Speaking of Science

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Dr. Armin Raznahan — Genes, Brain Structure, and Neuropsychiatric Disorders Dec 06, 2019

Show notes

Anybody who observes a person with a neurological illness like Tourette syndrome or schizophrenia can clearly see how these conditions affect behavior. What's much more difficult to determine is how these ailments relate to changes in the brain. Dr. Armin Raznahan is a child psychiatrist who uses a genetics-first approach and state-of-the-art neuroimaging tools to examine how the size and shape of the brain differ in children and adolescents with neuropsychiatric disorders compared to healthy individuals. His discoveries about these illnesses could ultimately improve our ability to identify and treat people who have them, as well as predict which children might develop them.

Armin Raznahan, M.D., Ph.D., is a Lasker Clinical Research Scholar in the Human Genetics Branch at the NIH's National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Learn more about Dr. Raznahan and his research at https://irp.nih.gov/pi/armin-raznahan

Dr. Catharine Bosio — The Weird and Deadly Francisella Tularensis Bacterium Nov 18, 2019

Show notes

Our houses, workplaces, and even the air we breathe are teeming with microbes, some of which can cause severe illness. Dr. Catharine Bosio is an immunologist studying how airborne pathogens infect and alter cells in the lungs. Her work focuses in particular on a bacterium called Francisella tularensis, which causes a life-threatening disease called tularemia and has the unique ability to change how energy-producing mitochondria function in immune cells. Dr. Bosio's experiments with these deadly bacteria could lead to more effective ways to diagnose and treat tularemia and other infectious diseases.

Catharine Bosio, Ph.D., is a Senior Investigator in the Immunity to Pulmonary Pathogens Section at the NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). Learn more about Dr. Bosio and her research at https://irp.nih.gov/pi/catharine-bosio.

Dr. Cynthia Dunbar — Stem Cell Therapies for Blood and Immune System Diseases Sep 30, 2019

Show notes

Our blood is made up of a diverse array of different cells, all of which originate from the same source: the 'hematopoietic' stem cells in our bone marrow. Dr. Cynthia Dunbar is a clinician working to understand how these stem cells grow, divide, and ultimately produce the cells that carry oxygen around the body and fight disease. Learning to safely transplant and manipulate hematopoietic stem cells could lead to treatments for a wide variety of diseases caused by a lack of properly functioning blood cells, including leukemia and aplastic anemia.

Cynthia Dunbar, M.D., is a Principal Investigator in the Molecular Hematopoiesis Section at the NIH's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). Learn more about Dr. Dunbar and her research at https://irp.nih.gov/pi/cynthia-dunbar

Drs. Ira Pastan and Michael Gottesman — Cancer Immunotoxins and Multidrug Resistance Sep 10, 2019

Show notes

This episode features two legends of biomedical research. In the realm of human health and longevity, cancer's ability to mutate, grow, and thwart the body's natural defenses presents one of the greatest scientific challenges of our time. In 2001, Dr. Ira Pastan led the creation of a new type of cancer drug, a recombinant immunotoxin, that promised to directly target and kill cancer cells. After years of research and clinical trials, this first-generation immunotoxin was approved by the FDA in September 2018 for certain adults with hairy cell leukemia, providing a promising new therapy to a group of patients who previously had few other options.

And we have a special guest host for this episode, Dr. Michael Gottesman, who, as the NIH Deputy Director for Intramural Research, leads the thousands of researchers and clinicians working within the IRP each day — while also conducting groundbreaking research in his own laboratory into how cancer cells become resistant to chemotherapy and other anti-cancer drugs. Drs. Gottesman and Pastan are two guiding lights in our quest to overcome the obstacles to effectively treating cancer in order to improve and save potentially millions of lives. As friends and colleagues for many years, they also trained and collaborated with several of the most celebrated IRP researchers who made extraordinary breakthroughs for human health.

Dr. Dori Germolec — Environmental Chemicals Versus the Immune System Jun 28, 2019

Show notes

Dr. Dori Germolec is a biologist studying how the chemicals in our environment affect the immune system, including toxic or carcinogenic effects of molds and dietary supplements. From bisphenols and flame retardants to arsenic in the drinking water and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, we are all exposed to a mixture of different compounds on a daily basis. Dr. Germolec's research as part of the National Toxicology Program informs agencies like the EPA and FDA about the potential hazards of environmental toxins so that chemicals and substances can be properly regulated to keep people safe and healthy, both at home and in the workplace.

Dori Germolec, Ph.D., leads the Systems Toxicology Group of the NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) National Toxicology Program (NTP). Learn more at: https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/atniehs/labs/tob/systems/index.cfm

Dr. Dennis Drayna — Part 2: Genetic Insights from Stuttering to the Taste for Menthol in Cigarettes May 01, 2019

Show notes

This is Part 2 of our conversation with Dr. Dennis Drayna, a human geneticist who has identified mutations in several genes that cause communications disorders, particularly stuttering, using family- and population-based genetic methods. Dr. Drayna's team studies the biochemical and cellular effects of these mutations and how they may cause specific neuronal pathologies. With so much to cover, we divided this episode into two parts. Here, we continue to explore stuttering research and delve into Dr. Drayna's perspectives about research and research training at the NIH, as well as his lab's ground-breaking work on how genetic variation affects the sense of taste and how population-specific genetic factors can influence preference for menthol in cigarettes, a common flavor additive that is particularly popular among African American smokers.

Dennis Drayna, Ph.D., is a Senior Investigator in the Section on Systems Biology of Communication Disorders at NIH's National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD). Learn more about Dr. Drayna and his research at https://irp.nih.gov/pi/dennis-drayna

Dr. Dennis Drayna — Part 1: Genetics of Stuttering and Communication Disorders Apr 09, 2019

Show notes

Dennis Drayna, Ph.D., is a human geneticist who has identified mutations in several genes that cause communications disorders, particularly stuttering. With so much to cover, we divided his episode into two parts. Here, in part 1, we discuss Dr. Drayna's research into the genetics of stuttering, including the use of family- and population-based genetic methods. In part 2 to follow, we continue to explore stuttering research and delve into Dr. Drayna's perspectives about research and research training at the NIH. We'll also discuss his lab's ground-breaking work on how genetic variation affects the sense of taste, and how population-specific genetic factors can influence preference for menthol in cigarettes, a common flavor additive that is particularly popular among African American smokers.

Dr. Bill Gahl — Medical Genetics and Hope for Rare Diseases Feb 05, 2019

Show notes

When people refer to the NIH as the "National Institutes of Hope," Dr. Bill Gahl is one of the many people who come to mind. Dr. Gahl is a medical geneticist working to help patients with rare and undiagnosed diseases. His research group focuses on inborn errors of metabolism, which include defects in the body's biochemical processes caused by rare genetic disorders, such as cystinosis, Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome, alkaptonuria, and ciliopathies.

Transcending biomedical boundaries to take advantage of the IRP's unique team-science environment, Dr. Gahl led the creation of the NIH's Undiagnosed Diseases Program to provide answers and possible treatments for people with mysterious conditions that have long eluded diagnosis. Since seeing their first patient at the NIH Clinical Center in July of 2008, the Program has expanded to become the Undiagnosed Diseases Network, which now includes 12 clinical sites along with supporting scientific facilities around the country. Even when no concrete answer or cure can be found, each patient shares new information that may in the future help other people facing similar health problems, and such hope can provide powerful meaning for people's struggles that seem to occur without reason.

William Gahl, M.D., Ph.D., is a Senior Investigator in the Medical Genetics Branch of the NIH's National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). Learn more about Dr. Gahl and his research at https://irp.nih.gov/pi/william-gahl

Dr. Christine Alewine — Treating Pancreatic Cancer with New Immunotoxin Strategies Jan 29, 2019

Show notes

Pancreatic cancer kills more than 40,000 Americans each year, and just 6% of patients survive five years or more after diagnosis, because the disease metastasizes very early in its development and is resistant to most current treatments. Dr. Christine Alewine is a physician-scientist exploring new treatment strategies for pancreatic cancer. Her lab and clinic are testing and refining two recombinant immunotoxins that target a protein called mesothelin that is present on the surface of several types of cancer tumor cells, including pancreatic, ovarian, and some lung cancers. If clinical trials show that the drug is safe and effective, it could lead to much needed systemic therapies for these cancer patients.

Christine Campo Alewine, M.D., Ph.D., is an NIH Lasker Clinical Research Scholar and a Principal Investigator in the Laboratory of Molecular Biology at the NIH's National Cancer Institute (NCI) Center for Cancer Research (CCR). Learn more about Dr. Alewine and her research at https://irp.nih.gov/pi/christine-alewine

Dr. Nehal Mehta — Linking Psoriasis Inflammation with Cardiovascular Risk Jan 22, 2019

Show notes

Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin disease associated with increased cardiovascular risk. Dr. Nehal Mehta currently directs the largest ongoing cohort study to date in psoriasis, and his research is showing that local inflammation in different areas of the body such as the teeth, scalp, knees, skin, or gut has systemic consequences, and treating that local inflammation can help heal heart disease.

Nehal Mehta, M.D., M.S.C.E., F.A.H.A., is the inaugural NIH Lasker Clinical Research Scholar and a Principal Investigator in the Section of Inflammation and Cardiometabolic Diseases at the NIH's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). Learn more about Dr. Mehta and his research at https://irp.nih.gov/pi/nehal-mehta

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