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Regulation of dopamine activity has important clinical consequences, most notably in schizophrenia. LB-102, N-methyl amisulpride, is a novel dopamine D 2/3 /5-HT 7 inhibitor being developed as a treatment for schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders. The characteristic that is common to all current antipsychotics is their engagement of D 2 dopamine receptors. The goal of this study was to measure the dopamine receptor occupancy of orally administered LB-102 at three different doses (50, 75, and 100 mg as single doses and 50 and 100 mg as multiple doses) and at different timepoints in healthy volunteers using positron emission tomography (PET) with 11 C raclopride as a radiotracer. Results of this study (NCT04588129) showed that steady-state once daily oral dosing of 50 mg LB-102 afforded striatal dopamine occupancy (RO) in the desired 60-80% range consistently over the course of 24 h. Contrary to the often observed relationship between RO vs plasma concentrations, maximum dopamine RO significantly lagged maximum plasma concentration and showed little variability under steady state conditions. A similar phenomenon has recently been reported with a non-racemic version of amisulpride [1]. LB-102 was generally safe and well-tolerated at all doses. Results of this study were used to inform dosing in a subsequent Phase 2 clinical study in schizophrenia patients., Competing Interests: Competing interests: VTG and MSH are consultants to, and shareholders of, LB Pharmaceuticals. AE, ZP, and ARV are employees and shareholders of LB Pharmaceuticals. DFW has WUSTL contracts with Eisai, Anavex, LB Pharma, Roche, Intracellular Technologies and is a paid consultant to Engrail Therapeutics and he and his CNAMI lab are supported by NIH (NIMH, NIDA, NIA, NIAAA) and the McDonnell Center for Systems Neuroscience at Washington University. GN has WUSTL contracts with COMPASS pathways, Usona Institute and Alkermes, Inc.; she has served as a paid consultant for Carelon, Novartis and Alkermes, Inc.; she and her staff in the Healthy Mind Lab are supported by research funding from the NIMH, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI); the Sidney R. Baer Jr. Foundation and the Barnes Jewish Hospital Foundation; the Institute for Clinical Translational Sciences, the Taylor Family Institute for Innovative Psychiatric Research, the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology and the McDonnell Center for Systems Neuroscience at Washington University. Gerhard Gründer is a paid consultant to LB Pharmaceuticals. GBC, NC, EL, HK, LT, IV, THS declare no conflict of interest., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Unmet social needs-including food, housing, and utilities-have been associated with negative health outcomes, but most prior research has examined the health associations with a single unmet need or analyzed samples that were homogeneous along one or more dimensions (e.g., older adults or patients with chronic health conditions). We examined the association between unmet social needs and psychosocial and health-related outcomes in a sample of Medicaid beneficiaries from 35 U.S. states. In 2016-2017, 1,214 people completed an online survey about social needs, demographics, and health-related and psychosocial outcomes. Seven items assessing social needs formed an index in which higher scores indicated higher levels of unmet needs. Participants were eligible if they were ≥18 years and had Medicaid. The sample was predominantly female (87%). Most (71%) lived with at least one child ≤18 years, and 49% were White and 33% were African American. Average age was 36 years ( SD = 13). The most common unmet needs were not enough money for unexpected expenses (54%) and not enough space in the home (25%). Analyses controlling for recruitment method and demographics showed that increasing levels of unmet social needs were positively associated with stress, smoking, and number of chronic conditions, and negatively associated with future orientation, attitudes toward prevention, days of exercise/week, servings of fruits or vegetables/day, and self-rated health (all p < .01). Results add to the evidence about the relationship between unmet social needs and health. Interventions to help meet social needs may help low-income people improve both their economic situations and their health.

Introduction: The Smoke-Free Homes (SFH) Program is an evidence-based intervention offered within 2-1-1 information and referral call centers to promote smoke-free homes in low-income populations. We used the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research to conduct a mixed-methods analysis of facilitators and barriers to scaling up SFH to five 2-1-1 sites in the United States., Methods: Data were collected from staff in 2015-2016 via online surveys administered before (N = 120) and after SFH training (N = 101) and after SFH implementation (N = 79). Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted in 2016 with 25 staff to examine attitudes towards SFH, ways local context affected implementation, and unintended benefits and consequences of implementing SFH., Results: Post-implementation, 79% of respondents reported that SFH was consistent with their 2-1-1's mission, 70% thought it led to more smoke-free homes in their population, 62% thought it was easy to adapt, and 56% thought participants were satisfied. Composite measures of perceived appropriateness of SFH for 2-1-1 callers and staff positivity toward SFH were significantly lower post-implementation than pre-implementation. In interviews, staff said SFH fit with their 2-1-1's mission but expressed concerns about intervention sustainability, time and resources needed for delivery, and how SFH fit into their workflow., Conclusions: Sites' SFH implementation experiences were affected both by demands of intervention delivery and by SFH's perceived effectiveness and fit with organizational mission. Future implementation of SFH and other tobacco control programs should address identified barriers by securing ongoing funding, providing dedicated staff time, and ensuring programs fit with staff workflow., Implications: Smoke-free home policies reduce exposure to secondhand smoke. Partnering with social service agencies offers a promising way to scale up evidence-based smoke-free home interventions among low-income populations. We found that the SFH intervention was acceptable and feasible among multiple 2-1-1 delivery sites. There were also significant challenges to implementation, including site workflow, desire to adapt the intervention, time needed for intervention delivery, and financial sustainability. Addressing such challenges will aid future efforts to scale up evidence-based tobacco control interventions to social service agencies such as 2-1-1.

Regular screening for colorectal cancer (CRC) facilitates earlier detection, lowers mortality, and may reduce incidence through detection and removal of pre-cancerous polyps. Optimizing health professional delivery of CRC screening information and recommendations can assist in reducing CRC disparity in the African-American community. This article presents qualitative data on African Americans' attitudes about health professional CRC communications based on the analysis of focus groups (N = 79). Using a social-ecological framework, colorectal cancer and professional communication themes are examined to offer four general and nine cancer-specific theoretically based and culturally appropriate strategies for improving health professional cancer communication with African Americans.

Background: Callers to 2-1-1 have greater need for and lesser use of cancer control services than other Americans. Integrating cancer risk assessment and referrals to preventive services into 2-1-1 systems is both feasible and acceptable to callers., Purpose: To determine whether callers will act on these referrals., Methods: In a randomized trial, 2-1-1 callers (n=1200) received standard service and those with at least one cancer risk factor or need for screening were assigned to receive verbal referrals only, verbal referrals + a tailored reminder mailed to their home, or verbal referrals + a telephone health coach/navigator. All data were collected from June 2010 to March 2012 and analyzed in March and April 2012., Results: At 1-month follow-up, callers in the navigator condition were more likely to report having contacted a cancer control referral than those receiving tailored reminders or verbal referrals only (34% vs 24% vs 18%, respectively; n=772, p<0.0001). Compared to verbal referrals only, navigators were particularly effective in getting 2-1-1 callers to contact providers for mammograms (OR=2.10, 95% CI=1.04, 4.22); Paps (OR=2.98, 95% CI=1.18, 7.54); and smoking cessation (OR=2.07, 95% CI=1.14, 3.74)., Conclusions: Given the extensive reach of 2-1-1s and the elevated risk profile of their callers, even modest response rates could have meaningful impact on population health if proactive health referrals were implemented nationally., (Copyright © 2012 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Compare effects of narrative and informational videos on use of mammography, cancer-related beliefs, recall of core content and a range of reactions to the videos., Method: African American women (n=489) ages 40 and older were recruited from low-income neighborhoods in St. Louis, MO and randomly assigned to watch a narrative video comprised of stories from African American breast cancer survivors (Living Proof) or a content-equivalent informational video using a more expository and didactic approach (Facts for Life). Effects were measured immediately post-exposure and at 3- and 6-month follow-up., Results: The narrative video was better liked, enhanced recall, reduced counterarguing, increased breast cancer discussions with family members and was perceived as more novel. Women who watched the narrative video also reported fewer barriers to mammography, more confidence that mammograms work, and were more likely to perceive cancer as an important problem affecting African Americans. Use of mammography at 6-month follow-up did not differ for the narrative vs. informational groups overall (49% vs. 40%, p=.20), but did among women with less than a high school education (65% vs. 32%, p<.01), and trended in the same direction for those who had no close friends or family with breast cancer (49% vs. 31%, p=.06) and those who were less trusting of traditional cancer information sources (48% vs. 30%, p=.06)., Conclusions: Narrative forms of communication may increase the effectiveness of interventions to reduce cancer health disparities., Practice Implications: Narratives appear to have particular value in certain population sub-groups; identifying these groups and matching them to specific communication approaches may increase effectiveness., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study tested the impact of a multicomponent intervention entitled "Partners of all Ages Reading About Diet and Exercise" (PARADE) a child-focused energy balance intervention incorporated into mentoring programs. We used a group randomized nested cohort design randomizing mentoring program sites (n = 119) and children (N = 782; females = 49%; African American = 37%; mean (s.d.) age = 8.5 (1.5) years) to intervention or usual care conditions. PARADE mentors delivered eight lesson plans addressing key concepts related to diet and activity; eight child-focused computer-tailored storybooks with messages targeting that child's diet and activity patterns and eight parent action support newsletters. When compared to the control group, PARADE children were more knowledgeable of diet and activity guidelines (P < 0.01), challenged themselves more to eat five fruits and vegetables (FV) (P < 0.01) and be active 1 h daily (P < 0.01), and to ask for FV for snack (P = 0.015). Calories from high fat foods decreased in overweight/obese children, but not for normal weight children (P = 0.059). There were no significant differences in fruit and vegetable intake, total calories, percent time being active, or BMI z-score. The combination of one-to-one mentoring, child-focused computer based tailoring, and parent support may impact important behavioral change precursors in environments over which the child has control, especially among normal weight children. Further, work is needed to evaluate the impact of family-focused multicomponent interventions, including computer-tailored approaches, directed toward both the parent and the child.

The lack of health information is one of several factors implicated in the poor health status of African American men. Although a growing body of research delineates the obstacles to African Americans' engagement in preventive health behaviors, relatively little is known about the barriers that adversely affect men's involvement in health-information seeking. This article presents qualitative data on African American men's information seeking through an analysis of focus group data. Three research questions are addressed: (a) What health-information concerns and needs do African American men have? (b) How do African American men describe their efforts to obtain health information? and (c) What factors facilitate or inhibit health-information seeking by African American men? The implications of the data and suggestions for future research are provided.