rumen methanogens. CONCLUSIONS: Our data provide a mechanistic understanding of CH4 inhibition by 3-NOP and OIL when offered alone and in combination to cattle fed a high forage diet. 3-NOP specifically targeted rumen methanogens and partly inhibited the hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis pathway, which increased H2 emissions and propionate molar proportion in rumen fluid. In contrast, OIL caused substantial changes in the rumen microbial community by indiscriminately altering the abundance of a range of rumen microbes, reducing the abundance of fibrolytic bacteria and protozoa, resulting in altered rumen fermentation. Importantly, our data suggest that co-administering CH4 inhibitors with distinct mechanisms of action can both enhance CH4 inhibition and provide alternative sinks to prevent excessive accumulation of ruminal H2.

Parental support and monitoring as associated with adolescent alcohol and tobacco use by gender and age.

BACKGROUND: Parental support (PS) and parental monitoring (PM) are known protective factors against adolescent substance use (SU). However, little is known about whether PS and PM may affect SU outcomes differently by gender and age. This study examined the relationship between PS and PM and adolescent SU, specifically alcohol and tobacco use, stratified by gender and age group. METHODS: Middle and high school students (n = 2351, 48.5% Female) completed surveys of self-reported SU, perceived PS and PM, and socioeconomic background. Age group was defined dichotomously as grade 7-8 Middle school and grade 9-10 High school students. PS and PM were each measured using previously validated tools. SU was measured by lifetime and past 30 days cigarette/alcohol use. One-way ANOVA and binary logistic regression models were completed. Odds ratios and means were reported. RESULTS: PS and PM were significantly and negatively related to all outcome variables regardless of gender and age group. Mean differences in PS and PM were insignificant between age groups. Between genders, PM scores were significantly higher for girls (14.05) compared to boys (13.48) (p < 0.01). Odds Ratios of all four SU types (for alcohol and tobacco use) increased with higher age group, with ORs ranging from 1.45-2.61 (p < .05). CONCLUSIONS: PS and PM were protective against SU for all participants, consistent with previous literature. Girls reported greater parental monitoring than boys, irrespective of age-group. While girls experienced higher levels of monitoring, they did not report lower SU than boys. This suggests that monitoring girls more closely than boys appears unnecessary in preventing adolescent SU. Finally, PS was a more significant factor in preventing SU for older adolescents (high school aged group) than for younger adolescents, irrespective of gender suggesting that PS may be more impactful and important as adolescents age. As children mature, particularly from middle school to high school, PS may play a larger role in preventing SU for older adolescents compared to younger ones.

Combined effects of 3-nitrooxypropanol and canola oil supplementation on methane emissions, rumen fermentation and biohydrogenation, and total tract digestibility in beef cattle.

The individual and combined effects of 3-nitrooxypropanol (3-NOP) and canola oil (OIL) supplementation on enteric methane (CH4) and hydrogen (H2) emissions, rumen fermentation and biohydrogenation, and total tract nutrient digestibility were investigated in beef cattle. Eight beef heifers (mean body weight ± SD, 732 ± 43 kg) with ruminal fistulas were used in a replicated 4 × 4 Latin square with a 2 (with and without 3-NOP) × 2 (with and without OIL) arrangement of treatments and 28-d periods (13 d adaption and 15 d measurements). The four treatments were: control (no 3-NOP, no OIL), 3-NOP (200 mg/kg dry matter [DM]), OIL (50 g/kg DM), and 3-NOP (200 mg/kg DM) plus OIL (50 g/kg DM). Animals were fed restrictively (7.6 kg DM/d) a basal diet of 900 g/kg DM barley silage and 100 g/kg DM supplement. 3-NOP and OIL decreased (P < 0.01) CH4 yield (g/kg DM intake) by 31.6% and 27.4%, respectively, with no 3-NOP × OIL interaction (P = 0.85). Feeding 3-NOP plus OIL decreased CH4 yield by 51% compared with control. There was a 3-NOP × OIL interaction (P = 0.02) for H2 yield (g/kg DM intake); the increase in H2 yield (P < 0.01) due to 3-NOP was less when it was combined with OIL. There were 3-NOP × OIL interactions for molar percentages of acetate and propionate (P < 0.01); individually, 3-NOP and OIL decreased acetate and increased propionate percentages with no further effect when supplemented together. 3-NOP slightly increased crude protein (P = 0.02) and starch (P = 0.01) digestibilities, while OIL decreased the digestibilities of DM (P < 0.01) and neutral detergent fiber (P < 0.01) with no interactions (P = 0.15 and 0.10, respectively). 3-NOP and OIL increased (P = 0.04 and P < 0.01, respectively) saturated fatty acid concentration in rumen fluid, with no interaction effect. Interactions for ruminal trans-monounsaturated fatty acids (t-MUFA) concentration and percentage were observed (P = 0.02 and P < 0.01); 3-NOP had no effect on t-MUFA concentration and percentage, while OIL increased the concentration (P < 0.01) and percentage (P < 0.01) of t-MUFA but to a lesser extent when combined with 3-NOP. In conclusion, the CH4-mitigating effects of 3-NOP and OIL were independent and incremental. Supplementing ruminant diets with a combination of 3-NOP and OIL may help mitigate CH4 emissions, but the decrease in total tract digestibility due to OIL may decrease animal performance and needs further investigation.

New Approaches for Inferring Phylogenies in the Presence of Paralogs.

The availability of whole genome sequences was expected to supply essentially unlimited data for phylogenetics. However, strict reliance on single-copy genes for this purpose has drastically limited the amount of data that can be used. Here, we review several approaches for increasing the amount of data used for phylogenetic inference, focusing on methods that allow for the inclusion of duplicated genes (paralogs). Recently developed methods that are robust to high levels of incomplete lineage sorting also appear to be robust to the inclusion of paralogs, suggesting a promising way to take full advantage of genomic data. We discuss the pitfalls of these approaches, as well as further avenues for research.

School Climate as a Universal Intervention to Prevent Substance Use Initiation in Early Adolescence: A Longitudinal Study.

Initiation of substance use often starts during adolescence, with tobacco and alcohol use frequently preceding the use of marijuana and other illicit drugs. Studies suggest that a positive school climate may prevent substance use while promoting healthy student behaviors. The purpose of this study was to determine the longitudinal associations between school climate and substance use initiation in a group of middle school students. Parallel latent growth curve modeling was used to examine changes among study variables longitudinally using a sample of 2,097 sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade students across 16 regional schools located in three counties in West Virginia. Results suggest that a positive school climate may prevent substance use initiation (ß = -0.07 to -0.25, p < .01). However, perceptions of school climate decreased on their own over time (ß = -0.28 to -0.66, p < .01). Furthermore, substance use initiation also increased as students grew older (ß = 0.96 to 0.99, p < .01) and reduced the effects of school climate longitudinally (ß = -0.07 to -0.24, p < .01). Early substance use initiation may be a warning sign of other underlying student issues and requires additional school support to foster student success. Findings suggest that a positive school climate may delay substance use initiation and promote school success. School climate may, therefore, be useful as an intervention to support school-based health promotion.

Does early exposure to caffeine promote smoking and alcohol use behavior? A prospective analysis of middle school students.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Despite the negative consequences associated with caffeine use among children and youth, its use is increasingly widespread among middle school students. Cross-sectional studies reveal links between caffeine and other substance use. The potential for caffeine use to confer increased vulnerability to substance use, however, has not been investigated using prospective designs. We hypothesized that caffeine use at baseline would be associated positively with increased alcohol use, drunkenness, smoking and e-cigarette use. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study with 12 months separating baseline from follow-up. SETTING: West Virginia, USA. PARTICIPANTS: Middle school students (6th and 7th grades; n = 3932) in three West Virginia (WV) counties provided data at baseline and follow-up 12 months later. MEASUREMENTS: Youth self-reported their use of caffeine from multiple sources (e.g. soda, energy drinks, coffee and tea), cigarette smoking, electronic cigarette use, alcohol use and drunkenness. FINDINGS: Cross-lagged path models for individual substance use categories provided a good fit to the data. Controlling for demographic variables and other substance use at baseline, caffeine at time 1 (T1) was associated positively with T2 cigarette smoking (ß = 0.27, P = 0.001), e-cigarette use (ß = 0.21, P = 0.001), alcohol use (ß = 0.17, P = 0.001) and drunkenness (ß = 0.15, P = 0.001). Conversely, non-significant relations emerged between three of four substances at T1 and caffeine at T2. Positive relations were found between e-cigarette use at T1 and caffeine use at T2 (ß = 0.07, P = 0.006). These findings were supported by an omnibus model with all substances included. Specifically, significant relations were observed between caffeine at T1 and all substance use outcomes at T2, whereas no significant relations were observed between substance use and caffeine over time. CONCLUSIONS: Caffeine may promote early use of other types of substances among middle school-aged adolescents.

Social Profile of Middle School-Aged Adolescents Who Use Electronic Cigarettes: Implications for Primary Prevention.

Electronic cigarette (EC) use continues to increase among adolescents. From a primary prevention point of view, an important gap in our knowledge includes determining whether young smokers that use EC maintain a distinct social profile from kids who use combustible cigarettes (CC). Survey data from middle school students in West Virginia, USA were collected between September and November of 2015 (N = 6547, response rate 84.7%) as part of a state wide school-based mental health intervention program. Data was analyzed using multinomial logistic regression for categorical data. The results show that compared to never smokers, EC-only users possessed a weaker social support and parental monitoring profile and performed worse in school. Additionally, EC-only users were more likely to feel alienated from school, to associate with delinquent peers, to spend time outside late at night, and to engage in unsupervised gatherings with their friends. In 11 of 13 statistical models no difference was observed between EC-only users compared with CC-only users. However, dual users (that had used both EC and CC in their lifetime) demonstrated a significantly greater risk profile compared with EC-only users. We conclude that middle school-aged kids that use EC share a similar risk profile as kids of the same age that use CC. Similar to traditional cigarette smoking, EC use in young adolescents is likely to be a social marker of a pathway to further delinquency and should therefore be subject to primary prevention approaches.

Prevalence of substance use among middle school-aged e-cigarette users compared with cigarette smokers, nonusers, and dual users: Implications for primary prevention.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of substance use in e-cigarette (EC)-only users with combustible cigarette (CC)-only users, dual users, and nonusers in a large sample of middle school-aged adolescents. METHODS: Population-based cross-sectional school survey conducted in 15 middle schools in 3 counties in West Virginia in the United States between October and December of 2015 (N = 6547, girls = 49.6%; response rate 84.7%). RESULTS: Approximately 4.3% of participants had used EC only, 4.5% had used CC only, and around 5.5% were dual users. Nonusers had the lowest prevalence of all 9 forms of substance use assessed in the study (i.e., chewing tobacco, any alcohol, drunkenness, marijuana, sniffing, prescription drugs, hallucinogens, synthetic marijuana, and bath salts), followed by EC and CC users. Dual users had the highest prevalence of 8 of 9 forms of substance use. Multinomial logistic regression models showed that EC-only users had significantly greater odds over nonusers of using 8 of 9 types of substances included in the study. Conversely, EC-only users had significantly lower odds of using 7 of 9 types of substances when compared with dual users. However, EC-only users did not differ from CC-only users in odds of use in any of the 9 substances included in this analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Among middle school-aged adolescents, EC-only users do not differ from CC-only users in odds for other forms of substance use. Primary prevention programs should consider EC use initiation as a pathway to greater risk of other licit and illicit substances among young adolescents.

Methods for Detecting Microbial Methane Production and Consumption by Gas Chromatography.

Methane is an energy-dense fuel but is also a greenhouse gas 25 times more detrimental to the environment than CO2. Methane can be produced abiotically by serpentinization, chemically by Sabatier or Fisher-Tropsh chemistry, or biotically by microbes (Berndt et al., 1996; Horita and Berndt, 1999; Dry, 2002; Wolfe, 1982; Thauer, 1998; Metcalf et al., 2002). Methanogens are anaerobic archaea that grow by producing methane gas as a metabolic byproduct (Wolfe, 1982; Thauer, 1998). Our lab has developed and optimized three different gas chromatograph-utilizing assays to characterize methanogen metabolism (Catlett et al., 2015). Here we describe the end point and kinetic assays that can be used to measure methane production by methanogens or methane consumption by methanotrophic microbes. The protocols can be used for measuring methane production or consumption by microbial pure cultures or by enrichment cultures.

Energy drink consumption and substance use risk in middle school students.

OBJECTIVES: Energy drink (ED) sales have increased greatly in recent years and ED is now a common topic in health behavior research. Most studies work with samples of college students and/or young adults and to a lesser degree with high school students. Research is lacking on ED consumption in younger users. The purpose of this study was to fill this gap and assess the prevalence of ED consumption in a sample of middle school students as well to analyze the relationships between ED use and illicit and licit drug use in girls and boys of this age. METHOD: We use cross-sectional school-survey data from 6-8th grade students in three US mid-Atlantic schools conducted in September to November 2014 (N = 1152, response rate: 82.4%). RESULTS: Approximately 20% of participants had consumed ED and 10% had smoked cigarettes. Almost 14% had used alcohol at least once in their lifetime and 5.5% marijuana. Boys were more likely than girls to have used ED but no gender difference was observed in the prevalence of illicit substances. However, ED use was positively related to smoking and alcohol use among both genders, but also to several forms of illicit drug use among girls. CONCLUSION: ED consuming girls are particularly prone to also use illicit substances. This is the first survey-type study which reports a positive relationship between ED consumption with both licit and illicit drug use in middle school-aged girls and boys.

Clinical Features and Treatment of Penile Schwannoma: A Systematic Review.

Schwannomas, although common in the head and limbs, are an exceedingly rare tumor of the penis. We conducted a systematic review to include 33 patients with schwannoma of the penile shaft or glans penis. Most patients presented with a single painless nodule on the dorsal aspect of the penile shaft. These nodules were slow growing, with an average of 62 months from the onset to presentation. Several cases were accompanied by sexual dysfunction. Most histologic studies were consistent, with a benign schwannoma that showed a palisading Antoni A and Antoni B pattern without malignant changes in cell morphology. Of the 14 studies in which a history of genetic disease was investigated, only 2 reported a connection to neurofibromatosis. These tumors were treated with surgical excision, and 4 malignant cases received additional chemotherapy or radiotherapy. All the patients had achieved full remission by the final follow-up examination. Given the rarity of this tumor, the present review of available case studies serves to comprehensively describe the clinical presentation and treatment approaches to penile schwannoma.