def unicode_to_latex(text):
    """
    Converts unicode into Latex format: 
    primarily utf8, with some special characters converted to Latex syntax 
    """ 
    tr = [
        (u'\u2013', "--"),
        (u'\u2014', "---"),
        (u'\u2018', "`"),
        (u'\u2019', "'"),
        (u'\u201c', "``"),
        (u'\u201d', "''"),
        (u'\xa0', ' '), # no-break space
    ]
    for a, b in tr:
        text = text.replace(a, b)
    return text.encode("utf8")