Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program Funded Publication

Tobacco use remains the single most preventable cause of disease, disability, and death in the United States and in California. The Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program (TRDRP) is one of three entities that constitute California’s program to control tobacco consumption and alleviate the burden of tobacco-related disease. This effort was initiated by Proposition 99, “The Tobacco Tax and Health Protection Act of 1988” which mandated that the Department of Health Services, the Department of Education and the University of California be allocated a portion of the tobacco tax revenue collected to address issues of tobacco consumption and its consequences in the state. Enabling legislation requested that the University of California, in its role as the research arm of the state, “administer a comprehensive grant program to support research efforts related to the prevention, causes, and treatment of tobacco-related diseases” and that “ all qualified investigators, regardless of institutional affiliation, shall have equal access and opportunity to compete for the funds.”

The TRDRP is administered by the University of California and is a program of the Research Grants Program Office (RGPO), Office of Research and Graduate Studies at the University of California, Office of the President.

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Cover page of COLORISM UNVEILED: EXAMINING HOW SKIN COLOR DISCRIMINATION IS ASSOCIATED WITH ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, MENTAL HEALTH, AND SUBSTANCE USE AMONG LATINX ADOLESCENTS

COLORISM UNVEILED: EXAMINING HOW SKIN COLOR DISCRIMINATION IS ASSOCIATED WITH ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, MENTAL HEALTH, AND SUBSTANCE USE AMONG LATINX ADOLESCENTS

(2023)

Associations Between Muscle Weakness and Clinical Outcomes in Current and Former Smokers

(2023)

NIRS-Based Muscle Oxygenation Is Not Suitable to Compute Convective and Diffusive Components of O2 Transport at V̇O2max

(2023)

Generation of two induced pluripotent stem cell lines from breast cancer patients carrying BRCA2 variants

(2023)

Impacts of Tax and Flavor Tobacco Policies on San Francisco Bay Area Tobacco Prices

(2023)

California Proposition 56 increased the state tobacco tax by $2 per cigarette pack effective April 1, 2017. Between 2015-2020 San Francisco (SF) and some cities in Alameda County enacted local flavored tobacco sales restrictions. SF also increased its Cigarette Litter Abatement Fee, from $0.20/pack in 2015 to $1.00 in 2020. Compare the change in tobacco prices before (2015) and after (2019/20) the implementation of a $2 increase in tobacco excise tax and local flavored tobacco policies in SF and Alameda Counties. Descriptive study of the pre-to-post policy analysis design. We drew a proportional random sample of retailers (N=463) in SF and Alameda Counties, by city. Using multivariable, single- and multiple-level linear regressions, we compared inflation-adjusted average tobacco prices in 2015 vs. 2019/20 by county and by flavor policy, accounting for socio-demographics. Change in inflation-adjusted average tobacco prices in 2015 vs. 2019/20 by county and flavor policy, accounting for socio-demographics. Between 2015-2019/20, the increase in cigarette prices was higher than the $2 tax increase, and higher in SF than Alameda County (+$4.6 vs +$2.5). SF retailers stopped selling Newport menthol cigarettes and Blu brand menthol e-cigarettes in 2019/20. Adjusted average cigarette prices increased significantly more in SF and Alameda County cities with comprehensive or partial flavor policies versus cities without flavor policies (by $3.23 and $2.11). Local flavor policies affected menthol product availability and may have had positive spillover effects and indirectly increased pack prices.

Exercise Physiology and Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing

(2023)

Abstract: Aerobic, or endurance, exercise is an energy requiring process supported primarily by energy from oxidative adenosine triphosphate synthesis. The consumption of oxygen and production of carbon dioxide in muscle cells are dynamically linked to oxygen uptake (V̇O2) and carbon dioxide output (V̇CO2) at the lung by integrated functions of cardiovascular, pulmonary, hematologic, and neurohumoral systems. Maximum oxygen uptake (V̇O2max) is the standard expression of aerobic capacity and a predictor of outcomes in diverse populations. While commonly limited in young fit individuals by the capacity to deliver oxygen to exercising muscle, (V̇O2max) may become limited by impairment within any of the multiple systems supporting cellular or atmospheric gas exchange. In the range of available power outputs, endurance exercise can be partitioned into different intensity domains representing distinct metabolic profiles and tolerances for sustained activity. Estimates of both V̇O2max and the lactate threshold, which marks the upper limit of moderate-intensity exercise, can be determined from measures of gas exchange from respired breath during whole-body exercise. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) includes measurement of V̇O2 and V̇CO2 along with heart rate and other variables reflecting cardiac and pulmonary responses to exercise. Clinical CPET is conducted for persons with known medical conditions to quantify impairment, contribute to prognostic assessments, and help discriminate among proximal causes of symptoms or limitations for an individual. CPET is also conducted in persons without known disease as part of the diagnostic evaluation of unexplained symptoms. Although CPET quantifies a limited sample of the complex functions and interactions underlying exercise performance, both its specific and global findings are uniquely valuable. Some specific findings can aid in individualized diagnosis and treatment decisions. At the same time, CPET provides a holistic summary of an individual's exercise function, including effects not only of the primary diagnosis, but also of secondary and coexisting conditions.

Cover page of Brief report: Revealing the nuance: Examining approaches for research with adolescents who identify with multiple racial/ethnic groups

Brief report: Revealing the nuance: Examining approaches for research with adolescents who identify with multiple racial/ethnic groups

(2023)

Introduction

Increasing racial/ethnic diversity in the United States calls for methodological approaches that capture participants who identify with multiple racial/ethnic groups. Existing approaches are oriented toward large samples (N > 500); yet, we do not know how effective these approaches are with more common smaller convenience samples. We explored how several approaches were associated with the sample distribution of racial/ethnic groups and ethnic identity using a small convenience sample.

Methods

In 2017, 320 U.S. adolescents (M_age = 16.04 years, SD_age = 1.33; 59% female) responded to an open-ended question regarding their racial/ethnic group(s) in a cross-sectional survey. Seventy-five (23%) adolescents identified with multiple racial/ethnic groups. Remaining adolescents identified solely with the Asian/Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander (19%), Black/African American (3%), European American (21%), Latinx (34%), or Native American/Alaska Native (<1%) group.

Results

Three approaches for adolescents with multiple racial/ethnic groups were employed. Findings indicated that the sample distributions differed across the approaches. The greatest differences were shown for Black/African American, Native American/Alaska Native, and Other Race/Ethnicity groups. Descriptively, ethnic identity also differed across the approaches. For example, multiracial/ethnic adolescents reported greater ethnic identity-exploration than their European American counterparts in one approach than in others.

Conclusions

Researchers should carefully consider approaches to research with adolescents who identify with multiple racial/ethnic groups given implications for the literature. This study demonstrates the critical need to further develop approaches for capturing the complexity of race/ethnicity.

Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program