Most cognitive neuroscientific research exploring the nature of age-associated compensatory mechanisms has compared old adults (high vs. average performers) to young adults (not split by performance), leaving ambiguous whether findings are truly age-related or reflect differences between high and average performers throughout the lifespan. Here, we examined differences in neural activity (as measured by ERPs) that were generated by high vs. average performing old, middle-age, and young adults while processing novel and target events to investigate the following three questions: 1) Are differences between cognitively high and average performing subjects in the allocation of processing resources (as indexed by P3 amplitude) specific to old subjects, or found throughout the adult lifespan? 2) Are differences between cognitively high and average performing subjects in speed of processing (as indexed by target P3 latency) of similar magnitude throughout the adult lifespan? 3) Where along the information processing stream does the compensatory neural activity attributed to cognitively high performing old subjects begin to take place? Our results suggest that high performing old adults successfully manage the task by a compensatory neural mechanism associated with the modulation of controlled processing and the allocation of more resources, whereas high performing younger subjects execute the task more efficiently with fewer resources. Differences between cognitively high and average performers in processing speed increase with age. Middle-age seems to be a critical stage in which substantial differences in neural activity between high and average performers emerge. These findings provide strong evidence for different patterns of agerelated changes in the processing of salient environmental stimuli, with cognitive status serving as a key mediating variable.

Abstract& The animal literature suggests that exposure to more complex, novel environments promotes neurogenesis and cognitive performance in older animals. Studies in humans indicate that participation in intellectually stimulating activities may serve as a buffer against mental decline and help to sustain cognitive abilities. Here, we show that across old adults, increased responsiveness to novel events (as measured by viewing duration and the size of the P3 event-related potential) is strongly linked to better performance on neuropsychological tests, especially those involving attention/executive functions. Cognitively high performing old adults generate a larger P3 response to visual stimuli than cognitively average performing adults. These results suggest that cognitively high performing adults successfully manage the task by appropriating more resources and that the increased size of their P3 component represents a beneficial compensatory mechanism rather than less efficient processing. &

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Introduction: Use of pharmacotherapy for smoking cessation improves quit rates, but these treatments are underutilized, particularly among Black smokers. Attitudes toward pharmacotherapy may differ between racial/ethnic minorities and Caucasian smokers. It was hypothesized that Black and nonHispanic White smokers would differ in their attitudes toward pharmacotherapy and that the association between attitudes toward and actual use of pharmacotherapy would differ by race. Methods:The study consisted of a single, cross-sectional telephone-based survey of current smokers (N = 697), which examined the relationship between race, attitudes toward pharmacotherapy, and pharmacotherapy usage in a representative bi-racial sample (39% Black).Results: Black smokers were significantly less likely to report ever use of pharmacotherapy (23%) than Caucasians (39%; odds ratio [OR] = 0.46; 95% CI: 0.33-0.66). Compared with Caucasians, Blacks had significantly less favorable attitudes toward pharmacotherapy, including disbelief about efficacy (p = .03), addiction concerns (p = .03), harmfulness of pharmacotherapy (p = .008), and need for treatment of any kind to quit smoking (p = .004). In a multiple logistic regression, racial group (Caucasian is referent: OR = 0.55, p = .003), addiction concerns (OR = 0.80, p < .01), and need for treatment of any kind to quit smoking (OR = 1.52, p < .001) were predictive of pharmacotherapy use. Conclusions:These findings replicate and build upon previous research demonstrating underutilization of pharmacotherapy and enduring misconceptions about pharmacotherapy, particularly among Black smokers. Regardless of racial group, misconceptions about pharmacotherapy are related to lower rates of use. Efforts to improve understanding about the efficacy and safety of these products are needed to boost utilization and impact cessation rates.

Impulsivity and risk-taking propensity are neurobehavioral traits that reliably distinguish between smoking and non-smoking adults. However, how these traits relate to smoking quantity and nicotine dependence among older adolescent smokers is unclear. The current study examined impulsivity and risk-taking propensity in relation to smoking behavior and nicotine dependence among current older adolescent smokers (age 16–20 years; N = 107). Participants completed the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale–11 (BIS-11), the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), and self-report measures of smoking behavior and nicotine dependence. Results indicated a significant positive relationship between nicotine dependence and the Attention subscale (β =.20, t = 2.07, p <.05) and the Non-planning subscale (β =.19, t=1.92, p<.06) of the BIS-11. Contrary to expectation, the results also indicated a significant negative relationship between performance on the BART and nicotine dependence (β = −.19, t=−2.18, p <.05), such that greater risk-taking propensity was associated with less dependence. These data suggest that impulsivity and risk-taking propensity are related to older adolescent smoking but are separable traits with distinguishable associations to nicotine dependence among adolescents. These findings support the notion that impulsivity is related to heightened nicotine dependence, but suggest the relationship between risk-taking propensity and nicotine dependence is more ambiguous and warrants further investigation.

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Objective-Nicotinic cholinergic stimulation has known beneficial effects in attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Mecamylamine is a non-competitive nicotinic antagonist which is reported in several animal studies to have paradoxical positive effects on cognition at ultra-low doses. Comparable studies in humans have not been conducted. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of acute ultra-low doses of mecamylamine on cognition in adult ADHD.Methods-Fifteen (6 female) non-smokers with ADHD completed this acute, within subjects, double blind study of 0.2, 0.5, 1.0 mg of oral mecamylamine and placebo. Behavioral inhibition, recognition memory, and delay aversion were assessed at each dose.Results-The 0.5 mg dose of mecamylamine significantly improved recognition memory and reduced tolerance for delay. Mecamylamine increased participant rated irritability and investigator rated restlessness. There were no effects on vital signs or physical side effects.Conclusion-This is the first study to find measurable effects of ultra-low doses of mecamylamine in humans. Mecamylamine did not improve core ADHD cognitive symptoms, but significantly improved recognition memory. These effects may represent mixed receptor activity (activation and blockade) at the doses tested. The finding of beneficial effects on memory processes has important clinical implications and further exploration of this effect is warranted.

HIV-infected individuals living in non-urban areas have been proposed to be particularly vulnerable for sexual risk behavior because of barriers to adequate care. The current study examined the association of barriers to care and sexual risk behavior with a focus on depressive symptoms as a link between the two variables. One-hundred-and-one sexually active HIV-infected individuals living in non-urban areas in New England participated by completing self-report measures in a computer-administered format. Four barriers to care were examined: geographical barriers and distance to services; access to and quality of medical and psychological services; community stigma; and personal resources. The results indicated barriers to care, and in particular those pertaining to access to and quality of medical and psychological services were related to depressive symptoms, which, in turn, were related to sexual risk behavior. The findings suggest that interventions to reduce sexual risk behavior in non-urban settings could include not only increasing the availability of quality services but targeting depressive symptoms of HIV-infected individuals.