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Amy Waterman directs the Transplant Research and Education Center at UCLA. She works with patients navigating any disease of the kidney and helps educate them on corresponding choices, from dialysis treatment to getting on a transplant list. She discusses
In addition to directing the Transplant Center, Amy D. Waterman is a Professor in Residence at the University of California in Los Angeles in the division of nephrology. She's a psychologist with an expertise on managing patient behavior toward healthy goals. At the center, she works alongside nephrologists and other professionals to guide patents through choices and the complicated process of facing kidney disease. She researches and tests methods that might help educate and engage patients and evaluates how to work more effectively with providers.
She describes for listeners the process a patient moves through, from typical questions they have to choices they can make, and for those that need a transplant, how to enter into searches for a donation from family members to strangers to someone who has passed away. She adds that there is a donor contingent called non-directed donors. These are strangers who step forward and offer a kidney as a living donor. In fact, over 6,000 living people donate a kidney each year. Dr. Waterman also describes the physical process of donation, what might be in the works for kidney disease cures, and how she became involved with this important work in the first place.
Find out more about her work at exploretransplant.org or explorelivingdonation.org. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
Dr. Pamela Smith is Director of Medical Education at the American Academy of Anti-Aging. She shares insight on her areas of expertise: thyroid disease, and female hormones. Tune in to learn:
Many women hear the word 'estrogen' and immediately associate it with negative health consequences. The truth is that estrogen has over 400 important functions in a woman's body, affecting everything from hearing and blood sugar levels, to blood pressure and memory. Dr. Smith explains the three types of estrogen in the body, what sort of symptoms can arise when there is a hormonal imbalance between progesterone and estrogen, the best way to measure most hormones in the body, and what to test for in order to get the entire picture of a patient's thyroid health.
She also shares her personal experience with low progesterone, tells anecdotal stories of patients she's been able to help, and discusses more broadly the importance and role of hormones in the body—whether female or male. "We want people to live to be 100, but more importantly, we want people to live to be a healthy 100 years of age." She explains that by running the right tests to get to the root of a problem, anti-aging medicine can lead people to the treatment they need. In addition, preventative medicine through good lifestyle choices and the right balance of all hormones in the body can slow aging, reverse or slow the progression of diseases, and ultimately enhance our quality and length of life.
For more information on these topics, check out the following books authored by Dr. Smith:
-What You Must Know About Thyroid Disease
-What You Must Know About Women's Hormones.
Feel free to email your questions to faafm63@yahoo.com. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
Academic gastrologist Professor Stefan Schreiber is both a clinician and researcher exploring inflammatory bowel disease treatment. In this podcast, he discusses
Stefan Schreiber is professor of medicine and a director of the Clinic for Internal Medicine at Kiel Campus of the University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein. He also leads the Translational Inflammation Research group in the Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology at the university. He helps listeners understand the two main phenotypes of inflammatory bowel disease pathology, namely ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Early indications that an individual may suffer from a form of IBD are lacking, and he along with many other researchers are trying to change this. Understanding both what causes IBD along with who is most likely to get it are key in battling a disease that has major day-to-day implications.
He describes challenges to these studies. For example, while 30% of the population have the variant that indicates risk, only 0.5% suffer a lifetime prevalence of bowel disease. So the genetics and genomics impact factor doesn't present helpful odds for predicative purposes. However, many longitudinal studies are underway to get better information, and he describes the basics of their approach and agenda. He says that if they can follow enough patients traveling from health to a manifestation of disease to find new early indicators, that would help a great deal, but these studies have to progress much further along still. He advises listeners on how doctors understand the disease differently now, as less autoimmune and more a defense problem, which indicates microbiome and barrier development. He also discusses how relatively new IBD is and why this makes identifying environmental correlations difficult.
For more, see his informational page at the university, ikmb.uni-kiel.de/people/scientists/stefan-schreiber, as well as the page for the Translational Inflammation Research group, ikmb.uni-kiel.de/research/translational-inflammation-research-0 . Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
Associate professor and researcher at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, Bethanie Almroth, joins the show to discuss her research and expertise in ecotoxicology and microplastics pollution. In this episode, you will learn:
For the past nine years or so, Almroth's work has revolved around microplastics and the effects of plastic pollution on animal and environmental health. She describes her research as having two main tracks:
#1 What happens when fish are exposed to microplastics? How do the chemicals in these materials affect their health?
#2 Where and how are microplastics released into the environment and how do they travel through food chains? How do we approach the problem of plastic in the environment from a broad, social perspective?
"Plastic is not one thing; plastic is many things," says Almroth. The market is dominated by a number of different types of polymers, which are the same polymers found in the environment. According to a report published early this year from China, 350,000 chemicals are registered for sale on the global market. In her own work, Almroth has helped show that there are approximately 1,000 toxic chemicals contained in plastic packaging materials that most of us interact with on a daily basis.
Almroth shares what she believes are the most compelling unanswered questions in the field of microplastics pollution and research. Tune in for all the details, and learn more by visiting https://www.gu.se/om-universitetet/hitta-person/bethaniecarney-almroth. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
Postdoctoral researcher and medical bioinformatician, Irina Chelysheva, is a member of the Oxford Vaccine Group. Today, she discusses her work and knowledge regarding vaccine research and development. Press play to discover:
Chelysheva begins by shedding light on what it means to be a bioinformatician and the important role of bioinformatics in science and research. She also explains how next-generation sequencing can be applied to the area of vaccine research and development. For example, a person's human leukocyte antigen (HLA) system could play a role in how effectively a vaccine works for them. Sequencing allows you to see the mutations, HLA, and gene expression by performing RNA/ transcriptome sequencing. It also allows you to distinguish between groups of people who have specific genes or pathways activated and groups of people who do not, which can have implications for how a person will react to a vaccine.
Chelysheva also talks about the normal immune response to vaccination and overreactions by the immune system in response to vaccination, and shares the details and findings of her work on vaccines and genetic sequencing. One of the main questions she aims to answer is why T cells might be produced by one organism but not another organism after vaccination. In addition, she discusses why some vaccines fail to work, why they are challenging to develop, her take on a COVID-19 vaccine, Oxford Nanopore Technologies, and more. Check out https://www.ovg.ox.ac.uk/team/irina-chelysheva for more. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
Rickettsia characteristics include parasitic behaviors but they are not worms or protozoa. Rather, they are bacteria and are therefore prokaryotes. The rickettsia family consists of obligatory intracellular bacteria that are transmitted by arthropod vectors. In other words, they need to be inside living cells to stay alive. Dr. Walker explains to listeners
David H. Walker, MD, is a professor in the Department of Pathology and is the Carmage and Martha Walls Distinguished University Chair in Tropical Diseases and Executive Director of the University of Texas MB Center for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Disease. He describes various rickettsia causes and symptoms, from the Orientia tsutsugamushi bacteria transmitted by chiggers to others transmitted by lice and ticks. He explains the means by which scientists determined their inability to live outside of cells and how they are able to observe their invasion and infection with light microscopy.
Their pathogenic effect is widespread, and Dr. Walker describes their effects on World War II and the Vietnam War through the lice vector and typhus spread. Rickettsia symptoms and attacks on the immune system vary greatly and he describes several examples in the two main groups of typhus and spotted fever rickettsia. For example, Rocky Mountain spotted fever bacteria are secreted from the saliva of the tick when it bites. The bacteria is then taken into the skin through phagocytic cells, spreads to the lymphatic cells, and drains into the blood stream and infects the endothelium cells all over the body. Dr. Walker has worked with rickettsia for 47 years and his particular focus now is on vaccine research and effective rickettsia treatment.
For more, see his web page at the University of Texas Medical Branch, utmb.edu/pathology/faculty-directory/david-h-walker-md, and search his name in research systems for publications. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
Dr. Fong Mun Yik has spent the past 10 years working on a malarial parasite that has started infecting humans—the monkey malarial parasite Plasmodium knowlesi. He explains
Dr. Fong Mun Yik is a professor in the Department of Parasitology under the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Malaya. He's been working with this parasite that was previously only prevalent in a few species of monkeys as its reservoir host; however, occasions where humans have been infected have been on the rise in the last decade or so. Still transmitted by mosquito, as is the case with all malarial types of parasitic diseases, this cross-infection with monkeys is most likely due to the increased proximity of humans and the long-tailed macaque monkey species in Malaysia.
He explains that this monkey malaria, for the past 100 years, has been considered to only infect three monkey species, including the long-tailed macaque. It was therefore not on the list of concerns for human parasitic diseases until recently. Human malaria infections from P. malariae had been eliminated in Malaysia due to programs from the government that controlled the environment. However, he explains that it is all but impossible to eliminate these monkey populations. He explains efforts to control the mosquito population instead as well as efforts to develop a vaccine based on genetic sequencing efforts.
For more, see research gate and pub med for his journal articles. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
Richard Bradbury specializes in parasitic diseases in humans, particularly zoonotic parasites, which indicates they were transmitted through other animals. He shares his vast knowledge of parasitology with listeners by discussing
Richard Bradbury is a senior lecturer in the Clinical Microbiology and Molecular Biology Department at Federation University in Australia. His major focuses are on parasitology diagnostics and epidemiology; therefore, world health and prevention falls into his purview. He's especially done a lot of work on the Pacific Islands with soil-transmitted helminths. He adds that because parasites are usually a problem with underserved populations, locating where parasites tend to congregate before infecting humans is important to his work.
He offers listeners several examples of parasites and their habits to show their reach. In Australia, for example, they have a really big problem with the Strongyloides stercoralis worm. Human hosts can have infections decades later and they are still having trouble with Vietnam vets suffering from these infections from their time in Southeast Asia. The immune suppressed are especially vulnerable and may die from infection.
He also discusses his efforts with communities who are isolated and have less access to medical care and prevention measures. These include groups from aboriginal communities in Australia to rural Mississippi populations. He addresses common testing techniques and relays his own involvement with developing a single universal parasite test that uses next-generation sequencing. He also discusses a variety of parasitic infection symptoms and global efforts towards prevention.
Find out more by searching his name in google scholar and research gate and see his website at Federation University: federation.edu.au/schools/school-of-science-psychology-and-sport/staff-profiles/staff-directory/bradbury. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
In evaluating COVID-19 and the financial crisis, Ronald Leven speaks both to the unprecedented nature that make predictions regarding world finances difficult to the economic principles that help us parse out what we do know. He addresses
Ronald Leven is the W.R. Huff Professor of the Practice in the Department of Economics at Duke University and author of the monthly Market Voice newsletter. Before coming to Duke, he worked as an international economist with the New York Federal Reserve and with a variety of financial intuitions before spending several years with Thompson Reuters. In this podcast, he speaks to the U.S. economy as well as international markets and how emerging economies might look in the coming years.
He emphasizes his concern that we will see a second wave of layoffs. Furthermore, he's worried that this layoff round will not be met with much government support and fears the potential for an increase in our homeless population. In addition, he discusses the effects of stimulus efforts and possibilities of inflation. In fact, he feels this is the first time in 30 years that we have a real risk of inflation because of this mismatch of artificial demand levels with supply constraints. He explains why this is a problem in more detail and gives his thoughts on how the Federal Reserve might respond regarding interest rates.
He also addresses how our economy may suffer for a while from the "zombie company" effect, which means that companies which shouldn't be able to survive are able to because of stimulus efforts. Meanwhile these companies take resources, such as bank loans, but really aren't a contributing force. He explains how this makes for a weaker economy with less force and vigor. He also addresses how he evaluates the stock market numbers, what real estate seems to be doing, and what long-term impacts may exist in planning based on preparing for future COVID-like emergencies.
You can access his newsletter Market Voice through his LinkedIn sight after requesting access. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
Dr. Toeno van der Sar is an assistant professor at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, where he runs his own research group of five PhD students and a post-doc student. He joins the show today to discuss their work in the field of nanoscience and quantum nanotechnology. Tune in to discover:
The focus of research in the Van der Sar Lab is on understanding the behavior of electrons on the nanoscale. More specifically, they are studying the collective behavior of electrons and atoms in magnets, which are used in many devices, including hard drives and MRI scanners. It is Dr. Van der Sar's belief that a better understanding of magnetism could be used to develop new ways of computing.
He explains how and why magnets work the way they do, how the electrons within a magnet interact with one another in a way that creates a magnetic field, even far away from the material, and why the spin and position of electrons can never both be the same according to the Pauli exclusion principle of quantum mechanics.
Dr. Van der Sar's main interest is in the dynamics of spins in magnetic materials. He explains what a spin wave is, how one can be created, and how spin changes depending on the temperature to which a magnet is subjected, or the material within which it exists. He also discusses spin waves as a way to transport information through magnetic materials and how this could be applied to computer processing. He shares the details of the projects he's currently working on in the lab with spin wave conductors, and the new technique he's using in order to detect the magnetic fields generated by spin waves in magnets.
Press play to hear the full conversation and visit https://www.tudelft.nl/en/faculty-of-applied-sciences/about-faculty/departments/quantum-nanoscience/van-der-sar-lab/ to learn more. Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK
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