Mendelspod Podcast

Chris Mason, Professor of Physiology and Biophysics and prolific genomics researcher at Weill Cornell Medicine, joins us to talk about what he’s doing with the new generation of spatial biology tools.The first papers we dive into are his work on COVID. Chris says the spatial tools have shown us the ravages of the coronavirus on the body like nothing we’ve seen before, i.e. the tissue damage from the cytokine storms and “the long term perturbations such as seeing cells far apart that were usually hanging out together.” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

David Steffin is a cancer researcher and physician at Texas Children's whose particular focus is on pediatric cancers. He begins today’s program with some interesting numbers. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

"If you go to a scientific meeting, even with the greatest critics, and you ask, how many people in this audience believe that your entire genome will be part of your everyday medical care in fifty years, every person will raise their hand. So the only questions we’re debating are: how do we get there, how soon can we get there, and what evidence base must we have in place before we get there? What’s really exciting to me is getting there sooner rather than later. If we get there 20 years sooner, we are saving thousands of people's lives.” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

We’re all aware of the way that next gen sequencing has changed many tests in the clinical laboratory. But some testing has held stubbornly resistant to change. This has been the case in cytogenetics, or the analysis of chromosomes. That is now changing thanks to a technology that is making inroads where next gen sequencing could not. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

"We have all of these evidence based tools and evidence based methods, but the problem is it can take upwards of 20 plus years to be truly implemented into care where healthcare providers are using them and patients are receiving them. And this includes medications and diagnostic tools and other types of treatment or screening.” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

One of the hottest new trends in biomedical research today is what is known as spatial biology--the ability to capture tissues in a 3D context. It was named Method of the Year by Nature Magazine in 2020.And one of the first automated instruments launched in this market was the GeoMx Digital Spatial Profiler by NanoString. CEO Brad Gray is here to tell us the story of the birth of the DSP and the revolution of 3D biology. What will these new tools enable for the basic and translational researcher? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

When Lee Schwartzberg did his training as an oncologist some thirty years ago at Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York, he had a dream. And after training, he set off to make that dream a reality: to bring the resources, expertise, and research that one enjoys at a major research hospital cancer center to the community level. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

“The new drug is the engaged individual,” says today’s guest, Daniel Kraft.Daniel is the founder of Exponential Medicine where he has championed digital health and the explosion of wearable technologies.  He's also hosting the new Healthy Conversations podcast--go check it out!  There you will find interviews with the innovator’s of today’s medical culture, including shows with former FDA Director, Scott Gottlieb, and genomic medicine guru, Eric Topol. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

First comes love, then comes marriage; then comes the genomic couple's report.  Isn't that how the line goes?Perhaps that's a how it will begin to go.Today's guest is the founder of Orchid Health, which as of this week is offering the world’s first risk prediction couple’s report. Based on whole genome sequencing from a saliva sample that expectant parents take from home, the report will tell them their genetic risk for the major diseases, including brain, heart, cancer, diabetes, and inflammatory bowel. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe

Will there be a fourth surge of COVID here in the U.S.? Already that we’re asking the question and it’s not an inevitability is a good sign. It’s become a race between vaccination clinics and viral variants.The U.S. was a bit slow to this race, but we are catching up. Viral surveillance has become a key part of any nation’s pandemic strategy. This past month, PacBio and Labcorp announced a partnership that brings the tool of long read sequencing to this effort. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe