From student to graduate: Four learners’ perspectives of the professional doctorate journey

This paper presents a consideration of the experiences and perspectives of four female academics who are the first graduates of a new Professional Doctorate programme at a university in the South West of England. The authors position themselves simultaneously as researchers and research participants, engaging in collaborative autoethnography to reflect critically on their experiences. Key issues are identified, including the need to navigate some significant shifts in identity throughout the doctorate, and how the course structure and peer relationships supported each of the authors to reach their end goal – the successful completion of their studies. The paper concludes with a discussion of the potential implications of the authors’ experiences for leaders of professional doctorates. These include student/lecturer contracts and actively facilitating opportunities for students to establish relationships for peer support

DNA Vaccines against Dengue Virus Type 2 Based on Truncate Envelope Protein or Its Domain III

Two DNA vaccines were constructed encoding the ectodomain (domains I, II and III) of the DENV2 envelope protein (pE1D2) or only its domain III (pE2D2), fused to the human tissue plasminogen activator signal peptide (t-PA). The expression and secretion of recombinant proteins was confirmed in vitro in BHK cells transfected with the two plasmids, detected by immunofluorescence or immunoprecipitation of metabolically labeled gene products, using polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies against DENV2. Besides, results reveal that the ectodomain of the E protein can be efficiently expressed in vivo, in a mammalian system, without the prM protein that is hypothesized to act as a chaperonin during dengue infection. Balb/c mice were immunized with the DNA vaccines and challenged with a lethal dose of DENV2. All pE1D2-vaccinated mice survived challenge, while 45% of animals immunized with the pE2D2 died after infection. Furthermore, only 10% of pE1D2-immunized mice presented some clinical signs of infection after challenge, whereas most of animals inoculated with the pE2D2 showed effects of the disease with high morbidity degrees. Levels of neutralizing antibodies were significantly higher in pE1D2-vaccinated mice than in pE2D2-immunized animals, also suggesting that the pE1D2 vaccine was more protective than the pE2D2

Biological phosphorus removal processes

Enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) processes developed for wastewater treatment are mainly based on the enrichment of activated sludge with phosphorus-accumulating organisms under alternative anaerobic–aerobic conditions. According to the literature information of the EBPR processes, this chapter attempts to review the biochemical models, microbiology of the EBPR processes, and the main operating parameters that may influence the performance of the EBPR processes