Finding Genius Podcast

What are new therapeutic oncology techniques? Recent studies show that a new frontier of T-cell therapy may be the future of the field. Listen in to find out: What is a double negative T-cell? How T-cells can be effective in fighting certain forms of cancer Can the therapeutic use of T-cells span more than just Leukemia? Li Zhang and Jong Bok Lee join the conversation and share their recent discoveries about the efficacy of T-cells in fighting Leukemia. T-cells have many beneficial properties to the human body but can also cause problems if they are not controlled. Among the promising traits are the anti-cancer and anti-viral properties, but they can also cause anti-immune disorders and grafted organ rejections. The possibilities of future use in cancer detection and prevention alongside use in other forms are promising. Double negative T-cells' ability to target tumor cells vs. normal cells makes them ideal for both pre- and post-chemotherapy patients. For more information and access to studies, search for double negative T-cells on your preferred search engine. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

Where do you call home? Believe it or not, your answer could explain your health status. Tune in to learn how, and discover: Why zip code is the biggest predictor of health in the U.S., and what this reveals about health disparities What advances have been made in the prevention and treatment of HIV over the past decade What is meant by the “power of the purse” and how it can be used to help combat health inequalities How much is decided at the local level, and how individuals can get their voices heard Céline Gounder is CEO/President/Founder of Just Human Productions, a nonprofit media company aimed at addressing and educating on matters of health inequality in the U.S. and beyond. She's also a practicing HIV/infectious diseases specialist and internist, epidemiologist, and producer of two podcasts: one on health and social justice, and the other on COVID-19.   It was her interest in the intersection of science and the service of others—especially marginalized people—that led her to the field of infectious diseases, which tend to disproportionately impact certain communities, like those of color, LGBTQ, the homeless, and users of injectable drugs. “Like COVID, it’s a test for how socially and economically vulnerable you are, and what your access to health looks like,” says Dr. Gounder.   She discusses the variability of environmental exposure to toxins and infectious diseases, the importance of jobs when it comes to health inequalities, risk factors for HIV, what people can do to have an impact on the health of communities, how the media landscape has changed in recent decades, why a vaccine for HIV has been so difficult to develop, how she sees the COVID-19 situation evolving over the next year or two, and more. Press play for the full conversation, and learn more at https://www.justhumanproductions.org/. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

Curious about an effective keto diet plan? Then you might be one of the one billion Ben Azadi has been trying to reach. Listen in as he shares years of experience and the finer points of Ketogenic diet side effects and health benefits. He addresses What are some of the sticking points when people try the ketogenic diet for weight loss and how can they overcome them, Why the type of fat you consume affects inflammation levels, Why looking at lab work may be better inspiration than the numbers on the scale, and What are nutrition basics and feedback methods, including the types of ketones and how should you test for them. Ben Azadi is founder of Keto Kamp and an expert on the ketogenic diet meal plan. He's also a health coach and personal trainer. He brings these together to help clients focus on the best practice for integrating the ketogenic diet food list, intermittent fasting, and healthful choices along the way. His fascination with the approach started after his own struggles with weight that lead to a dramatic weight loss that left him as one of those "fit sick people" who only focused on weight loss. He spent every available minute researching and learned enough to transform his health through a well-balanced approach to the ketogenic life. He now wants to help others get to the same place and shares several suggestions for listeners, including common mistakes that can sabotage success. For example, he talks about the importance of transitioning slowly to the diet rather than an extreme approach that often leads to failure. He addresses how to ease into intermittent fasting so it's not like trying to marathon without any training. He also explains some key considerations such as appropriate and helpful lab work, means of assessing how your body is doing, and the importance of understanding electrolytes and the roll of "bitter" foods in liver function. If you are curious about the ketogenic approach and want to get a fuller picture, this conversation fits the bill. For more about his work and his Keto Kamp program, see benazadi.com. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

One night of poor sleep can ruin the week. Chronic poor sleep can disrupt short and long-term mental and physical health. And traditional sleep methods are misguided, which is why most of them don’t work. Press play to discover: Why the mind stays active even when you want to sleep, and how to make the mind go quiet without even trying to make it do so How and why all other sleep methods fall short of helping most people achieve sleep How the Sleep Easy method is a form of mind-body healing, easily achievable, and used as a replacement for sleep aids by many people Why quality sleep lowers healthcare costs Internationally renowned sleep expert and Co-Founder/Chief Clinical Officer at Sleep Easy, Richard Shane, has been featured in over 100 medical journals and publications. Today, he shares his insights with listeners, and even leads them through a four-minute experience of the body sensations of sleep—a method he says triggers neurological switches for sleep. It’s not hypnosis, it’s not meditation; it’s simpler than both. For years, Shane struggled with “horrific” insomnia…leading him into a state of terror and anger, until he realized that he could use his experience as a way to discover how sleep happens. Through this process, he captured what he calls “secrets from the depths of sleep itself,” recording these secrets, implementing them into his method, and now sharing them with people all over the world. The Sleep Easy method is a 14-day program consisting of daily and nightly recordings aimed at bringing people from insomnia to progressively deeper levels of sleep. In the near future, a clinical study will not only measure how quickly people enjoy improved sleep using this method, but also how this results in lower healthcare costs. Visit https://sleepeasymethod.com/ to learn more. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

Manipulating ion channels may save lives. Researcher Saverio Gentile explains how. He tells listeners about exciting research on biochemical pathways in cancer cells in the human body. He and colleagues are looking at tumor cells versus normal cells regarding an understudied cell mechanism called voltage-gated ion channels. Listen and learn Why a key characteristic of cancer cells—proliferation—may easily be inhibited through this research; How channels work in normal cells to regulate highly-sensitive gradients for ions like sodium, calcium, chloride, and potassium; What's significant about how these channels appear to evolve and work in cancer cells; and How one study has shown a reduction of tumor growth by manipulating these channels with a common drug. Saverio Gentile, PhD, is a research assistant professor with the College of Medicine at Chicago Medicine with the University of Illinois and is a member of the Translational Oncology Program. He takes listeners on a deep dive in the latest on cancer treatment utilizing an understudied cellular mechanism as it relates to cancer causes: voltage-gated ion channels. As he shares facts about cancer cells, he describes these channels as interspersed on cell membranes and in cellular organs. They've been historically studied in terms of cardio myocyte function and the neuron—cancer cells are shifting front and center in Saverio Gentile's work. These channels work throughout the body to maintain the appropriate gradient of ions. He adds, "the other wonderful thing about this class of proteins is that they don't really work alone . . . like a concert, basically they work together." Through research, they are finding out how to change the "action potential" of some of these channels in cancer cells. He gets specific with one project that manipulates the potassium channel in ovarian and breast cancers to "push it in a corner," and then hits it with another drug that kills the cancer cell. He describes other fascinating ways altering these channels may lead to effective therapies and discusses how students and other researchers can participate in the conversation around this work. Listen in for more hopeful news about cancer treatments. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

What you eat and how you eat it impacts you in tremendous ways—so much so that Dr. George Yu says the term ‘nutrition’ is just a broad term for ‘metabolism,’ the very thing that’s intimately tied to cancer and other diseases. Learn how, and discover: How the food you eat ends up in your cells—a stepwise understanding What relationship exists between mitochondria, hormones, and the development of Alzheimer’s Why the protocol to stave off Alzheimer’s could also be the protocol to stave off diabetes and cancer   When double-blind studies are necessary, and why they might be over-used George Yu is President of the George W. Yu Foundation for Nutrition and Health, a surgeon based out of Annapolis, Maryland and Washington DC, professor of urology at George Washington University Medical Center, and for the past 35 years, has been a partner at Aegis Medical and Research Associates. The overarching goal of his research is to narrow the time gap between scientific discovery and clinical application, which is possible because of technological advances over the past 10 years. According to Dr. Yu, there is now an opportunity for people to access an unprecedented amount of empowering and useful information about nutrition and metabolic aspects of ageing and disease, the rejuvenation of tissues, and how to practically remove a lifetime accumulation of toxins from the body. Underlying much of his work and research is something called mitochondrial metabolism. In discussing this, he explains the relationship between defective mitochondria and cancer, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes, the advantage of having a lot of muscle mass, fatty acids as fuel for the body, what effect the ketogenic diet can have on cancer, the scientific history and understanding of calorie restriction, intermittent fasting, and more.   Tune in, and visit https://yufoundation.org/ to learn more. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

Is cancer truly the result and product of damaged cells? New research may suggest otherwise. Listen in to find out: When dated, when cancer cells first began appearing If single-celled organisms can get cancer How a cancer cell or cluster can be thought of as an organism Author and professor at Arizona State University, Paul Davies, returns to share his new work and recent cancer research. Paul Davies discusses the new ways of thinking about cancer and its progression within the human body. Cancer cells can be considered embryos that have gone wrong, which calls into question the relationship between cancer and genetics. Cells have many methods of reacting to and fighting developing cancer. An equilibrium of cancerous to non-cancerous cells must be maintained in the tissue to avoid developing a tumor, but almost all cells have the potential to become cancerous. For more information, cancer-insights@asu.edu. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

While considered rare in the general population of cancers, glioblastoma is the most common primary cancer found in adults. That "primary" designation is important and Dr. Sunit Das explains why and how he works as a clinician and researcher to get some traction on fighting brain cancer. Listen and learn What common treatments exist, including chemo and radiotherapy for brain tumors, What genetic mechanisms of disease and even the role of epigenetics seem to play in the heterogeneous findings from biopsies, How glioblastoma progresses biologically, inducing brain tissue damage and cancer cell growth outside of the tumor mass, and Why while the struggle to make progress on treating this disease continues, hope may lie in identifying patterns in the heterogeneity. Sunit Das is an associate professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Toronto. His clinical work centers on removing tumors from the brain and his researcher focuses on the biology of brain stem cells, comparing normal and cancerous. Because brain surgery for cancer is usually far from curative, he's developed a keen interest in researching brain tissue function and how to make strides in treatment. He discusses how the clinical and scientific sides of his work inform each other, from following a patient through surgery and brain cancer chemo to understanding how biopsies from multiple parts of a tumor translate to a challenging heterogeneity. He comments, "we can put the things that we learned from watching cells and the way they behave into the greater context of thinking of a tumor and how that manifests in the patient experience." He answers numerous questions, including how brain tumors grow, if there's a clear difference between tumor and normal brain tissue, and whether tumor cells are simply transformed normal cells. The final image he presents helps listeners understand the nature of this disease and what scientists hope to learn to find better treatments. For more about his work and for contact information, see his web page at the University of Toronto. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

How do ants maintain a colony while not letting foreign bacteria or harmful chemicals develop? A complex internal microbiome is at work protecting the individuals and colony. Tune in to learn: How an ant can so effectively maintain an internal microbiome If an ant can be just as effective in filtering particles as an expensive lab filter How ants digest food and why they prefer certain types at specific times Research scientist and part of the American Museum of Natural History, Michele Lanan, joins the podcast to discuss her research on ants and their complex microbiome. Ants are a species that not only share food but regurgitate that food to spread it throughout the colony. This is an essential function of many of the colony's workers and crucial to the ant ecosystem alive and thriving. The microbial community functioning inside of every ant lends itself to the delicate balance of the colony. It also gives a more extensive insight into the ecological role of insects as a whole. Michele Lanan continues to research entomology and forensics in ants. To learn more, search online for the Southwestern Research Station at the American Museum of Natural History. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C

What difference does a matte chip bag make? What part of your brain pushed for that deodorant brand? Felix Cao says your primal brain most likely had a say. He describes how neuroscience and business marketing strategies have propelled ways to measure brain activity and affect our buying choices. Listen and learn How nueromarketing has tapped into a panicking consumer mindset during the pandemic to target our need for security, What role nostalgia is playing in today's marketing, How the primal brain acts as a filter for the logical part and why, and What are examples of effective marketing decisions that have led to definitive business growth strategies. Felix Cao specializes in neuromarketing and is the founder of Happy Buying Brain. He brought a long-time fascination with how the visual affects our brain with the latest in neuroscience and technology into the founding of his company. Because he helps companies apply brain activity measurements to more effective selling campaigns, he has fascinating stories about why and how our brains react differently to seemingly innocuous details, like metallic versus matte packaging to the impact of aroma vapors on a soup can. With artificial intelligence, machine learning, and virtual reality breakthroughs, advertising science is on the verge of a whole new set of methods. Meanwhile, Cao explains, because smartphone use has rapidly increased, neuromarketers have their hands full with studying effects of screen size and scrolling habits. It all starts with evolutionary biology, he says, and the human impulse to scan for the best opportunity is closely aligned with our survival instinct. That's where nueromarketers come in, finding ways to engage with that instinct so that it filters to the logical part of the brain. Listen in for ideas toward great marketing science and a better understanding of how our brains make these daily decisions. For more about his work, see Happy Buying Brain. Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/30PvU9C