Finding Genius Podcast

Emeran A. Mayer, MD, Ph.D., David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, delivers an informative overview of the brain to gut connection. Dr. Mayer serves as director,G. Oppenheimer Center for Neurobiology of Stress and Resilience (CNSR); co-director, CURE: Digestive Diseases Research Center; and is an experienced professor of medicine, physiology, and psychiatry. Dr. Mayer attended the Ludwig Maximilian's University in Munich, Germany where he received his MD/ Ph.D. Dr. Mayer completed his residency at the Vancouver General Hospital in Vancouver, Canada and his GI fellowship training at the UCLA/VA Wadsworth Training Program. With a lifelong fascination for research, Dr. Mayer has applied his extensive knowledge toward a career studying the clinical and research aspects of brain-body interactions, with a particularly intensive focus on bidirectional communication between the brain and the gut in regard to health and disease. Dr. Mayer discusses his long career and findings that led to the decision to write his new book, The Mind-Gut Connection. He details particular studies that influenced the material that is discussed in-depth in his books, such as one study that involved testing of individuals who were given a probiotic cocktail and then observed regarding their symptoms and brain function. His surprising findings in this study pushed him to include the gut microbiome in all of his studies thereafter. Dr. Mayer is considered to be one of the world's top expert investigators of the many brain-gut microbiome interactions in GI disorders, with specific regard to functional and inflammatory bowel disorders as well as obesity. Dr. Mayer's exceptional work has been noted worldwide and as such he has enjoyed continual funding for his important research from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) since 1989. The digestive research expert reveals his findings on multitudinous studies of microbial function. He details the use of interventions such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in his studies, specifically regarding gastrointestinal maladies such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and others. His findings indicated that the CBT was instrumental in improving symptoms for IBS significantly. Dr. Mayer's work concluded that the brain has incredible influence on microbial composition. Dr. Mayer relates how the autonomic nervous system affects the environment of the gut, thus stressors in our lives have a direct impact on our digestive system's functioning, from secretions to peptides, to blood flow, and beyond. Dr. Mayer speaks about causality and the models that they have studied to explain microbiome disorders. He discusses the circular process in which the brain sends signals to the gut, the back and forth signaling that impacts functioning. Further, he discusses in detail gene expression profiles, proteins, metabolites, etc., and the connections between various elements of his research, as well as the collective research, being done globally in regard to these brain/gut issues. The neurobiology researcher provides some background on other studies that focus on teaching the brain to send different signals, as well as diet in regard to gut microbial function. Dr. Mayer states that plant-based diets are by far the best diets for functioning, and the microbiome in general, according to epidemiological studies. He discusses how metabolites are affected by diet, and how gut function will revert when special diets are changed or discontinued. He provides detailed information on specific diets and his thoughts regarding them. As Dr. Mayer states, exposure to antibiotics and dietary patterns of pregnant mothers, etc. all impact microbiomes. He explains the differences that exist in the microbiomes of various and diverse populations of people, and how diet can impact our gut functioning rather quickly once changes are made, for example switching from fast food to a Mediterranean diet, etc. Dr. Mayer is the director of the Gail and Gerald Oppenheimer Family Center for Neurobiology of Stress, and is currently PI of a NIH Center grant on the sex differences in functional GI disorders, on a consortium grant of brain-bladder interactions, and a RO1 grant on brain imaging in IBS. As a leading expert in microbiome studies, Dr. Mayer seeks to continually dig deeper into the connections between the brain and the gut in his quest to find new ways to improve health for everyone.

"A little west goes a long way," says Andrew Walker, echoing the slogan of the company he and his wife founded about six years ago. With just one brick and mortar shop in Los Angeles, California, Little West is a favorite among those seeking a variety of superfoods alongside the company's main focus: locally-sourced and nutrition-packed juices. The menu includes 14 different no-sugar-added, cold-pressed juices packed with minerals, vitamins, and anti-inflammatory roots with varying levels of sweetness to meet anyone's preference. They also offer a variety of cleanses and kits, some for beginners and some for those seeking more advanced, "master" cleanses. Walker discusses the details of the Little West juice-making process, the differences between each cleanse offered and why one may be better suited for some individuals than others, the importance of preparing for and coming off of cleanses, the benefits of small-batch cold pressing versus the methods used by most other juice bars, and the connection between food sensitivities and gut health. Interested in trying it for yourself? Tune in and visit littlewest.com to order from anywhere in the nation.

Organ failure is the ultimate cause of almost every death, and while organ transplantation can be a successful option, the need for organs significantly outweighs the supply. For the past 50 years or so, efforts have been focused on immunosuppression strategies and the development of mechanical devices capable of mimicking the function of biological organs and processes. However, even when available, these solutions aren't permanent or without the risk of complication. Now there's a new solution in the works, one with a lot more promise: bioengineered organs. As an associate professor and member of both the Next Manufacturing Center and Bioengineered Organs Initiative at Carnegie Mellon University, Adam W. Feinberg joins the podcast to discuss how living cells and tissue components can be designed for implantation into the human body, allowing for tissue regeneration with the use of the body's own cells. Though it'll still take years to get there, the grand vision is to 3D bioprint partial or entire organs for transplant, which is a technology that's recently received funding from the FDA. Tune in to learn more about the current projects Dr. Feinberg and his team are working on, the successes they've already had, and the challenges they plan to overcome. Keep up to date on the latest developments at regenerativebiomaterials.com and engineering.cmu.edu/organs/index.html.

Doron Pinhas, the visionary chief technology officer of Continuity Software (continuitysoftware.com), provides a detailed overview of the constantly evolving IT world and explains why businesses and entities need to ensure that their computing services function properly 24/7. For in today's demanding tech world, people have high expectations and accept no excuses. Since 2005, Pinhas has helped lead Continuity Software as its innovative CTO. Pinhas has more than 17 years of extensive experience in the future-forward, exciting areas of data and storage management, operating system design and development, real-time applications, and open system and networking architecture definition. Notable past experience on his impressive resume includes significant time as chief operating officer at Xpert Integrated Systems LTD., a leading Israeli SI. While at Xpert Integrated Systems LTD., Pinhas was instrumental in the development and formation of the Business Continuity Solutions division. Additionally, Pinhas is a veteran of the Israeli Defense Force where for 10 years he served as senior product developer and system architect. Pinhas discusses Continuity Software's mission: to help large enterprises provide 24/7 computing services. The company is comprised of a team of IT infrastructure and data protection experts who have the essential skills to help companies prevent unplanned IT outages across their entire IT infrastructure, including high availability, cloud, and disaster recovery environments. Pinhas details the specifics of computing services, and the problems enterprises and companies face. With over 400 clients worldwide, all of which are Fortune 500, or equivalent, it's clear that Pinhas and his team are providing value. He recounts how large entities have literally tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of servers globally, and how it is becoming more and more challenging for them to keep up and maintain their services as they grow exponentially. Continuity Software is a proven leader in IT Resilience & Service Availability Assurance. Their award-winning solution enables IT teams to take control, and prevent infrastructure outages and detrimental data loss incidents. Getting ahead of the curve in regard to early, active detection of IT resiliency risks allows enterprises/companies, etc. to mitigate their exposed risk via remediation of configuration errors and deviations from policies— before the problems become problems, and before they become potentially costly issues. Pinhas provides examples of many companies' services, outages, etc. that can be devastating problems in a 24/7 demand society. As people and customers in general are more connected, Pinhas explains that service delays and outages are simply no longer acceptable. Today, a large volume of social media complaints can sometimes even elicit direct comments from a CEO, also via social media, to explain, apologize, etc; whereas in our recent past not so many years ago, as a society, we were much more forgiving of these issues. Those days are long gone. With millions of moving parts and thousands of servers, Pinhas explains that testing and redundancy in IT is extremely involved and important. He outlines a handful of the types of problems that could arise due to failures and system errors, as well as power outages, etc. However, according to Pinhas, there are many ways to intelligently circumvent these failures by improving resiliency and redundancy every step of the way in the entire system, and Pinhas's team works to help clients modernize their IT systems. From server updates to software upgrades, and so much more, Pinhas explains that although the problems are complex, they are not insurmountable. With proper management, it is entirely possible to maintain order and control quality.

By combining the knowledge, tools, and approaches of computer science, engineering, and environmental studies, several students at the Data Science Institute at the University of Virginia are implementing drones in the collection of geospatial data involving ozone levels across the Blue Ridge Mountains. This is just one example of the practical applications of interdisciplinary studies, and the nature of the work being led by Philip E. Bourne, who serves as Stephenson Chair of Data Science, Director of the Data Science Institute, and professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Virginia. Intrigued by the development of data science and its increasing number of important applications in modern society, Dr. Bourne runs an institute that thrives off of the benefits of interdisciplinary work and carries out projects in the fields of digital humanities, social sciences, finance, transportation, environmental studies, biomedicine, and engineering. Dr. Bourne discusses a variety of exciting topics, including aspects of evolutionary computation, what distinguishes data science from computer science, ethics associated with the use of data, the connection between the study of proteins and precision medicine, and how an analysis of electronic health record and DMV data could lead to more accurate, potentially life-saving interventions in trauma surgery. Tune in for the full conversation and reach out with questions via email at peb6a@virginia.edu.

We've all been there: wrestling with that conundrum of what to order off the menu, and feeling unable to decide which sounds the best while trying to visualize the options. Wouldn't it be great if we could just see the options right there on the table before us, prior to ordering? Now we can, and Kabaq is making it happen. Established just two years ago by Alper Guler, Kabaq is a company that's putting to use what so many major tech companies are investing in to enrich our lives: augmented and virtual reality technology. Realistic, actual-size depictions of various food items can now be visualized in 3D with the use of a tablet or your personal phone by scanning item-specific codes through social media platforms such as Snapchat and Facebook. "We believe the next generation content is 3D...and we are creating the next generation content for food," says Guler. But this content includes more than just an image of the food, he explains; Kabaq is taking it a step further by augmenting the space surrounding the 3D preview with stories and information about the food and the way in which it was sourced. Kabaq is already working with 150 restaurants and is growing in popularity as positive feedback continues to flow in. Interested in checking it out for yourself? Hit play and visit kabaq.io to learn more.

It's something that many large employers struggle with: the organized distribution of benefits to thousands of employees. While there may be a benefits strategy in place and hundreds or even thousands of different employee offerings, far too many employers keep these benefits siloed within different administrative systems, with no efficient way to organize or communicate the distribution of them. This is where YouDecide can help, a consulting technology and voluntary benefits outsourcing firm that organizes and aggregates employer benefit offerings, providing employees with large discounts on a variety of insurances, including auto, pet, legal, accident, life, disability, and long-term care. It's a win-win result: employees save money on high-quality, necessary benefits, and employers gain a level of consistency and streamlined communication in the distribution of high-value benefits. Peter Marcia is the CEO of YouDecide and joins the podcast to discuss the ins and out of the services they provide, the primary challenges faced by large employers, and how changes in the healthcare space over the past several years have enhanced the growth and success of his firm. Hit play for the full conversation and visit youdecide.com to learn more

Author Survivor and former chartered physiotherapist Jane McLelland, physiotherapist, alternative cancer treatment expert, and author of How to Starve Cancer expounds upon the wrong turns that many people, unfortunately, take when they set out to fight their cancer. She provides a thorough and extremely important overview of the steps that anyone can take to dramatically improve their chances for survival when faced with a dire diagnosis. Cancer survivor, Jane McLelland, talks about her background as a physiotherapist and her diagnosis back in 1994 with cervical cancer. McLelland tried all the traditional cancer treatment drugs and methods but made no significant progress. She recounts that it was not until her mother died of secondary breast cancer just two years later that she began to dig into the science of metabolism and get to the root of what was really keeping cancer alive and thriving. She states that when her own cancer moved to her lungs and she advanced to stage four cancer, that her time was considered to be limited, and thus she accelerated her research to find a solution. And as more chemotherapy was not going to help, she knew it was time to try another approach entirely. She discusses some of her research and many of the cancer-fighting regimens she put into place, such as intravenous vitamin C infusion, which some research has shown to be very effective at blocking glycolysis, the metabolic pathway that cancer cells use to thrive. McLelland's groundbreaking book, How to Starve Cancer, is an incredible testament to the power of the human spirit. In her book, McLelland breaks down the steps she took to literally starve her cancer of the elements it needed to prosper. McLelland discusses her long journey back to health and the many crucial topics her book covers such as the varying fuel pipelines that must be blocked for each type of cancer. She talks about supplements that can be added to accelerate the cancer fight, and the low-toxicity drugs that exist to fight cancer, many of which have been all but forgotten as researchers tout the newer 'game changers' and put all their eggs in that basket. McLelland details the nature of cancer and how it exhibits incredible determination to flourish, for example, if cancer cells are no longer able to fuel on sugar, they will literally rewire themselves to survive on alternative fuel sources to create more protein and thus create more daughter cells. By preventing the cancer cells from gathering more fuel, patients can put the brakes on the system. McLelland discusses the sections of her book that provide specific detail on proteins, fats, glucose and the cancer cell's fuel supplies that must be cut off in order to fight the disease. She provides very detailed information on the science behind the metabolic cocktail options that individuals can tailor to their specific cancer. McLelland's book will help people to find the key metabolic pathways they need to understand in order to fight their cancer. Using herself as a testing laboratory, she experimented to find the best drugs and supplements to starve her own cancer and has gathered this information into a map of sorts that individuals can use to guide their own journey and fight. McLelland talks about the importance of drugs in the fight against cancer. She states that diet is crucial, but diet alone rarely can achieve the best results, and that it is a combination of diet, supplements, and low-toxicity drugs that provide the proper combination of ingredients. She goes into depth about protein, fat, and carbs, the three essential elements of the human diet. She explains the ways that cancer cells use each to further their survival and the production of daughter cells. She discusses how the pharmaceutical industry's testing process is flawed, in that it works on one solution at a time, which is a slow process that needs to be accelerated. She states that her cocktail approach is a means that individuals can begin to implement now, to fight their individual cancers. Additionally, she provides information on the alternative drugs that can be used to fight cancer. These drugs are considered to be 'alternative' because they are drugs that were created for different diseases and conditions other than cancer, but McLelland states they can be used as part of a successful cocktail to combat cancer. McLelland talks about the keys to combatting the disease, rethinking the traditional methods somewhat and using all the existing methods together in a more intelligent manner. She mentions that reducing the traditional chemotherapy to much lower doses actually stimulates the immune system, which would not happen with the high doses that traditional cancer treatment recommends in most situations. McLelland states that the wealth of research she offers in her social media and in her book provides critical information that is backed by science and evidence. McLelland's method as described in her book takes on the common misconceptions that exist in the theories of cancer treatment. The book delves into the mystery of cancer and answers important questions that can elevate anyone to a higher level of understanding as they forge ahead on their own journey to beat cancer. Remarkably, McLelland states that in her opinion there is almost no cancer, even at stage four, that cannot be reversed with the proper alternative treatment and protocols. Hope exists!

Jodi Goldstein, the Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Executive Director of Harvard Innovation Labs (innovationlabs.harvard.edu), delivers an overview of the innovation marketplace and how students and entrepreneurs can utilize testing and technology to advance their ideas and solve real-world problems. Harvard Innovation Labs includes the Harvard i-lab, the Harvard Launch Lab for alumni, and the Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab for alumni, faculty, and student-focused life science ventures. Goldstein has over 20 years experience as a formidable startup executive, an enterprising co-founder, and investor. Her specific expertise in consumer and e-commerce, mobile, and luxury goods businesses, combined with her strong management skills have allowed her to carry many projects and initiatives to new heights of achievement. Notably, Goldstein had leadership roles in venture-backed startups such as iMarket (that was later successfully sold to D&B), PlanetAll (that was built up then acquired by Amazon for $100M+), as well as Mobicious, Send.com, and Hoteluxury.com. Goldstein discusses the many companies and projects she has worked with and led to success. And she outlines some of the potential pitfalls that entrepreneurs can fall prey to. Goldstein explains that entrepreneurs and innovators need to test their early ideas in regard to practicality and validation, to assess their relative value in the marketplace. She outlines the value that industry leaders can bring to their respective companies by utilizing advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual augmented reality, and blockchain. Harvard Innovation Labs' mission states that knowledge is certainly the engine of innovation, but the combination of connection and collaboration is the critical fuel needed for forward progress. By unlocking unrealized value, Harvard Innovation Labs can have a tremendous impact on markets, the world, and the individuals who utilize the valuable input and services they provide. Goldstein's work involves helping students and entrepreneurs take their ideas and apply them to solve real-world problems. Goldstein discusses the diverse areas in which Harvard Innovation Labs provides expertise and assistance. She provides an overview of their extensive ecosystem in terms of what it offers. For example, the i-lab is a full-service space for currently enrolled Harvard students who are interested in pursuing innovation and entrepreneurship opportunities. Launch Lab X is their innovative new accelerator inside the i-lab that is designed for eligible Harvard alumni who are already pushing forward their promising early-stage startup ventures. And the Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab is for Harvard students and faculty, as well as alumni who are working on important life sciences and biotech startups and ventures. From medical to advanced technology, Goldstein describes how their innovation techniques and methods have helped creators and entrepreneurs walk their own unique path to breakthroughs and successes. Goldstein holds an MBA from Harvard and a BS in International Business from the University of Vermont. She has been featured in Fast Company and The Boston Globe and is a regular contributor to Fortune as part of its Entrepreneur Insider network. Her broad range of skills and experience has prepared her for the challenges of leading Harvard Innovation Labs to continued success as they engage with the global community. And she is motivated to implement new strategic initiatives that can potentially expand their student and alumni range, presence, and impact while simultaneously serving as the chief liaison to the organization's prominent stakeholders, as well as the national and international community.

Gastric bypass surgery is the most effective form of treatment for morbid obesity and a familiar term to most of us, but until recently, the underlying mechanism that makes it so successful has been largely misunderstood. Most people—including health professionals—attribute the weight loss that follows from this surgery to reduced stomach size and therefore reduced food intake and malabsorption, but the evidence is pointing elsewhere: to the changes in gut microbiota that occur after the surgery. Hasan Celiker is the founder and chief executive officer of Xeno Biosciences, a company that's using what they've learned about the effectiveness of gastric bypass surgery to develop an alternative and significantly less invasive form of treatment for obesity: an oral pill that mimics the changes in gut microbiota that occur after the surgery, allowing for weight loss and a significant reduction in conditions associated with obesity, such as diabetes and fatty liver disease. Celiker delves into the details of digestive mechanisms, the differences between aerobic and anaerobic bacteria and the role of each in the microbiome, how and where in the body Xeno Bioscience's pill takes effect, and the metabolic changes brought about by both the pill and the surgery. Hit play and visit xenobiosciences.com to learn more.