Talking Biotech with Dr. Kevin Folta

At the early age of 47 Cindy Lee Graham lost her battle with glioblastoma. Glioblastoma is an insidious cancer of the brain and central nervous system that slowly robs its victims of critical faculties, with a very low survival rate. This tragic loss is punctuated with an amazing gift of kindness, as Cindy and her husband Dr. Thomas Graham coordinated with pediatric neurosurgeon Dr. Sheila Singh to donate Cindy’s brain to cancer research. This unique gift provides an amazing resource that allows researchers to study the real-time evolution of glioblastoma cells, and understand how to eventually find their vulnerabilities. In the second half, Dr. Thomas Graham shares the story of Cindy’s illness, and the research and scholarship funds that have been established in her honor.Please consider donating at cindysgift.com Twitter: @Cindy_GBM_Fund@sheilasinghlab# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

The executive ranks of the pharmaceutical industry are populated with a clear over representation of older males. How did we get here, and how is the leadership in industry changing to seek qualified, yet diverse executives?  This week the Talking Biotech Podcast features Kimberly Gentile, Senior Vice President of Clinical Research at Biohaven Pharmaceuticals.  She shares her experiences as a woman in the upper echelons of the pharmaceutical industry, and describes how we got to where we are, and how we’ll move forward with more sensitivity to a diverse and equitable workplace.Biohaven Pharmaceuticals on Twitter:  @BiohavenPharma# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

Sustained space travel and colonization will depend on the ability to grow food in extra-terrestrial environments. The fact that plants evolved on earth with cues from gravity, photoperiod, barometric pressure and other signals means that plants growing on space stations or other planets will face unique stresses, never previously encountered. Add to this the challenges of watering plants in microgravity, a dependence on artificial lighting, and limited access to crop protection and fertilization strategies, and the ability to produce crops in space is a realistic limiter of long-term human colonization of space. Dr. Anna-Lisa Paul has studied plant biology in space and in extreme earth environments to learn about how plants adapt to these challenges, and even how humans might have to adapt to care for them. Twitter:  @UF_Space_Plants Dr. Paul in other media:  * UF Space Plants Lab: https://hos.ifas.ufl.edu/spaceplantslab/ * TEDxUF speaker, April 6th, 2019 – “Humans are explorers––go boldly” * Women in Science Instagram story for Friday, Feb. 9th, 2018, ahead of the UN’s Women and Girls in Science Day. : https://twitter.com/ISS_Research/status/962796712241672192 * NPR Science Friday. For premier of “The Martian”; how real space plant biology is getting us closer to the goal of other planets https://www.sciencefriday.com/videos/plants-in-space/# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

We all know the feeling of tiredness, but what causes the urge to sleep?  Prof. Lior Appelbaum discusses the link between sleepiness and DNA damage, as sensed through the accumulation of a protein known as PARP1.  PARP1 is well known for its roles in DNA repair.  Prof. Appelbaum’s team has examined PARP1 accumulation in animal models and shown strong evidence that the desire to sleep is triggered by DNA damage, and the desire to sleep involves action by PARP1. The conclusion is that tiredness should not be ignored, as it is a signal that there is some DNA damage to be corrected, and may play a role in long-term brain health.# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

T Cells are the body’snatural defenders against pathogens.  In the past they have been reprogrammed to recognize specific surface antigens of cancer cells to attack and destroy them. The approach has worked well against a variety of cancers. The limitation is that they addition of genetic material is limited by transfer techniques.  This episode of the Talking Biotech Podcast discusses the new approach with Dr. Ken Drazan of Arsenal Bio. They have devised a strategy to place genetic material into T-cells from an afflicted patient that can now work against the disease in question. The approach uses gene editing, adding genetic material to T cells that allows them to recognize specific antigens, such as those associated with ovarian cancer.Follow on Twittter:  @ArsenalBio# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

Olives have a prominent role in the production of aromatic healthy culinary oils and brined olives for the table.  Olive oil production occurs worldwide on old-growth orchards that are subject to a number of modern production challenges.  Disease, pests, climate change and other issues threaten sustainable production. Today’s guest is Prof. Lorenzo Leon, an olive breeder from IFAPA in Cordoba, Spain. He has taken on the mantle of creating the next generation of superior olive cultivars. We discuss the challenges of olive breeding, the protracted timeline, and the fact that his crosses today may result in something in the field decades down the road. We discuss modern genetic tools and their implementation. The discussion is a great appreciation of plant breeders, their important job, and the challenges they face.Follow Dr. Leon on Twitter:  @OliveBreeding# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

Thirty million Americans depend on daily doses of insulin to stay alive.  This small protein hormone is responsible for the regulation of blood sugar, and plays a key role in all aspects of physiology, as well as long-term effects on health. Despite its importance, the vast majority of insulin is produced off shore, leaving it vulnerable to supply chain disruptions that could be hazardous for many Americans. Domestic production is hindered by a variety of barriers, from production to regulatory. Cameron Owen is the CEO and Co-Founder of rBIO, and they are using a specially designed E. coli bacterium that focuses strictly on insulin production. This streamlining of the process around bacteria that commit the majority of resources into insulin production leads to minimizing side reactions and higher yields of the desired product. Making the production process more efficient means that this critical hormone may be produced at a lower price and without fear of supply chain production.Follow rBIO on twitter at @rBio_pharma# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

How can analysis of DNA isolated from old, preserved organisms, bones, or tissues tell us about life today?  Dr. Beth Shapio is a professor at the University of California Santa Cruz and an HHMI Investigator. She has studied the genomic information from ancient preserved sources to describe events and adaptations that underlie species evolution.  In this episode we discuss the technology behind isolating ancient DNA, its utility in resolving evolutionary lineages, and understanding traits in populations and their relationships to their environment. We conclude with a discussion of gene editing ethics and application to conservation biology.Follow Dr. Shapiro on Twitter at @BonesAndBugs# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

New strategies in gene therapy are integrating multiple modern techniques to take on contemporary challenging diseases, such as solid-tumor cancers. Dr. Eric Ostertag of Poseida Therapeutics describes their transposon-based gene therapies that deliver useful gene replacements through biodegradable, tissue-targeted nanoparticles. This contrasts against the older gene therapy technologies that relied on viral delivery.  In addition, Poseida offers new approaches in CAR-T cell therapies, genetic adjustment of native immune cells to target cancers. These One-time treatments appear to be promising in treating a variety of cancers using innovative strategies.Posieda Therapeutics Website # COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.

Genetic counselors play a critical role from pre-natal guidance to lifelong expertise in managing genetically-based disorders. With the tools of rapid sequencing and computational biology, the genetic counselor has new tools to predict genetic disorders and advise symptom management. Today’s guest is Pilar Magoulas, a Certified Genetic Counselor from Texas Children’s Hospital.  She has won awards for her expertise in genetic counseling. We discuss the traditional roles of genetic counselors, how new technology aids in her work, and what the future holds for those interested in this growing career area.Baylor School of Medicine Genetic Counseling Program# COLABRATalking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/# TALKING BIOTECHTwitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotechWebsite: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahqThe Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.