NOV/DEC 2005
Volume 11 - No. 4

SRNT Annual Meeting Update

From the Editor

President's Column

Nictoine Research at APA

Research Activities at a Featured Program

Book Review

In the Spotlight

Member Publications

Position Openings

Meeting Calendar

Society Information

SRNT Newsletter

Nov/Dec 2005, Volume 11, Number 4

Nicotine Research at the American Psychological
Association Convention
August 18-21, Washington, DC

By Karen K. Saules & Jack E. Henningfield

The American Psychological Association's 113^th Annual Convention was held this past August in the very culturally invigorating, albeit hot and steamy, Washington, DC, where it will be held every third year, henceforth. Aside from no end of intellectual stimulation and collegial interactions, we enhanced our cardiovascular health and fitness a bit, too, by virtue of all the walking we did at the impressive (large!) Convention Center and around the lively DC neighborhoods!

SRNT Members had a strong presence in this year's program:

L to R: APA Symposium Participants Jack Henningfield, Ian Stolerman, Mitch Zeller, Athina Markou, Jed Rose, Maxine Stitzer Vic DeNoble, and Paul Mele. Photo courtsey of Vic Laties.

Jack Henningfield (Pinney Associates and Johns Hopkins University) and Ian Stolerman (King's College) chaired a symposium entitled Nicotine Psychopharmacology and Policy: A Look Behind and a Look Ahead. In that symposium, Vic De Noble (Hissho, Inc.) and Paul Mele (US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command) presented a very engaging "Look Behind". In a very candid narrative, Vic and Paul shared their experiences working for Phillip Morris in the late `70's and early `80's and the ensuing progression of Federal attention to issues of nicotine regulation that continues to this day. Athina Markou (Scripps Research Institute) provided a report on the current understanding of nicotine self-administration and dependence in animals, and Jed Rose (Duke University) reviewed the importance of conditioning and sensorimotor factors in tobacco addition. Next, Maxine Stitzer (Johns Hopkins) gave an overview of treatment development and behavioral pharmacology. For those of you who missed Max's talk, you may want to check out the related recent review article (Henningfield, Fant, Buchhalter, & Sitzer, CA Cancer J Clin 2005; 55:281-299). The symposium concluded with Jack Henningfield's discussion of the implications for national and global tobacco regulation. Symposium Discussant Mitch Zeller (Pinney Associates) provided a concluding commentary and integration of the talks that were presented.

"We've come a long way, baby!" Then newly elected SRNT President Jack Henningfield (1998-1999), Past President Maxine Stitzer (1997-1998), and Keynote Speaker Jeffrey S. Wigand at the SRNT Annual Meeting in New Orleans, LA, March, 1998. A former tobacco industry scientist who spearheaded efforts to expose industry tactics, Wigand now runs a nonprofit organization whose mission is to inform school children about tobacco products and nicotine addiction. Wigand also does a substantive amount of work with foreign governments to denormalize tobacco-related practices, and he writes on tobacco-related legal, ethical, and regulatory issues (For more information, see Essays in Philosophy http://www.humboldt.edu/~essays/may1.html). Photo: Nina Schneider.

In a symposium entitled Behavior Genetics of Drug Abuse in the Molecular Genetics Era, Caryn Lerman (University of Pennsylvania) presented a report on genetic influences of smoking persistence and response to pharmacotherapy. Intriguing findings regarding the role of the DRD2-141C Ins/Del allele were reported, suggesting a treatment by genotype interaction in a bupropion trial and an NRT trial. This report is in press with Neuropsychopharmacology.

Beverly Pringle (NIDA) chaired a symposium entitled Translational Research on Smoking Cessation: Types I and II, in which Carl Lejeuz (University of Maryland) reported on distress tolerance in early smoking lapse, Patrick Bordnick (University of Georgia - Lawrenceville) discussed developments and innovations in virtual reality for addiction research, Margaret Walsh (UCSF) reviewed issues and opportunities with respect to smoking cessation interventions in dental offices, and Jack Hollis (Kaiser Permanente) commented on the importance of designing policy-relevant tobacco research. Discussant Timothy Baker (University of Wisconsin) provided a concluding commentary.

In addition to these symposia, a number of posters addressed issues related to nicotine dependence, and, in particular, the NIDA/NIAAA Early Career Investigators Poster Session and Social Hour on Friday evening was a wonderful opportunity for some new (and future?) SRNT members to present their research in a setting that permitted greater interaction with more senior researchers than is often possible at the regular poster sessions.

As of this writing, APA is continuing to monitor developments in New Orleans, where the convention is scheduled to take place next summer (August 10-13). Updates can be found at the APA Convention web page at http://www.apa.org/convention06/ . Presentation proposals are due by 11:59 PM on Friday, December 2, 2005.

Karen K. Saules, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Eastern Michigan University. She serves as the Editor of the SRNT Newsletter.

Jack E. Henningfield, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Director, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Innovators Awards at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (www.InnovatorsAwards.org). He is also the Vice President of Research and Health Policy for Pinney Associates in Bethesda MD (www.pinneyassociates.com).

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SRNT Annual Meeting Update • President's Column • From the Editor • Research Activities at a Featured Program • Nictoine Research at APA • In the Spotlight • Book Review • Member Publications • Position Openings • Society Information • Meeting Calendar