Science Behind Science with Dennis Grencewicz

The SBS Podcast is back! In this intro episode, Dennis reintroduces the goals and direction of the podcast and shares a few highlights of episodes that are soon to be released! Guests included in this intro include: Drs. Lisa Corwin, Assistant Professor, and Sandhya Krishnan, Post-Doctoral Scholar, at the University of Colorado and administrators at FLAMEnet Dr. Raphael Pollock, the Director of the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center Dr. Itai Yanai, the Director of the Institution for Computational Biology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Cohost of the Night Science Podcast Dr. Jason Ryan, Founder of Boards and Beyond and Associate Professor of Medicine and Hear Failure Center Co-Director at the University of Connecticut For more SBS Podcast content, check out our Substack (sciencebehindscience.substack.com) and X/Twitter (@scibehindscipod). Thank you, as always, and we hope you enjoy the return of the Science Behind Science Podcast!

Dennis and Ann recap Season 2 of the Science Behind Science podcast by sharing personal highlights and illuminating a few common threads they identified in the conversations recorded thus far. Finally, Dennis shares some of his future plans for season 3 and provides information for how you can connect with the podcast! Science Behind Science Substack Twitter: @SciBehindSciPod Email: sciencebehindsciencepodcast@gmail.com

Dennis tells us about his experience writing his first real scientific paper, which was published in Human Molecular Genetics in 2021. Our goal in this conversation was to establish what goes into making a peer-reviewed scientific article, including everything from crafting ideas and hypotheses to how to submit a full manuscript to a journal for review. Dennis shares his highlights and advice from the publishing process, as well as the lessons he learned regarding writing techniques, collaboration tips, and the importance of setting internal goals and deadlines. We also discuss the logistics of how to format a manuscript for scientific publication in a medical research journal, as well as how the peer review process occurs at academic journals including general timelines for submission and publication.  Dennis is a current second year medical student at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and earned his Bachelor’s of Science in Biology with Honors from Haverford College in 2020. After college, Dennis worked in Dr. Charis Eng’s lab at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute, where he studied the regulation of the tumor suppressor gene PTEN as well as the impact of microbes on cancer therapeutics. He continues to study the tumor microbiome at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center’s James Cancer Hospital in Dr. Daniel Spakowicz’s lab, specifically focusing on the role of gut and intratumoral microbes on radiation therapy response for several internal and external fellowships.  Some Useful Links: Scitable Article from Science on Writing Manuscripts Nature Publishing Options Website - Costs of Nature Open Access Publication “Open access: The true cost of science publishing” by Richard Van Noorden

Dr. Michael Para tells us about his experiences working on the front lines of the HIV/AIDS pandemic when it first hit the USA. Dr. Para is a physician specializing in Infectious Diseases; a Professor Emeritus in Infectious Diseases, Molecular Virology, Immunology and Medical Genetics; and Co-Principal Investigator of the Infectious Disease Clinical Trials Unit at Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio. From him we learn about the initial set of cases, how the disease developed, how it affected patient care, and how treatment plans for this disease evolved into what they are today. Dr. Para gives a heartbreaking description of what the social implications were for those diagnosed with HIV, and his instrumental role as a doctor in providing hope when there was no cure is explored. We also learn about HIPAA and how that grew out of the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Dr. Justin Lathia is the Director of Faculty Development and the Vice Chair of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Sciences at Cleveland Clinic’s Lerner Research Institute. He also holds a co-captain role on the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute’s Velosano Team. Dr. Lathia has been riding in Velosano since its inception 10 years ago, and he is a wonderful advocate for the importance of fundraising in cancer research. We wanted to sit down and talk with him to discuss why fundraising is so important. Particularly, Dr. Lathia notes that early career researchers and extremely innovative ideas are often blocked from funding from canonical funding sources due to reasonable risk-mitigation strategies from large institutions. Therefore, organizations like Velosano, he argues, allows for crazy ideas to launch and young scientists to earn a chance to succeed.  Links from our Conversation Velosano Homepage Velosano Impact Site (How the Funding has Facilitated Discoveries at CCF) CCF LRI Velosano Team Fundraising Site Dr. Justin Lathia’s Velosano Fundraising Site Dennis Grencewicz’s Velosano Fundraising Site American Cancer Society List of Fundraisers Pelotonia Home Page Dennis Grencewicz’s Pelotonia Fundraising Site

Matthew Marquardt, a third-year medical student at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and pro-triathlete in Ironman and Professional Triathletes Organization competitions, spills his secrets for successfully managing his time in arguably one of the busiest seasons of his life. We hear stories from Matt about how he first got into sports, what swimming at Princeton was like for him, and how he biked across the US in less than a month. He delves into how he prepares for his Ironman competitions, why he loves competing, and how his rigorous training schedule has benefitted his life and mentality. On the other side of things, we hear from him about his passion for medicine, how he studies for med school, and maintains relationships that matter to him. He covers deep-work philosophy, prioritization, the benefits of approaching life with a scientific mindset, and how to live with intention. Finally, he humbly shares with us the challenges of this lifestyle while encouraging us to pursue the things that are meaningful to us and valuable. Some helpful links:  Ironman Professional Triathletes Organization Matthew Marquardt Trek Article Matthew’s Instagram Matthew’s Twitter

Christian Essman is the Senior Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and host of the amazing “All Access: Med School Admissions” podcast. He holds an in-depth discussion with us about the admissions process for entry into allopathic medical school in the US and the role of an admissions committee member. We pour over the different components of the application, detailing what prospective applicants can start doing now to build a strong application and how current applicants can leverage who they are and their experiences to stand out as they apply and interview. Christian speaks to the importance of extracurriculars in the application, the transferability of skills gained from research experiences to the medical field, and how one can prepare for the interview. He shares the responsibilities and unique privileges admissions committee members have and addresses some misconceptions about the committees and the admissions process. Throughout the conversation, we also hear from Dennis about his experience applying to med school and matriculating to The Ohio State University College of Medicine. Both he and Christian also share their number one pieces of advice for current applicants. Helpful links:  All Access: Med School Admissions Podcast Haverford College: Explore Health Professions

Dr. Sylvain Ferrandon, a research scientist and lab manager at the Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center, shares his immigration story as a scientist from France coming to the US for a postdoctoral fellowship. We learn from Sylvain about the structure of the French education system, the factors that led him to look for research opportunities outside of France, and the qualities that make the US such a desirable place for scientists to work. He describes how he looked for and landed a job in the US and he paints a vivid picture of his first week upon arrival in Cleveland, Ohio. Through his story, we are introduced to some of the very real challenges international researchers in the US face, including meeting visa/work authorization renewal deadlines, overcoming language barriers, and building a credit score. Sylvain also explains how he found and created community. We discuss the benefits of diversified backgrounds in science, and the trends we predict for international researchers in the US. Interwoven in this conversation are Sylvain’s unwavering love of learning, his tangible excitement to explore the world, and his deep admiration and respect for the sacrifices made by international scientists to do research in the US. Some helpful links: Cleveland French Community Columbus French Community

Dr. George Fox, Emeritus Professor and Research Professor at the University of Houston, relates the remarkable story of how he and his late mentor, Dr. Carl Woese, discovered the biological kingdom Archaea. He explains how they realized they had identified a new kingdom, how this discovery was initially received by the scientific community, and how their work has shaped medicine and research to this day. We get an excellent overview of the science of 16S rRNA sequencing, background on Dr. Fox’s journey to become a scientist, and career advice for those who are uncertain about what to pursue. As he relayed his story, we were struck by Dr. Fox’s accomplishments, but even more so by his humility. We hope his legacy inspires you and the next generation of researchers for years to come. Some useful links: Phylogenetic structure of the prokaryotic domain: The primary kingdoms Scientists Discover a Form of Life That Predates Higher Organisms

Dr. Electra Paskett has a conversation with us on the field of epidemiology broadly, with a special focus on behavioral cancer epidemiology. She is the Director of the Division of Cancer Prevention and Control in the College of Medicine, an epidemiology professor in the College of Public Health, the Associate Director for Population Sciences and Program Leader of the Cancer Control Program in the Comprehensive Cancer Center of the Ohio State University, and the Director of the Center for Cancer Health Equity at the James Cancer Hospital. We discuss the subdisciplines of this field, how research is conducted, the impact of the social determinants of health on medical care, and the value of epidemiological research holistically. Dr. Paskett enumerates the factors that strongly associate with disparities and addresses misconceptions and challenges she faces in her work, while providing examples of some of her initiatives that are currently underway. Throughout the conversation, Dr. Paskett shares her passion for understanding why certain people get cancer and for designing interventions to prevent or reduce the risk of cancer.