scholarly journals Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 746-752 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylia Wilson ◽  
Kevin Haroian ◽  
William G. Iacono ◽  
Robert F. Krueger ◽  
James J. Lee ◽  
...  

AbstractThe Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research (MCTFR) comprises multiple longitudinal, community-representative investigations of twin and adoptive families that focus on psychological adjustment, personality, cognitive ability and brain function, with a special emphasis on substance use and related psychopathology. The MCTFR includes the Minnesota Twin Registry (MTR), a cohort of twins who have completed assessments in middle and older adulthood; the Minnesota Twin Family Study (MTFS) of twins assessed from childhood and adolescence into middle adulthood; the Enrichment Study (ES) of twins oversampled for high risk for substance-use disorders assessed from childhood into young adulthood; the Adolescent Brain (AdBrain) study, a neuroimaging study of adolescent twins; and the Siblings Interaction and Behavior Study (SIBS), a study of adoptive and nonadoptive families assessed from adolescence into young adulthood. Here we provide a brief overview of key features of these established studies and describe new MCTFR investigations that follow up and expand upon existing studies or recruit and assess new samples, including the MTR Study of Relationships, Personality, and Health (MTR-RPH); the Colorado-Minnesota (COMN) Marijuana Study; the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study; the Colorado Online Twins (CoTwins) study and the Children of Twins (CoT) study.

1999 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 869-900 ◽  
Author(s):  
WILLIAM G. IACONO ◽  
SCOTT R. CARLSON ◽  
JEANETTE TAYLOR ◽  
IRENE J. ELKINS ◽  
MATT MCGUE

One variant of substance-use disorder is characterized by behavioral disinhibition. In this report, we martial evidence for a model for the development of this variant. We hypothesize that genetic liability for this variant is reflected in a spectrum of risk indicators linked to the inability or unwillingness to inhibit behavioral impulses. Included in this spectrum are personality traits suggesting low constraint, and externalizing psychopathology, including conduct, oppositional defiant, and attention-deficit disorder in children and antisocial personality disorder and behavior in adults. We further hypothesize that these individual differences in behavioral disinhibition are manifestations of underlying central nervous system processes associated with various psychophysiological anomalies, some of which may index genetic risk for substance abuse. Support for the model is derived from the analysis of findings from the Minnesota Twin Family Study, an epidemiological investigation of approximately 2,700 adolescent twins and their parents.


2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina M. Jackson ◽  
Kenneth J. Sher ◽  
John E. Schulenberg

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph D. Deak ◽  
D. Angus Clark ◽  
Mengzhen Liu ◽  
C. Emily Durbin ◽  
William G. Iacono ◽  
...  

Objective: Molecular genetic studies of alcohol and nicotine have identified many genome-wide loci. We examined the predictive utility of drinking and smoking polygenic scores (PGS) for alcohol and nicotine use from late childhood to early adulthood, substance-specific versus broader-liability PGS effects, and if PGS performance varied between consumption versus pathological use. Methods: Latent growth curve models with structured residuals were used to assess the predictive utility of drinks per week and regular smoking PGS for measures of alcohol and nicotine consumption and problematic use from age 14 to 34. PGSs were generated from the largest discovery sample for alcohol and nicotine use to date (i.e., GSCAN), and examined for associations with alcohol and nicotine use in the Minnesota Twin Family Study (N=3225).Results: The drinking PGS was a significant predictor of age 14 problematic alcohol use and increases in problematic use during young adulthood. The smoking PGS was a significant predictor for all nicotine use outcomes. After adjusting for the effects of both PGSs, the smoking PGS demonstrated incremental predictive utility for most alcohol use outcomes and remained a significant predictor of nicotine use trajectories. Conclusions: Higher PGS for drinking and smoking were associated with more problematic levels of substance use longitudinally. The smoking PGS seems to capture both nicotine-specific and non-specific genetic liability for substance use, and may index genetic risk for broader externalizing behavior. Validation of PGS within longitudinal designs may have important clinical implications should future studies support the clinical utility of PGS for substance use disorders.


2011 ◽  
Vol 41 (9) ◽  
pp. 1907-1916 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. Baker ◽  
H. H. Maes ◽  
H. Larsson ◽  
P. Lichtenstein ◽  
K. S. Kendler

BackgroundGenetic and environmental factors are important in the etiology of substance use. However, little is known about the stability of these factors across development. We aimed to answer three crucial questions about this etiology that have never been addressed in a single study: (1) Is there a general vulnerability to substance consumption from early adolescence to young adulthood? (2) If so, do the genetic and environmental influences on this vulnerability change across development? (3) Do these developmental processes differ in males and females?MethodSubjects included 1480 twin pairs from the Swedish Twin Study of Child and Adolescent Development who have been followed since 1994. Prospective, self-reported regular smoking, alcohol intoxication and illicit drug use were assessed at ages 13–14, 16–17 and 19–20 years. Structural modeling was performed with the program Mx.ResultsAn underlying common factor accounted for the association between smoking, alcohol and illicit drug consumption for the three age groups. Common genetic and shared environmental effects showed substantial continuity. In general, as participants aged, the influence of the shared environment decreased, and genetic effects became more substance specific in their effect.ConclusionsThe current report answers three important questions in the etiology of substance use. The genetic and environmental risk for substance consumption is partly mediated through a common factor and is partly substance specific. Developmentally, evidence was strongest for stability of common genetic effects, with less evidence for genetic innovation. These processes seem to be the same in males and females.


2021 ◽  
pp. 104973232199344
Author(s):  
Oladunni Oluwoye ◽  
Elizabeth Fraser

In this qualitative study, we explore providers’ experiences with addressing substance use among individuals with first-episode psychosis (FEP) enrolled in coordinated specialty care (CSC) programs. Three focus groups were conducted with 24 providers from CSC programs for FEP in Washington. Questions were focused on barriers and facilitators to addressing substance use using the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) as a guide. Thematic analysis was used to code all transcripts. Identified TDF domains were then mapped onto the COM-B (Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, Behavior) intervention functions and behavior change techniques. Seven theoretical domains were identified as the most relevant to addressing substance use: “Knowledge,” “Skills,” “Environmental Context and Resources,” “Social Influences,” “Social and Professional Role and Identity,” “Beliefs about Capabilities,” and “Reinforcement.” The use of the TDF provides a framework to explore barriers and facilitators for targeting substance use and suggestions for behavior change techniques when considering implementation of evidence-based strategies to enhance CSC models.


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