Finding Genius Podcast

"In the developed world in the last few decades, there's been a tremendous increase in the number of people who have chronic illness…if you look around you, every other person probably has some kind of chronic illness, whether it's some kind of autoimmune disease, metabolic, neurologic…[or] cancer," says Guru Banavar, Chief Technology Officer at Viome. The point he makes is hard to refute, but is it equally as hard to explain what's contributing to the rise in chronic illness? According to Banavar, chronic illnesses are driven by the gut microbiome, and if for no other reason, that's why we need to take a closer look at it. At Viome, chronic disease prevention is the central focus, and they believe that in order to do this, we first need to understand gene expression, and harness the power of the right kinds of foods and supplements—the kinds that work with and are required by the gut microbiome for the activation of important microbial pathways. The team at Viome is conducting microbiome research using stool samples from about 100,000 current customers and delivering app-based, personalized recommendations for what to eat to mind your microbiome. Tune in to discover: How Viome can tell you which types of foods can turn on or off inflammatory pathways in your gut microbiome What differs between the microbiomes of people who have a high versus low glycemic index, or normal GI phenotype versus irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) What we might learn from longitudinal studies of the microbiome currently being conducted by the team at Viome

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressively malignant cancers that exist; despite all the knowledge we have about the mechanisms at play in pancreatic cancer and many attempts at finding a treatment that works, the survival rate is only nine percent in five years after diagnosis. In the Department of Clinical Cancer Prevention at the University of Texas, Dr. Florencia McAllister's goal is to change this by developing better preventative and therapeutic strategies for pancreatic cancer. She is focused on understanding the interaction between the immune system and very early-stage cancer. How is it that cancer can emerge in the body yet remain undetected by the immune system? And if we can answer this question, can we also figure out how to change it? Part of this research involves a look at the microbiome of pancreatic tumors and a comparison to the microbiome of the gut. What, if any, are the associations between the gut and tumor microbiomes, and between the bacteria in tumors and the immune response? Answering these questions is the crux of Dr. McAllister's work, and she joins the podcast today to discuss all the details. By tuning in, you will learn: What Dr. McAllister and her team has learned by comparing the tumor microbiomes of long-term versus short-term survivors of pancreatic cancer How the microbiome of pancreatic tumors differs from the microbiome of the rest of the pancreas What causes someone to be at high risk for developing pancreatic cancer

We're living in an age of unprecedented access to genomic data; all we have to do is send off a sample of saliva in the mail to a company like 23andMe or Ancestry to get a comprehensive report containing information about our ancestral lineage, diseases we might pass on to our children, and diseases we might develop during our lifetime. There's no question that understanding genomic data affords a great benefit to many people, but there's a tradeoff that's critical to acknowledge, and it's one of privacy. Where does our information go once in the hands of these companies? Can it really be deleted at the press of a button, as we are led to believe? If you have been under the impression that you have control over your genomic data, even after it's been tested by a company, you aren't alone. Most people don't realize that once a sample of DNA undergoes health-related genomic data analysis, federal law dictates that it must be saved. In other words, it would be illegal for a company like 23andMe or Ancestry to delete it. If this were more widely understood by the public, it might change the frequency and ease with which we hand over our DNA. This might be particularly true if we were more cognizant of the fact that our DNA doesn't just contain information about ourselves, but about those related to us. Kristen V. Brown, reporter with Bloomberg News, joins the podcast to discuss all of this and more, including: What level of control you DO have over your genetic information, and how to exercise it Why there is a federal law against the deletion of certain genomic information and genetic material Where your data is likely to go once you send it to a private company like 23andMe or Ancestry

"My reason for wanting to start the company was a very simple one actually, and a very personal one: my wife had cancer, she had breast cancer…misdiagnosed and then finally correctly diagnosed in 2005. She became metastatic in 2010," says Robin Bannister, Founder and Director of Research and Development at Care Oncology Clinic. Dr. Bannister had spent his entire professional life studying different pharmaceuticals and trying to understand the ways in which old drugs could be repurposed, but now there was a new level of urgency to his work. He knew he had to act quickly. To find the drug he was looking for, he first had to reduce the list of 5,000 or so drugs to a list that was more manageable, and he did this by focusing on those that had a long history of safe use and mild side effects, particularly in cancer patients. The basis of the treatment provided at Care Oncology Clinic takes advantage of the Warburg effect—the metabolic processes used by cancer cells to stay alive and grow. The Care Oncology protocol employs drugs which, simply put, make it exceedingly difficult for cancer cells to survive by limiting the resources they use in order to defend themselves in harsh environments—environments created not only by the standard of care for cancer, but also the body's own immune system. By tuning in to today's episode, you will learn the details of this and more, including: What an efflux pump is and how exactly it's used by cancer cells Why the standard of care is not perfect, but often has a part to play in the treatment of cancer How the Care Oncology protocol can serve as an adjunct to the treatment for all cancer types Locate the Care Oncology USA website at https://careoncology.com/.

You hear a sound, and you absolutely hate it; as a result, your brain prioritizes that sound, further and more deeply ingraining it in your brain. This experience creates a very negative emotional and physiological reaction in you, and could be triggered by any number of sounds commonly encountered in modern life—the sound of someone chewing gum, tapping, dripping water…you name it. There's a name for this, and it's misophonia. In addition to misophonia, Jennifer Conlin, Doctor of Audiology, has tinnitus, which is a condition that involves hearing a high-frequency tone that becomes chronic, causes a negative emotional response, and leads to a negative feedback loop in the brain. It might be hard to see the good in having both of these conditions, but it's what ultimately led Dr. Jennifer Conlin to not only identify her speech-language pathology specialty and foster her love of audiology but help others through a myriad of auditory problems in her role as an audiologist at Love to Hear Again Audiology in Texas. In this episode, you will learn: · In what ways different brands of hearing aids differ from each other · How artificial intelligence is being implemented in hearing aids, to include language translations and fall detection · How tinnitus and other auditory conditions can be treated · How a person's hearing can impact their mental state, including the development of dementia, social withdrawal, depression, and chronic fatigue Tune in and visit love2hearagain.com to learn more.

Not more than 10 years ago, the consensus among most scientists was that extracellular vesicles (EVs)—biological particles found in our urine, saliva, and throughout our bodies—were mere waste products with no role in communication between cells. Today, we know that's simply not true: EVs certainly play a role in cell communication, but the extent to which they do so is still a topic of research. We also know that they have the potential to be used for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. For example, the identification of EVs in the blood can be diagnostic of cancer, and we know that metastatic cancer cells release EVs that are softer than other types of EVs. Additionally, EVs can be taken from fat tissue and used for therapeutic purposes. This is just a fraction of what Joy Wolfram, Ph.D., Director of The Nanomedicine and Extracellular Vesicles Laboratory at the Mayo Clinic in Florida discusses on the podcast today. She also explains the work they are doing to synthesize nanoparticles which are capable of being modified in a way that allows them to transport therapeutic agents (e.g. cancer drugs, anti-inflammatory compounds) through the bloodstream and directly to the site of diseased tissue. By tuning in, you'll learn about all of this and more, including: What specific types of benefits can be conferred by nanomedicine How an analysis of the sugars on the surface of EVs might predict whether a cancer is likely to metastasize in a patient How an understanding of EVs could be applied to regenerative medicine

Hives, swelling of the eyes, mouth, or tongue, sneezing, wheezing, sudden vomiting, a sense of impending doom: these are just a few of the symptoms of an allergic reaction. For over 10 years, Dr. Richard Wasserman's focus has been on developing a treatment for food allergies called oral immunotherapy (OIT), a method by which a very small amount of an allergen is given to an allergic individual as a way of prompting desensitization. Over time, the amount of allergen is gradually increased until the individual is able to consume a full, meal-sized portion of the allergen. To date, IOT has been used to treat allergies to 20 different foods, including peanuts, cashews, eggs, milk, wheat, chickpeas, and sunflower seeds. In today's podcast, you will learn: Why food allergy testing is often of no value or otherwise misleading Risk factors for the development of food allergies What exactly is going on when an allergic response occurs Why the gradual increase in amount of allergen works to treat allergies and extremely rarely causes an allergic reaction Dr. Richard Wasserman has a medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School and completed a pediatric residency and fellowship training in bone marrow transplant recovery and immunology at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Tune in to hear the full conversation. Learn more about food allergy by visiting foodallergy.org.

Antibiotic resistance—the ability of bacteria to survive even large doses of broad-spectrum antibiotics—is a growing problem in the modern world, one that threatens the safety of everyone on the planet. But this hasn't always been the case; not more than 20 years ago, the idea of antibiotic resistance was not really on anyone's radar, which is a testament to how quickly the problem has developed, and therefore how time-sensitive it is to develop a solution. According to Dr. Vincent A. Fischetti, head of the Fischetti Lab at Rockefeller University, as well as the results from phase 2 clinical trials which put it to the test, the solution lies in a bacteriophage enzyme called lysin. On today's episode, Dr. Fischetti explains how bacteriophages (commonly referred to as phages) kill bacteria, and how he and his team harnessed this knowledge in a way that's led to the development of the first-ever alternative to antibiotics that's been FDA-approved to enter phase 3 clinical trials. This potential treatment for bacterial diseases in humans could very well eliminate the daunting threat of antibiotic resistance. Dr. Fischetti brings an impressive amount of fascinating information to the conversation today. By tuning in, you're bound to learn a number of things, including: How significantly the use of antibiotics in farm animals (to fatten them up, treat them as food products, etc.) has contributed to antibiotic resistance What bacteria do in order to avoid or resist being killed by a given antibiotic Where antibiotics come from and how they are used by the organisms that create them What the difference is between gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria Press play for all the details.

Richard Andrews, SM, MS, President/CEO, and Mark Sampson, Chief Scientific Officer, of Azitra, a clinical-stage medical dermatology company, provide an insightful overview of their work. Andrews has vast experience as a top executive, leading the operations, finance, and development for biotechnology firms primarily focused on novel products to combat inflammatory disease. And Dr. Sampson, recently of Botanix Pharmaceuticals, has immense experience in the development of preclinical strategies as well as clinical development plans for new, advanced antimicrobial indications. He is a seasoned and sought-after researcher. The disease researcher, and executive, provide an overview of how Azitra strives to address serious skin diseases. Azitra combines various technologies designed to repair disease problems, and utilizes the microbiome to deliver those, thus adding to the therapeutic benefit. They talk about cancer-associated rash, and the various kinds of skin problems that they see. The dermatology experts explain the diversity in a healthy microbiome, and how there are, remarkably, up to a million different bacteria per square centimeter of skin. They explain how this network can be disrupted, which can lead to problems—dysbiosis, which is a microbial imbalance on or inside the body, impaired microbiota for example. The researchers explain their goal to reset the balance of the skin microbiome to help protect against harmful bacteria and pathogens. And they provide a wealth of information on various cancers and the relationships to the microbiome. In this podcast: How the microbiome is related to skin issues Cancer-associated rashes Microbial imbalance

Oscar Sierra, L.Ac, a Nationally Board Certified Acupuncture Specialist (NCCAOM), Dipl. O.M., provides an overview of the current trends in modern acupuncture and many interesting facts about its beneficial aspects that you may not have known. Sierra received a BS in Nutrition from the University of Georgia. He is certified in Reiki, and has intensely studied Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture via an apprenticeship for nearly half a decade with Chinese Medicine practitioners in Atlanta. Sierra discusses the medical world's interpretations of what is conventional medicine versus traditional medicine. As Sierra states, he practices traditional medicine, practices that are backed by thousands of years of written history, and a track record. Whatever works that is safe and effective for the patient is what Sierra focuses on. Sierra explains how ancillary compounds work, as he discusses the benefits of vitamins, such as vitamin C, and more. Sierra talks about medicinal plants for cancer treatment. And he outlines certain chemo drugs that are based on phytochemicals, and how they are useful, how they are derived, etc. Sierra talks about common treatments they use at his facility in Atlanta. Additionally, he discusses the importance of attending to our basic three, which he describes as: adequate and balanced activity (physical, mental, emotional, spiritual), sleep and downtime, and our diet (not just what we eat but how we eat it). Herbs are great, but they cannot be the complete solution if the 'basic three' are not being cared for. Sierra goes on to discuss many accounts of cancer patients, and other disease sufferers who have taken a more natural path to healing and have seen dramatic improvements. Sierra's approach to healing is based on the patient rather than the disease. It's a holistic, natural, patient-centered approach to medicine that focuses on prevention. In this podcast: How medicinal plants are used for cancer treatment The current trends in modern acupuncture The 3 basic areas we need to focus on to form a foundation for good health