Background The use of marijuana for medical purposes is now legal in some U.S. states and other jurisdictions, such as Canada, and Israel. Despite the widespread legalization of medical marijuana globally, there is limited information on patterns and correlates of medical marijuana use (MMU). We conducted a literature review to assess prevalence, reasons, perceived effects, and correlates of MMU among adolescents and adults. Methods We searched peer-reviewed articles in English between January 1996 and August 2016 from several databases (PubMed, Google Scholar, Embase, CINAHL, and PsycINFO) using different combinations of keywords. Results A total of 25 articles met the inclusion criteria. In the U.S., national survey estimates of prescribed MMU was 1.1% among 12th graders and 17% among adults who reported past-year marijuana use. The reported prevalence of prescribed MMU ranged from <1.7% in Israeli cancer patients to 17.4% in American health care patients. The reported prevalence of self-medication with marijuana ranged from 15% in Canadian patients with chronic pain to 30% in British patients with multiple sclerosis. Pain was the most frequently endorsed reason for use. MMU appeared to provide symptom relief for a range of pain conditions, sleep disturbance, and anxiety symptoms, but it did not appear to provide sufficient relief of cluster headache symptoms. Non-medical marijuana use was a common factor associated with MMU across studies. Conclusion Either MMU or self-medication with marijuana was common, mainly due to pain management. Additional research is needed to evaluate temporal and causal associations of non-medical marijuana use with MMU.

RPD3 is an evolutionarily conserved class I histone deacetylase (HDAC) that plays a pivotal role in diverse cellular processes. In filamentous fungal pathogens, abrogation of the gene encoding RPD3 results in either lethality or severe growth impairment, making subsequent genetic analyses challenging. Magnaporthe oryzae is a causal agent of rice blast disease, which is responsible for significant annual yield losses in rice production.

Background Despite a decrease in driving under the influence of alcohol (DUIA) prevalence over the past decades, DUIA prevalence still remains high in the United States. To date, there is limited research examining whether different types of substance users have different trends in DUIA. This study sought to assess trends and variables associated with DUIA by substance use type. Methods National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) is a cross-sectional, nationally representative population-based survey. By using the NSDUH 2008–2014, we performed the Joinpoint analysis to identify time trends of DUIA in each group of substance users (aged ≥18 years). Logistic regression analysis was used to explore association between substance use type and DUIA and to identify variables associated with DUIA. Results Adults who reported alcohol or drug use in the past year were classified into different groups based on past-year substance use status: alcohol use only ( n = 141,521) and drug use regardless alcohol use. Drug users included prescription opioids only ( n = 5337), marijuana only ( n = 32,206), other single drug ( n = 3789), prescription opioids-marijuana ( n = 3921), multiple prescription drugs ( n = 1267), and other multiple drugs ( n = 18,432). The Joinpoint analysis showed that DUIA prevalence decreased significantly from 2008 to 2014 among alcohol only users (Average Annual Percent Change [AAPC] = − 2.8), prescription opioids only users (AAPC = -5.4), marijuana only users (AAPC = -5.0), prescription opioids-marijuana users (AAPC = -6.5), multiple prescription drug users (AAPC = -7.4), and other multiple drug users (AAPC = -3.2). Although the estimate was not statistically significant, other single drug users showed a decreasing trend (AAPC = -0.9). Substance use type was significantly associated with DUIA in the adjusted logistic regression. All drug use groups, relative to the alcohol only group, had elevated odds of DUIA, and the odds were especially elevated for the multiple drug use groups (prescription opioids-marijuana, adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.71; multiple prescription drugs, AOR = 2.83; and other multiple drugs, AOR = 3.68). Additionally, younger age, male sex, being white, higher income, and alcohol abuse/dependence were positively associated with DUIA. Conclusions DUIA prevalence decreased over time and the magnitude of this reduction differed by substance use type. DUIA interventions need to be tailored to substance use type and individual characteristics.

Background-Prescription opioid (PO) misuse and prescription opioid use disorder (POUD) are a national crisis in the United States. To inform strategies for reducing the PO epidemic, research is needed on the sources of misused POs and their association with POUD. Methods-Past-year PO misusers aged ≥ 12 (N=6033) from the 2015-2016 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health were analyzed. The most recent source of misused POs was assessed.Logistic regression analyses were used to determine the association between the sources of misused POs and past-year POUD. All analyses were stratified by age groups for each sex.Results-Overall, the most common sources of misused POs were obtaining from friends/ relatives for free (40.27%) and physicians (36.59%). Males had a higher prevalence of buying POs from friends/relatives or drug dealers/strangers than females. Significant age differences also emerged. Buying POs from drug dealers/strangers (vs. obtaining POs free from friends/relatives) was strong predictor of past-year POUD in both sexes. In the sex-and age-stratified analyses, significant associations of past-year POUD with (1) buying from drug dealers/strangers emerged among males aged 18+ and females aged 26+; (2) buying from friends/relatives emerged among males aged 12+ and females aged 18-25; (3) obtaining from physicians emerged among males aged 18+ and females aged 26+.Conclusions-Our findings indicate different risk profiles for POUD across sex and age groups with different diversion sources. Prevention and treatment programs for POUD should be tailored to consider sex and developmental age differences in sources of opioids.

Background Available data suggest that medical marijuana users may have more mental health problems than recreational marijuana users. There is limited information about differences in behavioral health disorders and unmet treatment needs between medical and recreational marijuana users. Methods We compared past-year prevalence of behavioral health disorders and unmet treatment needs across three marijuana subgroups (recreational use only, medical use only, and both). Sex-stratified logistic regression was performed to determine their associations with marijuana use status. We analyzed data from adults (≥18 years) who used marijuana in the past year (N=15,440) from 2013-2014 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health. Results Among 15,440 past-year marijuana users, 90.2% used recreational marijuana only, 6.2% used medical marijuana only, and 3.6% used both. Both users had the highest prevalence of behavioral health disorders and unmet treatment needs overall, with no significant sex differences. In the sex-specific logistic regression analysis, medical only users and both users showed somewhat different patterns of associations (reference group=recreational only users). Medical only users had decreased odds of alcohol or drug use disorders, and unmet need for alcohol or drug treatment among males and females. Additionally, female medical only users had decreased odds of opioid use disorder. Both users had increased odds of major depressive episode, hallucinogen use disorder, and unmet need for mental health services among males, and cocaine use disorder among females. Conclusions Different approaches tailored to individuals' sex and motives for marijuana use is needed for the prevention and treatment of behavioral health problems.