The combined relations of gender,enculturation, and depressive symptoms with health risk behaviors in Mexican-Americans: a moderated mediation analysis

ABSTRACT

Objectives: The present study investigated the relationships of enculturation and depressive symptoms with health risk behavior engagement in Mexican-American college students and examined how these relationships differed by gender. Previous research has noted consistent gender differences in health risk behavior (e.g. alcohol use, substance use, and risky sexual behavior) among Latina/os, and emphasized the role of U.S. acculturation in this difference. Research examining the role of heritage cultural retention (i.e. enculturation), and including the added influence of mental health variables, such as depressive symptoms, is currently lacking. This study sought to address this gap.

Design: A large sample (N?=?677) of Mexican-American college students from four universities (located in New York, California, Florida, and Texas) completed an online questionnaire assessing health risk behaviors and corresponding variables.

Results: We found that males who endorsed more behavioral enculturation and depressive symptoms were more likely to engage in health risk behavior than all others in the sample. Contrary to previous literature, no relationship was found between behavioral enculturation and health risk behavior in females.

Conclusion: The current study found behavioral enculturation to be associated with depressive symptoms, and in turn with health risk behaviors among the males in our sample. Additional research will be needed to identify the mechanism underlying the relationship between enculturation and depressive symptoms as well as between depressive symptoms and risky behavior.     

Same-Day Yttrium-90 Radioembolization: Feasibility with Resin Microspheres

Purpose

To evaluate the feasibility of a same-day yttrium-90 (⁹⁰Y) radioembolization protocol with resin microspheres (including pretreatment angiography, lung shunt fraction [LSF] determination, and radioembolization) for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and liver metastases.

Preparation and tumor affinity testing of the radioiodinated tetrahydroisoquinoline derivative [123I]TIC(OH) for targeting prostate cancer.

This work describes the synthesis and tumor affinity testing of 8-[123I]iodo-l-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-7-hydroxyisoquinoline-3-carboxylic acid [ITIC(OH)], a cyclic non-naturally occurring amino acid as an imaging probe for prostate cancer. Parameters for labelling were optimized with regard to the amount of precursor, the temperature and time. Thereafter, ITIC(OH) was evaluated in terms of its uptake in primary human PC-3 and DU-145 prostate cancer cells, followed by analysis of the underlying mechanisms of the radioactivity accumulation in tumor cells. No-carrier-added ITIC(OH) was obtained in 80+/-15% radiochemical yield and >98% radiochemical purity by a one-step radioiodination, using IODO-GEN as oxidant. The total synthesis time was less than 30 min, and compatible with a clinical routine production. ITIC(OH) accumulated intensively in primary human prostate cancer cells. The radioactivity incorporation in tumor following a 10-min incubation at 37 degrees C/pH 7.4 varied from 35% to 58% of the total loaded activity per 10(6) tumor cells (355-540 cpm/1000 cells). Inhibition experiments revealed that ITIC(OH) was taken up into tumor by an active transport different from the common amino acid carrier systems, including the sodium-dependent system A and B+,0, and the sodium-independent L- and ASC-type transporter. In contrast, the cellular incorporation was dependent on the membrane potential and correlated with the activity of the mitochondria. In conclusion, the specific and high-level accumulation of ITIC(OH) in human prostate carcinoma cells, indicates that the new radiopharmaceutical is a good candidate for further in vivo investigations to ascertain its potential as an imaging probe for prostate cancer by SPET.     

Investigation of the phenylalanine hydroxylase gene and tardive dyskinesia.

Phenylketonuria (PKU), an inborn error of phenylalanine metabolism, has been shown to be a risk factor for tardive dyskinesia (TD). In male psychiatric patients there was a significant relationship between TD and measures of plasma phenylalanine following ingestion of a standardized phenylalanine dose that was indicative of higher brain availability of phenylalanine in patients with TD. In addition, a medical food formulation consisting of branched chain amino acids, which compete with phenylalanine for transport across the blood-brain barrier, has been demonstrated to be an efficacious treatment for TD. Cumulatively these findings suggested that TD was related to phenylalanine metabolism and thus that sequence variants in the gene for phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH), the rate-limiting enzyme in the catabolism of phenylalanine, could be associated with TD susceptibility. Genetic screening of PAH in a group of 123 psychiatric patients revealed ten sequence polymorphisms and two mutations, but none appeared to be a significant risk factor for TD.     

Minimally disruptive decompression and transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion.

BACKGROUND: Posterior spinal procedures through tubular exposures have been described. However, tubes restrain visibility and require co-axial instrument manipulation, increasing difficulty and potentially compromising surgical results. An independent-blade retractor system overcomes the obstacles of working through a tube and has been used to perform minimally-disruptive decompression and instrumented tranforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF). PURPOSE: To evaluate the advantages to patient recovery and surgical efficacy of this technique. METHODS/RESULTS: Retrospective review of technique employing a minimally-disruptive approach to decompression and transforaminal lumber interbody fusion (TLIF). CONCLUSIONS: Minimally-disruptive decompression and instrumented TLIF can be performed in a safe and effective manner using an independent-blade retractor system. Relative to traditional-open techniques, surgical goals can be accomplished, but with the benefits of minimally-disruptive surgery.