The study confirms that D(2) occupancy is an important mediator of response and side effects in antipsychotic treatment. The data are consistent with a "target and trigger" hypothesis of antipsychotic action, i.e., that the D(2) receptor specificity of antipsychotics permits them to target discrete neurons and that their antagonist properties trigger within those neurons intracellular changes that ultimately beget antipsychotic response. While limited to haloperidol, the relationship between D(2) occupancy and side effects in this study helps explain many of the observed clinical differences between typical and atypical antipsychotics.

The distribution and abundance of Ixodes scapularis were studied in Wisconsin, northern Illinois, and portions of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan by inspecting small mammals for ticks and by collecting questing ticks at 138 locations in state parks and natural areas. Environmental data were gathered at a local level (i.e., micro and meso levels), and a geographic information system (GIS) was used with several digitized coverages of environmental data to create a habitat profile for each site and a grid map for Wisconsin and Illinois. Results showed that the presence and abundance of I. scapularis varied, even when the host population was adequate. Tick presence was positively associated with deciduous, dry to mesic forests and alfisol-type soils of sandy or loam-sand textures overlying sedimentary rock. Tick absence was associated with grasslands, conifer forests, wet to wet/mesic forests, acidic soils of low fertility and a clay soil texture, and Precambrian bedrock. We performed a discriminant analysis to determine environmental differences between positive and negative tick sites and a regression equation to examine the probability of I. scapularis presence per grid. Both analyses indicated that soil order and land cover were the dominant contributors to tick presence. We then constructed a risk map indicating suitable habitats within areas where I. scapularis is already established. The risk map also shows areas of high probability the tick will become established if introduced. Thus, this risk analysis has both explanatory power and predictive capability.

This article argues for a new way of studying executive-coaching outcomes, which is illustrated with a study based on data from 156 client-coach pairs. The argument accepts that we are unlikely to get robust data on coaching outcomes in the near future but assumes that we can expect similar effectiveness for coaching as that demonstrated in rigorous psychotherapy outcome research. Therefore, it is argued that it is more important now to (a) identify the "active ingredients" that predict the effectiveness of executive coaching, and (b) to determine the difference in predictive value of these active ingredients on coaching effectiveness. The outcome study examined some of these active ingredients, such as the working alliance between coach and client, the self-efficacy of the client, the personality of the client, and the "personality match" between client and coach. The results show that client perceptions of coaching outcome were significantly related to their perceptions of the working alliance, client self-efficacy, and to client perceptions of the range of techniques of the coach. The client-coach relationship mediated the impact of self-efficacy and range of techniques on coaching outcomes, suggesting that this relationship is the key factor in determining how clients perceive the outcome of coaching.

Olanzapine is a potent 5-HT2 blocker and shows a higher 5-HT2 than D2 occupancy at all doses. However, its D2 occupancy is higher than that of clozapine and similar to that of risperidone. In the usual clinical dose range of 10-20 mg/day, its occupancy varies from 71% to 80%, and this restricted range may explain its freedom from extrapyramidal side effects and prolactin elevation. However, doses of 30 mg/day and higher are associated with more than 80% D2 occupancy and may have a higher likelihood of prolactin elevation and extrapyramidal side effects.

In vivo D2 occupancy measurements in rats using [3H]-raclopride is analogous to using [11C]-raclopride in human PET scanning. Suppression of CAR occurred at a D2 occupancy of around 70-75%, and catalepsy at D2 occupancy >80%. Results closely resembled human studies where 65-70% D2 occupancy was required for antipsychotic response, while > or = 80% D2 occupancy led to EPS. Brain mechanisms involved in mediation of catalepsy in rats and EPS in humans might indeed be similar. Both suppression of CAR in rats and antipsychotic response in humans might share an underlying construct, i.e. the need for around 70% D2 receptor blockade.