A Deep Insight into the Sialotranscriptome of the Gulf Coast Tick, Amblyomma maculatum

Background: Saliva of blood sucking arthropods contains compounds that antagonize their hosts ’ hemostasis, which include platelet aggregation, vasoconstriction and blood clotting; saliva of these organisms also has anti-inflammatory and immunomodullatory properties. Perhaps because hosts mount an active immune response against these compounds, the diversity of these compounds is large even among related blood sucking species. Because of these properties, saliva helps blood feeding as well as help the establishment of pathogens that can be transmitted during blood feeding. Methodology/Principal Findings: We have obtained 1,626,969 reads by pyrosequencing a salivary gland cDNA library from adult females Amblyomma maculatum ticks at different times of feeding. Assembly of this data produced 72,441 sequences larger than 149 nucleotides from which 15,914 coding sequences were extracted. Of these, 5,353 had.75 % coverage to their best match in the non-redundant database from the National Center for Biotechnology information, allowing for the deposition of 4,850 sequences to GenBank. The annotated data sets are available as hyperlinked spreadsheets. Putative secreted proteins were classified in 133 families, most of which have no known function. Conclusions/Significance: This data set of proteins constitutes a mining platform for novel pharmacologically activ

Electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide and methane at an immobilized cobalt protoporphyrin

The electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide and water into useful products is a major challenge in facilitating a closed carbon cycle. Here we report a cobalt protoporphyrin immobilized on a pyrolytic graphite electrode that reduces carbon dioxide in an aqueous acidic solution at relatively low overpotential (0.5 V), with an efficiency and selectivity comparable to the best porphyrin-based electrocatalyst in the literature. While carbon monoxide is the main reduction product, we also observe methane as by-product. The results of our detailed pH-dependent studies are explained consistently by a mechanism in which carbon dioxide is activated by the cobalt protoporphyrin through the stabilization of a radical intermediate, which acts as Bronsted base. The basic character of this intermediate explains how the carbon dioxide reduction circumvents a concerted proton-electron transfer mechanism, in contrast to hydrogen evolution. Our results and their mechanistic interpretations suggest strategies for designing improved catalysts

Engagement Through Communication:Communicating Scientific Knowledge to SMEs

In this chapter, we work from the assumption that university engagement can be fostered by addressing the dissemination of scientific knowledge as a communication process, and we explore how university engagement can be encouraged through the communication of scientific knowledge to SMEs (small and mediumsized enterprises). First, a literature review allows for the identification of wellknown barriers to the dissemination of scientific knowledge to SMEs. Second, an empirical study of the ‘situation’ of eight Danish SMEs provides insights into their situation (circumstances, barriers and potentials) in relation to scientific knowledge, which must be taken into account in attempts to communicate scientific knowledge to SMEs. Based on this analysis, we discuss solutions and outline some communicative principles that can contribute with a solution-oriented perspective on how communicating scientific knowledge to SMEs can foster university engagement.</p