The typical developmental trajectory of social and executive functions in late adolescence and early adulthood.

Executive functions and social cognition develop through childhood into adolescence/early adulthood and are important for adaptive goal-oriented behaviour (Apperly, Samson & Humphreys, 2009; Blakemore & Choudhury, 2006). These functions are attributed to frontal networks known to undergo protracted maturation into early adulthood (Barker, Andrade, Morton, Romanowski & Bowles, 2010; Lebel, Walker, Leemans, Phillips & Beaulieu, 2008) although social cognition functions are also associated with widely distributed networks. Previously, non-linear development has been reported around puberty on an emotion match to sample task (McGivern, Andersen, Byrd, Mutter & Reilly, 2002) and for IQ in mid adolescence (Ramsden et al., 2011). However, there are currently little data on the typical development of social and executive functions in late adolescence and early adulthood. In a cross sectional design, 98 participants completed tests of social cognition and executive function, Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (Wechsler, 1999), Positive and Negative Affect Scale (Watson, Clark & Tellegan, 1988), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (Zigmond & Snaith, 1983) and measures of pubertal development and demographics at age 17, 18 and 19. Non-linear age differences for letter fluency and concept formation executive functions were found, with a trough in functional ability in 18 year olds compared to other groups. There were no age group differences on social cognition measures. Gender accounted for differences on one scale of concept formation, one dynamic social interaction scale and two empathy scales. The clinical, developmental and educational implications of these findings are discussed

Identification of the functional regions of the yeast activator ADR1

ADR1, a transcriptional activator from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, is required for activation of the glucose-repressible alcohol dehydrogenase, ADH II (encoded by the ADH2 gene). The ADR1 gene encodes a protein which binds to an upstream activation sequence in the ADH2 promoter. Several methods were used to locate functional regions of the ADR1 protein. The adr1-1 mutation was identified as a C to G transversion resulting in a nonsense codon at the eleventh codon of ADR1. tRNA-suppressors which substituted an amino acid at the eleventh codon of adr1-1 resulted in a functional adr1-1 protein, indicating that the translational start of ADR1 occurs at the first AUG of the ADR1 transcript. The adr1-1 5.1 kb RNA was found to be two- to three-fold less abundant than the ADR1 transcript. This observation is a further instance of a nonsense mutation early in a gene leading to decreased stability of the RNA and confirms that the 5.1 kb transcript is the ADR1 mRNA. A series of C-terminal truncations of the ADR1 gene were constructed and used to investigate functional regions of ADR1. A C-terminal truncation leaving only 151 N-terminal amino acids (ADR1-151) and depleting part of a Zn-binding DNA-binding finger motif was not capable of transcriptional activation. In contrast, the ADR1-220 protein containing the complete Zn-binding DNA-binding finger motif was capable of transcriptional activation. However, none of the truncated ADR1 proteins were as transcriptionally active as the entire ADR1 protein. An ADR1 protein containing at least 506 N-terminal amino acids was required for glycerol growth. Mutations in the GLP1 gene were identified that allowed strong glycerol growth, while remaining dependent on the presence of a functional ADR1 gene. This newly identified function of ADR1 suggests that ADR1 has a more extensive role in the regulation of nonfermentative growth in S. cerevisiae than previously expected

Interactions of platinum compounds with heterocyclic bases.

It is generally accepted that platinum antitumoar drugs bind, preferentially, to Guanine N7 in DNA. Thus the kinetics of formation and the energetics of dissociation of platinum-nitrogen bonding have been investigated, using simple model bases, namely pyridine. pyrimidine. purine and some derivatives. Six complexes of the type cis-PtCl2L2, where L is a N-heterocycle, have been successfully prepared and characterized. The kinetics of the reaction between K2PtCl4 and the N-heterocyclic bases in aqueous solution have beeD studied. This was best achieved by pre-aquating the PtCl4(2-) and measuring the decrease in concentration of platinum or ligand by AA or UV spectroscopy respectively. It was found that the rate of reaction is second order, the rate being dependent on the concentration of both platinum complex and the ligand. The substitution of ligand takes place by direct replacement, involving an associative S.2 mechanism. It was found that the activation entropy and the activation energy for the reactions of platinum complexes in solution are strongly correlated. The energetics of platinum-nitrogen bond dissociation were followed using thermogravimetric analysis. Quantitative data, which enabled calculation of the activation energy for the decomposition process involving the loss of one molecule of ligand was obtained from isothermal studies. No correlation was found between the solid state studies, involving bond breaking, and the syntheses of the complexes, probably because in solution the reaction is complicated by solvent effects. Theoretical studies, which involved Molecular Orbital calculations on the N-heterocyclic bases themselves, were also carried out in an attempt to correlate the kinetic and energetic parameters with the electronic structure of the ligand. Several correlations were attempted but only one was found. This was the relationship between the solid state decomposition energy and the LUMO energy of the quarternized base

Caring for Young Children.

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Discipline.

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