Finding Genius Podcast

CEO of Limina Sleep Consulting, Matthew Anastasi, discusses the current state of sleep medicine and health in the U.S. Tune in to learn the following: What two processes determine whether a person feels alert or sleepy How the Affordable Care Act signed into law a decade ago has had a big impact on sleep health and medicine Why the differences between in-home sleep studies and lab-based sleep studies are important and how they can result in false diagnoses or undetected cases of sleep apnea For over 20 years, Matthew Anastasi has worked in the sleep industry in various capacities, including as a sleep technologist, author, researcher, volunteer, and conference organizer. On today's show, he shares his insights on sleep and the valuable knowledge he has gained over the course of his career. He begins by discussing the impact of the homeostatic drive and the circadian clock on our bodies and level of alertness. "The circadian clock is actually embedded in every living cell in our body…every cell in our body…knows what time of day it is, and when you change that, even by one hour, that has a huge impact on the function that each cell has throughout the circadian rhythm," says Anastasi. With a combination of his years of research and clinical experience in the field, Anastasi established Limina Sleep Consulting as a way of providing a variety of services in the sleep industry, such as advice for companies that want to put forth evidence-based best practices, expert strategic analysis for investment companies, conference organization and lectures for sleep professionals who want to stay ahead of the curve, and support for industry sales and marketing. He explains the specific ways in which sleep medicine practices and policies have changed over the past 20 years, how providers and patients alike are being affected by these changes, and what needs to be done in order to ensure and maintain a safe environment for patients, sleep technologists, and respiratory therapists. He also discusses why it can take months just to see a sleep professional, and five months for a patient to receive treatment after being diagnosed. For patients who are healthy enough, the trend is to move more toward in-home sleep studies, sleep diagnosis, and treatment. Press play to learn about the ways in which Limina Sleep Consulting is working against the challenges and barriers to sleep health and treatment, uncovering avenues for better sleeping problem solutions, and teaming up with other organizations in the process. For more information, visit https://liminasleepconsultingllc.weebly.com/.

You may or may not remember learning about the periodic table in chemistry class and why it's shaped the way it is. Dr. Preston MacDougall explains the orbital model that's behind it, and why orbitals are actually just invented mathematical entities. Tune in to learn the following: Why it's significant to understand the difference between the orbital model and the probabilistic model of electron behavior in chemical bonds and reactions How the vibrational timescale of molecules poses barriers to experimentation, and the complex process by which chemists collect x-ray diffraction data and view molecules vibrating in zero-point motion or harmonic mode What role non-contact enzymes or catalysts play in chemical reactions Preston J. MacDougall, Ph.D. is an author and professor at Middle Tennessee State University, and returning guest on today's episode. He begins by explaining the orbital model, which he says is a convenient model for teaching early students of chemistry how to understand electron configurations and why the periodic table is organized in the way that it is. However, he says that orbitals are actually just mathematical entities that do not apply to anything but single electrons. Why? Dr. MacDougall explains that it's because the orbital model assumes that an individual electron is not influenced by the motions of all of the other electrons around it. As opposed to the orbital model, Dr. MacDougall prefers to consider the probabilistic picture, which is that every electron in an atom has a certain probability of being found at a certain point around the nucleus at any given time. This is referred to as the charge or cloud density, and he explains how it changes with relation to the proximity of the electron to the nucleus of the atom. He continues by discussing the vibrational timescale of molecules, which is less than a trillionth of a second. So, how is it that scientists conduct experiments on molecules that vibrate so quickly? He explains the method of obtaining x-ray diffraction data, which begins by the cooling of crystals with liquid nitrogen or liquid helium until they reach a temperature of about -250 degrees Celsius. At that point, molecules reach the lowest possible energy state of zero-point motion, where chemists can then "deconvolute" the electron cloud and make it appear as though a molecule is standing still. Dr. MacDougall expounds on the ways in which the pressure produced by atoms on other atoms can be modified to produce electron cloud changes, explains the octet rule and stability of noble gasses, touches on the applications of quantum chemistry and molecular modeling in drug design, and so much more. To learn more, visit https://www.mtsu.edu/faculty/preston-j-macdougall.

Richard Marshall is the Business Development Director for the company that has created Cutii, an autonomous robot created to enlarge social connection for seniors who want to age in place at home. He describes some of the robot's functions, including autonomous, infrared sensor movement and ability to learn the living space in which it functions, voice-controlled as well as controllable by family who are outside the home, such as the senior's children, and additional applications such as an adept telemedicine feature and ability to do museum tours and cooking classes in real time. Richard Marshall describes the goal in creating Cutii as a tool to combat loneliness for seniors. He reminds listeners that there's a tidal wave of people entertaining retirement as well as a growing problem of disconnection and loneliness in society, especially for seniors. Therefore, they hope to use Cutii to connect people who want to age in place at home, to allow people to stay at home as long as possible while still communicating in a fuller way with the outside world. He adds that they've deliberately designed it to not imitate a human; rather it is a fully-operated robot that moves along on wheels, is about five feet tall, and it is sturdy and accessible. He provides examples of its usefulness such as a senior's kids' ability to call their mother up and send Cutti to find her in the living space if they are concerned or just want to chat. The kids can control Cutii remotely and find her and then talk with her. Conversely, the senior can control Cutti with their voice and tell it to come where they are for any need, including social connection with distance family and friends. Richard Marshall also explains several design features and how it may serve well in an emergency yet also as an enrichment, for example, as a way to participate in a cooking class in real time. It is in the market now in France and has been successful and well-received. He remarks that it's not YouTube on wheels, rather a newer more flexible way to offer live interactions when you are limited to being in your home. They are starting product trials in the U.S. and should be hitting the market in late 2020 and are ready to talk to channel partners in the U.S. now as well. For more, see the web page at https://www.cutii.io/en/

Graphen.ai turned their resources to mapping Covid 19 mutations in late February. Their CEO, Dr. Ching-Yung Lin, explains the process and tells listeners what his company has learned, including the number of mutations thus far by implementing artificial intelligence in healthcare, the patterns it shows under different climates by way of whole genome sequencing analysis, and how and why these mutation data points are helpful for fighting the virus. Graphen specializes in building AI platforms based on graphs to serve sectors such as the financial industry. They've worked to identify hard-to-trace global movements such as terrorist networks and money laundering. As Covid 19 began to progress, the company turned its resources to using artificial intelligence in healthcare, plotting and analyzing available data such as whole genome sequencing analysis. Dr. Ching-Yung Lin describes for listeners the steps they have taken. The company assessed what they could contribute to understanding the virus propagation at the end of February. They felt it was an appropriate time for them to jump in and help contribute through using artificial intelligence in healthcare. He explains that different countries are sequencing the virus and sharing the data. Graphen takes this data and shows the mutations, but also shows the parent viruses of these mutations, giving them the ability to map its path. When the virus propagates or replicates, it copies itself. As with any copying process, mistakes can happen in translation--this is essentially a mutation. Mutations are very important indications of how it changes and how it propagates and spreads; therefore, this information is providing the crux for how Graphen can investigate Covid 10's habits. For example, they are able to reverse-assess the danger a community may be in: they can us the virus sequencing to determining how long it has actually been in the community based on mutations. They are trying to use this information to figure out how it might continue to replicate itself but also how to shut down its replication ability They are sharing the mutation of each virus and gender and age of the diagnosed patient on their web site so people can study the data on their own if they would like. It's updated every day. Find out more at http://www.graphen.ai/covid.html Contact them through email with questions or information by sending to info@graphen.ai. Finally, if you have any ability to get Graphen more data, please consider reaching out to them.

Neonatologist and researcher Dr. Sandra Leibel discusses her research into a particular gene therapy process involving a lung organoid model. She explains her research and surrounding issues, including the basics of lung research, and specifically the importance of the surfactant process in keeping lungs from collapsing; how mutations lead to the need for surfactant protein b deficiency treatment in babies; and how her model showed positive treatment possibilities but what must happen before treatment is available clinically. Dr. Sandra Leibel is an assistant clinical professor in pediatrics at UC San Diego School of Medicine and a neonatologist specialist at Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego. She's currently focused on the lab side of her work involving a gene therapy process. Dr. Leibel created a model using induced pluripotent stem cells, or embryonic stem cells, and differentiated them into three-dimensional lung organoids. She's using these models to test a possible surfactant protein b deficiency treatment. She explains to listeners the basics of lung geography and mechanics and how of the 40 different lung cell types, she uses the epithelial cells in her model. She describes the surfactant production that happens in the distal portion of the lung, which is the furthest portion, yet serves the whole lung by reducing surface tension and keeping our lungs from collapsing. These alveolar type 2 cells can undergo a mutation during embryonic development that damages the b protein of those cell; they cannot then produce effective surfactant. These babies are born needing to be on a breathing machine until they are able to get a lung transplant. However, she's found an exciting advancement in her research, namely that by introducing a virus vector that carried a healthy b gene, she measured signs of the model cells completely normalizing into surfactant-producing cells. In other words, she was able to cure the disease in a dish. She explains the implications of this, the timing for clinical use, and other related issues. For more, google her name and see her page at UC San Diego: https://profiles.ucsd.edu/sandra.leibel

Dr. Sherif Hassan is an international sleep medicine doctor from Washington DC who focuses on the relationship between sleep disorders and cardiovascular disease, and the benefits of precision medicine. Tune in to learn the following: What impacts sleep apnea and hypopnea have on heart muscles on a short and long-term basis How the oral microbiome, oral hygiene (including the use of mouthwashes), and sleep apnea impact the levels of nitric oxide in the body, and why this is so important for cardiovascular and overall health How the right amount of sleep and exercise, proper nutrition, and the optimization of metabolic and basic functions of the body might be achieved through a program Dr. Hassan is developing Cardiovascular disease is the most prevalent yet most preventable non-communicable disorder in the U.S., and is greatly affected by sleep disorders—in particular obstructive sleep apnea and hypopnea during sleep. Dr. Hassan sees value not only in taking an integrative approach to sleep and overall health of the individual, but also in following up with patients after they have received treatment for a sleep disorder. He explains that the outcomes following some of the most common forms of treatment such as CPAP, BiPAP, and dental appliances are very poorly understood, as is the correlation between sleep apnea and weight and cardiovascular changes, such as heart disease, hypertension, and coronary artery disease. He explains in detail the impact of sleep apnea on the muscles of the heart, and the role of nitric oxide in delivering oxygen to various parts of the body and reversing the damaging effects of sleep apnea and hypopnea. He discusses the relationship between the oral microbiome and oral health on the body's level of nitric oxide, and ways of increasing the body's production of it, which include more intake of essential substrates in the form of celery, spinach, and lettuce. Dr. Hassan is trying to come up with a program to optimize sleep and cardiovascular health through the establishment of regular sleep cycles, optimization of hormones and basic function of the body, exercise, and proper nutrition, not just for patients with sleep disorders, but for everyone. Check out https://www.luana.health/ for more information.

Cancer-survivor and expert on physical therapy, nutrition, and mindfulness, Dr. Missimer shares her story with listeners. She recounts what lead her to create The Movement Paradigm, from supporting her dying brother to appearing on American Ninja Warrior, her intake process and questions for new patients at the center, and Why almost every health and pain concern she treats is ultimately about inflammation and what to do about it. Dr. Missimer has her Doctor of Physical Therapy and is a Registered Dietitian. She's an inspirational speaker who has appeared on such outlets as TEDX and is the founder of The Movement Paradigm, an integrative health center that bases treatments on mindfulness benefits, nutrition, movement, and the importance of meditation. She uses a blend of eastern and western philosophies in combination with her physical therapy and dietitian training to serve her clients. She begins by describing her journey towards founding the center, one that includes caring for her brother who later passed from cancer, undergoing her own cancer diagnosis and treatment, and then a full realization of her desire to make an impact. She appeared on the American Ninja Warrior show while undergoing cancer treatment, which was quite a challenge, and explains her success by describing the importance of movement for her. She remarks that working and moving have always given her strength. Her work at the center starts with having clients fill out a very detailed functional medicine-themed form that can help her develop some simple first steps. She tells listeners that ultimately she is trying to figure out a patient's antecedents (such as family autoimmune history), triggers (like stress), and mediators (lifestyle factors). Then she picks one place to start so as not to overwhelm. She says she sees lots of SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth) and yeast overgrowth as well as food sensitivities and intolerances. Regardless of what the issue is, she asserts, the foundation of most problems is one of inflammation. She brings clients to a healthier, pain-free place through simple steps of movement, diet, an understanding of mindfulness benefits, the importance of meditation, and other techniques. For more, see the The Movement Paradigm web page at https://themovementparadigm.com/.

Gordon Krass, CEO of IntelliGuard, discusses how the late-stage startup company is making the medication supply chain within U.S. hospitals safer and more efficient. You will learn the following: How inadequate tracking and tracing systems for medications and weak medical inventory control within U.S. hospitals is allowing for the clinical use of counterfeit, recalled, or expired drugs, as well as theft of controlled substances How the automation of tracking and inventory offered by IntelliGuard will be providing a huge relief to pharmacists and anesthesiologists, and improving patient experiences What a full rollout of this technology will look like, and what kind of feedback IntelliGuard is receiving from the 500 hospitals they already serve With the use of radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology and data analytics, IntelliGuard has one ultimate goal in mind: maximizing positive healthcare outcomes for patients. Krass explains that while hospitals in the U.S. today are on the cutting-edge of the clinical side of the business with the use of AI in surgeries, new procedures, and advanced imaging technology, the infrastructure that's responsible for running hospitals is outdated, relying far too heavily on paper-based documentation and human interaction. "People think the supply chain of medications is secure, the truth is it's not," says Krass, citing a 60 percent accuracy rate for inventory of critical medications used in surgeries and other complex procedures. This inadequacy is a dangerous one, leading to the administration of expired, recalled, incorrect, or counterfeit drugs. Aside from labor, drugs and supplies are the highest cost items in hospitals, but despite this, hospitals don't know where medications are or how much they have on hand at any given time. "Most businesses would not be in business if they operated in this way," says Krass. He continues by explaining the details of how IntelliGuard is working to address these issues, where some of the greatest weaknesses lie in the current system, and how IntelliGuard technologies will transform hospital infrastructure in the U.S. for the better. Press play for all the details. For more info, visit https://ig.solutions/.

Dr. Pollack discusses the ways in which the water in your body's cells isn't the same type of water in your cup. Tune in to learn the following: How an alternative understanding of the electrical potential of cells could be explained by the fourth phase of water, and how the magnitude of electrical charge of a pathological cell differs from that of a normal or "healthy" cell What type of energy is critical for the transition from ordinary water to the fourth phase of water, and where and when we get that energy What features and properties can be assigned to the fourth phase of water Dr. Gerald H. Pollack is a professor at the University of Washington Department of Bioengineering, and author of award-winning books The Fourth Phase of Water and Cells, Gels, and the Engines of Life. On today's show, he explains how the water in biology differs from "ordinary" water that we drink each day, and what implications this has for human health and biology at large. He begins by sharing how he discovered the idea that water might have a "fourth" phase, which was through the work of Gilbert Ling, a physiologist and author of over five books on the topic. Inspired by Ling's work, Dr. Pollack decided to dive into this area of research and eventually write a book that dealt with Ling's ideas (Cells, Gels, and the Engines of Life). He discusses the experimentation he's done showing that when water molecules are ordered, they form a crystal-like structure that excludes other substances from entering. This was a critical observation because it proved that there can be regions of water molecules that are not free to bounce around millions of times in a second like they do in ordinary water. Investigating further through multiple experiments, Dr. Pollack and his team found that every feature examined in the exclusion zone of water was different from the features of ordinary water. According to him and many others, this is the type of water that exists in our cells, and it plays a role in nearly every important reaction that occurs inside our cells. He continues by explaining the details of his experimentation, the conditions for exclusion, and the manner or pattern in which exclusion occurs. He also describes how infrared light is the source of energy that allows for the transition from ordinary water to this fourth phase of water, commonly called exclusion zone (EZ) water. He notes the sources of infrared energy in our environment, the ways in which diurnal variation of the amount of infrared energy may be affecting us, and the use of infrared energy as a therapeutic approach for cancer and other illnesses. To learn more, visit https://www.pollacklab.org/.

Author Dr. Frank Ryan has spent a lifetime researching, speaking on, and writing about virus behaviors. His book Virusphere: From Common Colds to Ebola Epidemics--Why We Need the Viruses That Plague Us was just released in paperback. In this exploratory conversation, he explains why calling viruses parasitic is too simplistic and confining, why this is so as he discusses the history of the AIDS virus evolution with humans as an example, and how different mechanics we use to survive, such as placental membranes, are virus derived. Dr. Frank Ryan is an Honorary Senior Lecturer in the Department of Medical Education at The University of Sheffield in the UK. He has authored numerous books, including Virusphere. The conversation begins with an explanation of the behaviors of viruses as symbionts, existing at a continuum between parasite and mutualistic symbiont. Among many other examples he presents, he discusses AIDS, one of the worse epidemic viruses in our lifetime. Yet even at the height of the epidemic, scientist didn't ask if it were a parasite or not. Rather, they asked what aspect of the virus is changing as a result of the human interaction and vice versa. What they found was a change in the patient gene antigen that had to do with the virus evolution—both virus and human genome were actually altering each other's genome; so while this may be a virus near the parasitic end of the continuum, human and virus are still changing each other—it's not just a one-sided relationship. Dr. Ryan offers other examples of the behaviors of viruses to flesh out this coevolution, from viruses and the Brazilian wood rabbit in Australia to mammal placental development. He explains how retroviruses function, replicate, and become infectious. He also explains the process of the Coronavirus, its mechanics within human cell cytoplasm and the replication process. He finishes by explaining the ubiquitous nature of the behavior of viruses having effects we may be unaware of, such as keeping the bacteria from taking over the ocean. For more, you can find his book for sale at https://www.amazon.com/Virusphere-Common-Epidemics-Why-Viruses-Plague/dp/1633886042