Biological and Social Correlates of Drug Use in African American Emerging Adults

目前的研究结果表明，与美国的其他群体不同，非洲的毒品使用和滥用有所增加 美国青年正迈入成年期。非裔美国人也表现出吸毒的双峰模式 大量吸毒者，既有重度吸毒者，也有低度吸毒者。这些发现突显出需要确定以下因素 可能与成年期早期药物使用的增加有关，也可能与导致成人早期吸毒的异质性有关 在这一人群中使用毒品。因此，这项研究旨在评估遗传风险因素的影响 (即，药物依赖家族史；抑郁症的遗传标记)和环境压力(即， 接触人际和社区暴力)对心理功能和药物使用的影响，以及 一项以社区为基础的非临床样本，研究对象为18-25岁的非洲裔美国男性和女性 600例。越来越多的证据表明，遗传因素，如药物依赖家族史， 而环境压力，如暴力暴露，是药物使用的重要相关因素。抑郁症, 这可能是由遗传因素和环境压力共同导致的，也与 药物使用和常见的神经化学途径可能既调节应激反应，如抑郁， 和吸毒。 尽管有这些发现，但很少有研究考察基因和基因之间的连续关系 环境风险因素、心理功能以及药物的使用和滥用，特别是在非裔美国人中 人口。因此，我们对携带药物遗传标记的个体的程度知之甚少。 当面对暴力等环境压力时，使用和/或抑郁可能会有更大的影响 心理困扰的可能性，如抑郁和随后的药物使用或滥用。这项研究将 研究药物使用和抑郁的遗传和环境风险因素之间的关系， 非裔美国人样本的心理功能和ATOD(酒精、烟草和其他药物使用) 年轻的成年人。检查非洲裔美国人中的这些关系可能特别重要 在他们转变为成年人的角色和责任时，有暴露于暴力、吸毒和滥用的风险。 这一发现还可能有助于确定非洲裔美国人中可能存在高风险的亚群。 抑郁和/或吸毒或滥用，以应对城市环境压力。拟议的研究，包括 其重点是影响心理功能和药物使用/滥用的基因-环境相互作用 非洲裔美国青年与拟议的P20申请一致，该申请旨在解决健康问题 儿童和青壮年人口在药物使用、暴力和慢性病方面的差异。

Current findings suggest that, unlike other groups in the U.S., drug use and abuse increases in African American youth as they transition into adulthood. African Americans also show bimodal patterns of drug use with large numbers both heavy and low drug users. These findings highlight the need to identify factors that may be related to increases in drug use during early adulthood and those that contribute to heterogeneity in drug use within this population. Therefore, this study is designed to assess the impact of genetic risk factors (i.e., a family history of drug dependence; genetic markers for depression) and environmental stress (i.e., exposure to interpersonal and community violence) on psychological functioning and drug use,and abuse in a community-based, non-clinical sample of African-American male and female young adults aged 18-25 (n=600). There is accumulating evidence that genetic factors, such as a family history of drug dependence, and environmental stress, such as violence exposure, are significant correlates of drug use. Depression, which may be precipitated by both genetic factors and environmental stress, is also significantly related to drug use and common neurochemical pathways may mediate both stress responses, such as depression, and drug use. Despite these findings, few studies have examined successive relationships between genetic and environmental risk factors, psychological functioning and drug use and abuse, especially in African American populations. As a result, we know little about the degree to which individuals with genetic markers for drug use and/or depression may, when faced with environmental stress such as violence, have a greater likelihood of psychological distress such as depression and subsequent drug use or abuse. This study will examine relationships between genetic and environmental risk factors for drug use and depression, psychological functioning, and ATOD (alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use) in a sample of African American young adufts. It may be particularly important to examine these relationships in African Americans who are at risk for exposure to violence and drug use and abuse as they transition into adult roles and responsibilities. The findings may also assist in identifying subgroups of African Americans who may be at high risk for depression and/or drug use or abuse in response to urban environmental stress. The proposed study, with its focus on gene-environment interactions influencing psychological functioning and drug use/abuse in African American youth is consistent with the proposed P20 application which is designed to address health disparities in child and young adult populations in substance use, violence and chronic disease.