Identifying Outcomes and Gaps Impacting Tobacco Control and Prevention in African American Communities

Great racial disparities exist in smoking and related health outcomes in the United States. African American (AA) smokers start smoking later and smoke less than white smokers but are less likely to quit. In 2008, the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health funded the National African American Tobacco Prevention Network (NAATPN) to focus tobacco control leadership, expertise and promotion in the AA community. In 2012, NAATPN sought to determine significant outcomes of tobacco control efforts impacting Black and AA communities by conducting a qualitative document search and series of interviews with experts in the field. Thirteen identified outcomes were categorized into five broad classifications: 1) Menthol: Emergence of menthol as a focus for advocacy, policy and research; 2) Policy and Legal: Public policy and legal action aimed at reducing tobacco usage and consumption; 3) Advocacy: Focus on national networking to facilitate growth of local, organic, and grassroots capacity in AA communities; 4) Diversity: Emergence of diversity and inclusivity as values and principles used in shaping/driving policy, advocacy, and outreach; and 5) Cessation: Creation of a cessation guide for the AA community. The identified outcomes can be used by public health practitioners in furthering their efforts to address and reduce tobacco use disparities in the AA community

Single Cigarette Sales: State Differences in FDA Advertising and Labeling Violations, 2014, United States

Single cigarettes, which are sold without warning labels and often evade taxes, can serve as a gateway for youth smoking. The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009 gives the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to regulate the manufacture, distribution, and marketing of tobacco products, including prohibiting the sale of single cigarettes. To enforce these regulations, the FDA conducted over 335 661 inspections between 2010 and September 30, 2014, and allocated over $115 million toward state inspections contracts

Impact of non-menthol flavours in tobacco products on perceptions and use among youth, young adults and adults: a systematic review

This systematic review examines the impact of non-menthol flavours in tobacco products on tobacco use perceptions and behaviours among youth, young adults and adults

Perceptions and Experiences with Flavored Non-Menthol Tobacco Products: A Systematic Review of Qualitative Studies

Although a few countries have banned flavored cigarettes (except menthol), flavors in most tobacco products remain unregulated across the globe. We conducted a systematic review of qualitative studies examining perceptions of and experiences with flavored non-menthol tobacco products. Of 20 studies on flavored tobacco products included in our qualitative systematic review, 10 examined hookah, six examined e-cigarettes, two examined little cigars and cigarillos (LCCs), and three examined other tobacco products, including cigarettes. The majority of studies, regardless of product type, reported positive perceptions of flavored tobacco products, particularly among young adults and adolescents. In six studies that assessed perceptions of harm (including hookah, LCCs, and other flavored tobacco products), participants believed flavored tobacco products to be less harmful than cigarettes. In studies that examined the role of flavors in experimentation and/or initiation (including three studies on e-cigarettes, one hookah study and one LCC study), participants mentioned flavors as specifically leading to their experimentation and/or initiation of flavored tobacco products. Given that many countries have not yet banned flavors in tobacco products, these findings add to existing research on why individuals use flavored tobacco products and how they perceive harm in flavored tobacco products, providing further support for banning non-menthol flavors in most tobacco products

Multi-stage reconnection powering a solar coronal jet

Coronal jets are short-lived eruptive features commonly observed in polar coronal holes and are thought to play a key role in the transfer of mass and energy into the solar corona. We describe unique contemporaneous observations of a coronal blowout jet seen by the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager onboard the Solar Orbiter spacecraft (SO/EUI) and the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO/AIA). The coronal jet erupted from the south polar coronal hole, and was observed with high spatial and temporal resolution by both instruments. This enabled identification of the different stages of a breakout reconnection process producing the observed jet. We find bulk plasma flow kinematics of ~100-200 km/s across the lifetime of its observed propagation, with a distinct kink in the jet where it impacted and was subsequently guided by a nearby polar plume. We also identify a faint faster feature ahead of the bulk plasma motion propagating with a velocity of ~715 km/s which we attribute to untwisting of newly reconnected field lines during the eruption. A Differential Emission Measure (DEM) analysis using the SDO/AIA observations revealed a very weak jet signal, indicating that the erupting material was likely much cooler than the coronal passbands used to derive the DEM. This is consistent with the very bright appearance of the jet in the Lyman-$\alpha$ passband observed by SO/EUI. The DEM was used to estimate the radiative thermal energy of the source region of the coronal jet, finding a value of $\sim2\times10^{24}$ ergs, comparable to the energy of a nanoflare.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa

A sex-specific microRNA-96/5HT1B Axis influences development of pulmonary hypertension

Rationale: Females are predisposed to pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH); evidence suggests that serotonin, mutations in the bone morphogenetic protein receptor (BMPR) II gene, and estrogens influence development of PAH. The 5-hydroxytryptamine 1B receptor (5-HT1BR) mediates human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cell (hPASMC) proliferation. Objectives: We aimed to determine whether selected microRNAs (miRNAs) expressed in PASMCs are influenced by sex, BMPR-II mutations, and estrogens, and contribute to PASMC proliferation in PAH. Methods: Expression levels of miRNAs targeting genes related to PAH, estrogen, and serotonin were determined by quantitative RT-PCR in hPASMCs and mouse PASMCs harboring a heterozygous mutation in BMPR-II (BMPR-IIR899X+/− PASMCs). miRNA-96 targets 5-HT1BR and was selected for further investigation. miRNA target validation was confirmed by luciferase reporter assay. Precursor miRNA-96 was transfected into hPASMCs to examine effects on proliferation and 5-HT1BR expression. The effect of a miRNA-96 mimic on the development of hypoxic pulmonary hypertension in mice was also assessed. Measurements and Main Results: miRNA-96 expression was reduced in BMPR-IIR899X+/− PASMCs from female mice and hPASMCs from female patients with PAH; this was associated with increased 5-HT1BR expression and serotonin-mediated proliferation. 5-HT1BR was validated as a target for miRNA-96. Transfection of precursor miRNA-96 into hPASMCs reduced 5-HT1BR expression and inhibited serotonin-induced proliferation. Restoration of miRNA-96 expression in pulmonary arteries in vivo via administration of an miRNA-96 mimic reduced the development of hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension in the mouse. Conclusions: Increased 5-HT1BR expression may be a consequence of decreased miRNA-96 expression in female patient PASMCs, and this may contribute to the development of PAH

Resource Planning for Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) Control Programs: Feasibility Study of the Tool for Integrated Planning and Costing (TIPAC).

<p>Resource Planning for Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) Control Programs: Feasibility Study of the Tool for Integrated Planning and Costing (TIPAC)</p