Sugar phosphate cyclases (SPCs) are enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of many important natural products. SPCs form a unique cyclitol during the early steps in the biosynthesis of many natural products. These natural products include rifamycin, which is chemically modified to rifampicin and used clinically as an antituberculosis drug, and...
After decades of expert-based modernization efforts that have had profound negative impacts on human and environmental health, Ecuador is currently pursuing a rights-based, participatory development paradigm known as sumak kawsay or "the good life". Despite its promises of inclusion and interculturality, this approach continues to rely on highly trained specialists,...
Lambic and other barrel-aged beer styles are gaining popularity in the United States and Europe and are often treated as a premium product that can command a premium price. However, these styles can be prone to spoilage during the barrel-aging process, which represents a significant time and product commitment by...
Since the 1952 Bolivian agrarian reform, farmer unions have sought to establish themselves as producers for regional markets. Development strategies led by the World Bank and IMF have largely jeopardized small farmers, and challenged farmers to meet market demands. At present, a new agrarian revolution is being implemented and is...
My work on computing complex catalyzed organic transformations reveals that only a few subtle chemical factors, e.g. non-classical hydrogen bonding, (hyper)conjugation and steric effects, common across different catalyst manifolds are critical for catalysis and selectivity. Rational manipulation and exploitation of these factors has led to improved catalyst designs, which has...