Talking Biotech with Dr. Kevin Folta

Consumers have many opinions about food, and are continually bombarded by information from manufacturers to self-proclaimed experts. To gauge what they really think economists formulate approaches to learn what they are thinking and how they might behave in a purchasing scenario.  Dr. Stuart Smyth has studied the interface between consumers and agricultural biotechnology.  In this episode he prese...

The COVID-19 pandemic overshadowed an incredible year of innovation in biotechnology.  Today’s podcast is a simulcast between the Science Facts and Fallacies with Cameron English and Talking Biotech.  We discuss six science stories that were true highlights of an incredible year in science, along with stories that help us understand the state of the science/society interface. # COLABRA Talking Bio...

The COVID19 vaccines have the potential to squelch a dangerous pandemic. However, the public has many questions about their safety and efficacy that could limit their broad administration. Some of the questions concern the immune system, how it is affected by the vaccine, why two doses are necessary, and if the response is durable. Today’s podcast interviews Dr. Asha Brunings about the immunology...

Two mRNA vaccines have been approved to lead the fight against COVID19. Both have been rapidly approved with Emergency Use Authorization, which does not build public trust. Ultimately compelling the vaccine hesitant to receive the vaccination may be the most significant hurdle in the process. The science is complete, now the challenge is public acceptance.  Today’s podcast is more detail on the va...

Apples seem rather ubiqutous, but what we see in the stores are just a sample of the genetic diversity that is out there.  Today’s podcast discusses apple domestication and diversification with Dr. Norm Weeden.  its early history and radiation are discussed. as well as an understanding of its genomics and genetics. # COLABRA Talking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that b...

Despite its essential role in the economy and food security, agriculture has lagged behind with respect to adoption of new technology. This has happened for many reasons, partially from technology companies not realizing the opportunities in agriculture, and partially from high costs, and agriculture’s adherence to current practices. Dr. Adrian Percy has been a leader in agricultural reserach inno...

mRNA vaccines have recently been in the news as an exciting potential preventative of SARS-CoV2.  The technology seems new, but has roots in the 1990’s and a long history of maturation, plagued by technical barriers and skepticism.  However, the efficacy demonstrated in clinical trials is promising, and suggests that mRNA-based strategies may have a prominent role as vaccines and therapeutics agai...

Technology is driving innovation on the farm, and there have been significant efforts in improving livestock.  Whether it was to produce a novel therapeutic or to solve a critical disease in animals, genetic engineering techniques have been used to target significant animal and human problems. There are many more successful innovations than commercial successes, as the regulatory climate is highly...

Gene editing is a relatively new technology that has revolutionary applications in agriculture and medicine.  The drawback to the technology is that it typically can only be used to disrupt a deleterious gene underlying a specific trait.  Gene writing exploits a natural process in cells that allows researchers to install genes of interest, allowing replacement of damaged sequences that lead to neg...

The onion has tremendous value in culinary applications all over the world.  Where did it come from?  What are the major breeding efforts and the important traits.  Today’s podcast discusses the onion’s origin and future directions with Dr. Michael Havey, USDA-ARS/University of Wisconsin onion breeder.  He speaks of the onion’s interesting background, its surprising genome, and traits that will de...

On Halloween it is hard to remember that the pumpkins used for decoration are actually an important food for indigenous people of the Americas.  There are multiple species of pumpkins that originated in North and South America, and primarily used for food.  Dr. Harry Paris is a retired Senior Researcher and fruit breeder from the Volcani Center in Israel.  We discuss the origins of pumpkins, how t...

Gene editing moved quickly from the lab to application, so fast that the public is unsure how to think about it.  We can cure disease, but are we playing with the natural order of things? These are questions that philosophers and ethicists wrestle with every day.  in this week’s podcast we discuss the recent events in germline gene editing and how it is perceived by the public and by scientists. F...

This week two scientists pioneering gene editing won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry.  Days later, a group of perennial naysayers gathered to denounce the technology.  Gene editing is a revolutionary technology that already has had amazing effects on medicine and some applications in agriculture. The potential is limitless.  But this new technology can install precise changes in genes, emulating nat...

 Digestive cancers are among the most common and deadly cancers in the world, comprising metastases of the colon, esophagus, stomach and rectum.   These all share some cellular commonalities, namely the presentation of a molecular signature that can now be a target for engineered therapies.  Dr. Adam Snook has been studying the fingerprints of gastric cancers and developing gene therapy approaches...

Dr. Cami Ryan has examined the social factors that underlie decisions.  Today these human tendencies are critical to understand, as everyone is bombarded by information through social media.  How do issues like misinformation and disinformation erode the trust of scientific authorities?  How do scientists and farmers, the experts, grab a piece of the pie in the new attention economy?  Time is a co...

 The human immunodeficiency virus remains prevalent in the population, yet it as silently moved out of the public’s consciousness, overshadowed by COVID19 and drug cocktails that can control its progression.   Over the last three decades great progress has been made in understanding the virus and how it interacts with cells.  This, plus the identification of genetic determinants of resistance to H...

Sepsis is an infection of the blood.  It can be critical and life threatening, and can complicate other co-morbidities.  One of the main problems is that a number of bacterial and fungal pathogens can cause a septic state, so physicians are tasked with rapid identification of specific pathogens to render the most appropriate method of care. Unfortunately this usually involves broad treatments with...

Indoor air contains a variety of harmful compounds.  We invite many of these compounds into our homes in electronics, and others occur spontaneously from our water supply, and as homes become more energy efficient and dependent on air conditioning, these chemicals concentrate in our homes.  Dr. Stuart Strand of the University of Washington explains what they are and their relative risk.  He also d...

This week’s guest is the host!  It was important to discuss communication tips during a pandemic, especially around popular myths and news stories involving COVID19.  Kevin Folta provides counterarguments to today’s most prevalent claims around hydroxychloroquine, disease incidence, and the flu shot.  It also marks five years since the New York Times story that portrayed Folta as a corporate patsy...

Florida is the canary in the coalmine for mosquito-transmitted disease in the USA.  The Florida Keys are especially vulnerable.  Traffic through this sensitive string of islands allows infected insects to be rapidly vectored to other areas of the keys, as well as to the mainland.  Over the last decade there have been notable incidents of Zika, Chikunguna, Denge and other mosquito-borne diseases. O...

Penguins are charismatic, flightless, diving birds.  While typically associated only with Antarctica, their center of origin, radiation and speciation has been widely debated.  Dr. Juliana Vianna is part of an Antarctica Genomics Group at the Catholic University of Chile.  Her team has analyzed the genomes of penguins and compared it against other data, including the fossil record. They have provi...

Most experts agree that the COVID19 pandemic will not end until a vaccine is available.  But traditionally, vaccines take a decade to develop and test.  The crisis has ignited efforts from over 130 companies, all racing to develop vaccines to render the population immune to the virus.  One exciting new development is the mRNA vaccine, a case where humans are injected with the genetic material of t...

A number of strange, devastating and lethal diseases are caused by prions. The most famous of these disorders in animals is Bovine Spongiform Encelapathy,  or “Mad Cow Disease”. Unlike other infectious agents like viruses, bacteria or fungi, prion-based diseases are caused by a misfolding of proteins resident in the body.  Essentially, this is your own chemistry turning against itself.  In this we...

 Male cattle (bulls) convert feed calories to weight gain more efficiently than females (cows). If more bulls could be put into beef production, the process would be even more sustainable. Dr. Alison Van Eenennaam and her research team attempted a clever trick to skew the ratio of males to females in cattle offspring.  Sex determination in mammals is driven mostly by a single gene on the Y chromos...

In 2001 the Earth Liberation Front bombed the office of Dr. Toby Bradshaw at the University of Washington.  The damage was massive, especially toward non-targeted labs.  This is a great story of how misguided activism can have damaging collateral effects, and work against the efforts of scientists that are performing great work for people and a planet. # COLABRA Talking Biotech is brought to you b...