US Surgeons Perform First Pig-to-human Kidney Transplant
A 62-year-man with end-stage renal disease has become the first human to receive a new kidney from a genetically modified pig, doctors from Massachusetts General Hospital in... (Source: Medscape Transplantation Podcast)
Source: Medscape Transplantation Podcast - March 21, 2024 Category: Transplant Surgery Authors: Medscape 210869 Source Type: podcasts
A dive into the genetic history of India, and the role of vitamin A in skin repair
What modern Indian genomes say about the region’s deep past, and how vitamin A influences stem cell plasticityFirst up this week, Online News Editor Michael Price and host Sarah Crespi talk about a large genome sequencing project in India that reveals past migrations in the region and a unique intermixing with Neanderthals in ancient times. Next on the show, producer Kevin McLean chats with Matthew Tierney, a postdoctoral fellow at Rockefeller University, about how vitamin A and stem cells work together to grow hair and heal wounds. This week’s episode was produced with help from Podigy. About the Science Podcast A...
Source: Science Magazine Podcast - March 7, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Science Magazine Source Type: podcasts
Could this one-time ‘epigenetic’ treatment control cholesterol?
In this episode:00:49 What caused the Universe to become fully transparent?Around 13 billion years ago, the Universe was filled with a dense ‘fog’ of neutral hydrogen that blocked certain wavelengths of light. This fog was lifted when the hydrogen was hit by radiation in a process known as reionisation, but the source of this radiation has been debated. Now, researchers have used the JWST to peer deep into the Universe’s past and found that charged particles pouring out from dwarf galaxies appear to be the the main driver for reionization. This finding could help researchers understand how some of the structures we n...
Source: Nature Podcast - February 28, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Springer Nature Limited Source Type: podcasts
Diabetes Core Update March 2024
Diabetes Core Update is a monthly podcast that presents and discusses the latest clinically relevant articles from the American Diabetes Association’s four science and medical journals – Diabetes, Diabetes Care, Clinical Diabetes, and Diabetes Spectrum. Each episode is approximately 25 minutes long and presents 5-6 recently published articles from ADA journals. Intended for practicing physicians and health care professionals, Diabetes Core Update discusses how the latest research and information published in journals of the American Diabetes Association are relevant to clinical practice and can be applied in a trea...
Source: Diabetes Core Update - February 27, 2024 Category: Endocrinology Authors: American Diabetes Association Source Type: podcasts
Why we need to rethink how we talk about cancer
For over a century, cancer has been classified by areas of the body - lung cancer, breast cancer, skin cancer etc. And yet modern medical research is telling us that the molecular and genetic mechanisms behind cancers are not necessarily tied to parts of the body. Many drugs developed to treat metastatic cancers have the capacity to work across many different cancers, and that presents an opportunity for more tailored and efficient treatments. Oncologists are calling for a change in the way patients, clinicians and regulators think about naming cancers.In this podcast, senior comment editor Lucy Odling-...
Source: Nature Podcast - February 9, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Springer Nature Limited Source Type: podcasts
Ancient DNA solves the mystery of who made a set of stone tools
In this episode:0:48 How hominins spread through EuropeAncient stone tools are often uncovered in Europe, but it can be difficult to identify who crafted them, as Neanderthals and Homo sapiens coexisted in the region for several thousand years. The makers of one type of tool found in northern Europe has long puzzled researchers, but now through genetic analysis of nearby skeletal fragments, it has been revealed that they were made by Homo sapiens. The age of these tools suggests that modern humans were more widespread and adaptable to living in colder climates than previously thought.Research article: Mylopotamitaki et al....
Source: Nature Podcast - January 31, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Springer Nature Limited Source Type: podcasts
Science ’s Breakthrough of the Year, and tracing poached pangolins
Top science from 2023, and a genetic tool for pangolin conservation First up this week, it’s Science’s Breakthrough of the Year with producer Meagan Cantwell and News Editor Greg Miller. But before they get to the tippy-top science find, a few of this year’s runners-up. See all our end-of-year coverage here. Next, Jen Tinsman, a forensic wildlife biologist at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, joins host Sarah Crespi to discuss using genetics to track the illegal pangolin trade. These scaly little guys are the most trafficked mammals in the world, and researchers can now use DNA from their scales to find poaching ...
Source: Science Magazine Podcast - December 14, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Science Magazine Source Type: podcasts
How to tame a toxic yet life-saving antifungal
In this episode:00:46 Modifying a fungal drug to make it less toxicAmphotericin B is a drug used to treat life-threatening fungal infections. But while it is effective against many fungal species, it is also extremely toxic to kidneys, meaning it is mostly used as a drug of last-resort. This week, a team has unpicked the mechanism behind the drug’s toxicity, allowing them to modify it and reduce side effects in human kidney cells. The researchers hope this new version of the drug could become a useful tool in fighting fungal diseases.Research article: Maji et al.09:00 Research HighlightsReconstructing woolly rhino DNA us...
Source: Nature Podcast - November 8, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Springer Nature Limited Source Type: podcasts
An anti-CRISPR system that helps save viruses from destruction
In this episode:00:47 An RNA-based viral system that mimics bacterial immune defencesTo protect themselves against viral infection, bacteria often use CRISPR-Cas systems to identify and destroy an invading virus’s genetic material. But viruses aren’t helpless and can deploy countermeasures, known as anti-CRISPRs, to neutralise host defences. This week, a team describe a new kind of anti-CRISPR system, based on RNA, which protects viruses by mimicking part of the CRISPR-Cas system. The researchers hope that this discovery could have future biotechnology applications, including making CRISPR-Cas genome editing more preci...
Source: Nature Podcast - October 18, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Springer Nature Limited Source Type: podcasts
Gene edits move pig organs closer to human transplantation
In this episode:00:46 Engineered pig kidneys show transplantation promiseKidneys from genetically-engineered miniature pigs have been transplanted into non-human primates, in some cases keeping the animals alive for more than a year. Using CRISPR, a team made dozens of edits to the pig genome to prevent the monkeys’ immune system from attacking the organs. They also removed pig retrovirus genes that could represent an infection risk. These steps are necessary if pig organs are to be used in human transplants, something many clinicians and researchers think will be needed to overcome a critical shortage of organs for tran...
Source: Nature Podcast - October 11, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Springer Nature Limited Source Type: podcasts
Our ancestors lost nearly 99% of their population, 900,000 years ago
In this episode:00:30 Early humans pushed to brink of extinctionAround 900,000 years ago the ancestors of modern humans were pushed to the brink of extinction, according to new research. Genetic studies suggest that the breeding population of our ancestors in Africa dropped to just 1,280 and didn’t expand again for another 117,000 years. This population crash would likely have had an impact on human genetic diversity, and may have driven the evolution of important features of modern humans, such as brain size.Nature News: Human ancestors nearly went extinct 900,000 years ago3:49 The pollution legacy of Antarctica’s res...
Source: Nature Podcast - September 6, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Springer Nature Limited Source Type: podcasts
Tracing the genetic history of African Americans using ancient DNA, and ethical questions at a famously weird medical museum
Bringing together ancient DNA from a burial site and a giant database of consumer ancestry DNA helps fill gaps in African American ancestry, and a reckoning for Philadelphia’s Mütter Museum
First up on this week’s show, ancient DNA researchers and ancestry giant 23andMe joined forces to uncover present day ties to a cemetery at the Catoctin Furnace ironworks in Maryland, where enslaved people were buried. Contributing producers and hosts of the Dope Labs podcast Titi Shodiya and Zakiya Whatley spoke with authors Éadaoin Harney and David Reich about the historical significance of this work and how it may help som...
Source: Science Magazine Podcast - August 3, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Science Magazine Source Type: podcasts
Tracing the genetic history of African Americans using ancient DNA, and ethical questions at a famously weird medical museum
Bringing together ancient DNA from a burial site and a giant database of consumer ancestry DNA helps fill gaps in African American ancestry, and a reckoning for Philadelphia’s Mütter Museum
First up on this week’s show, ancient DNA researchers and ancestry giant 23andMe joined forces to uncover present day ties to a cemetery at the Catoctin Furnace ironworks in Maryland, where enslaved people were buried. Contributing producers and hosts of the Dope Labs podcast Titi Shodiya and Zakiya Whatley spoke with authors Éadaoin Harney and David Reich about the historical significance of this work and how it may help som...
Source: Science Magazine Podcast - August 3, 2023 Category: Science Authors: Science Magazine Source Type: podcasts
Vestibular Schwannoma Treatment, Genetics of Dilated Cardiomyopathy, Folic Acid to Prevent Neural Tube Defects, and more
Editor’s Summary by Mary McGrae McDermott, MD, Deputy Editor of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association, for the August 1, 2023, issue. Related Content: Audio Highlights (Source: JAMA: This Week's Audio Commentary)
Source: JAMA: This Week's Audio Commentary - August 1, 2023 Category: General Medicine Authors: JAMA Network Source Type: podcasts
Genomic Sequencing for Ill Newborns
The performance of whole-genome sequencing in comparison with targeted genomic testing methods is not well understood. In this podcast, JAMA Associate Editor W. Gregory Feero, MD, PHD, interviews author Jill L. Maron, MD, MPH, of the Women and Infants Hospital of Rhode Island about a study of whole-genome sequencing vs a commercially available targeted genetic testing platform for diagnosing ill neonates with suspected genetic conditions. Related Content: Rapid Whole-Genomic Sequencing and a Targeted Neonatal Gene Panel in Infants With a Suspected Genetic Disorder (Source: JAMA Author Interviews)
Source: JAMA Author Interviews - July 11, 2023 Category: General Medicine Authors: JAMA Network Source Type: podcasts
