Science at the Fifty-Third Degree

When we think of genetic testing, it is easy to picture a simple yes-or-no answer, but human biology is rarely that straightforward. In this episode of Science at the Fifty-Third Degree, host Dr. Nayiar Shahid sits down with Dr. Susan Christian, clinical genetic counselor with Alberta Precision Laboratories and course coordinator in the Department of Medical Genetics at the University of Alberta.

Dr. Christian unpacks the nuances of modern genomic medicine, explaining why genetic differences are a normal part of human biology and how "Variants of Uncertain Significance" (VUSs) can create ambiguity for patients and clinicians alike. The conversation explores the GenEd (Genetic Education for the Next Era) initiative designed to build genetic literacy among healthcare trainees, details the ethical and emotional balance of testing children for inherited cardiac conditions like arrhythmias and cardiomyopathies, and offers actionable advice on how patients can advocate for themselves during medical appointments.

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Think back to the last exam you studied for-how many facts did you cram into your head, and how many can you still remember today? In this episode of Science at the Fifty-Third Degree, host Dr. Nayiar Shahid sits down with Dr. Fatima Mraiche, Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Alberta and recipient of the 2023 Virgo Teaching Chair.

After spending nearly 12 years at Qatar University shaping curriculum, accreditation, and cardiovascular research programs, Dr. Mraiche returned to Edmonton to rethink how the next generation of scientists learns. Her educational research addresses how students digest complex concepts, navigate responsible AI use, and connect classroom theory directly to real-world industry applications through collaborations with U of A spinoff companies.

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What if the monsters that scare us most were never just stories, but rooted in real biochemistry? In this special Halloween episode of Science at the Fifty-Third Degree, host Dr. Nayiar Shahid sits down with Dr. Richard Fahlman, Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Alberta.

Dr. Fahlman bridges the gap between historical mysteries and biochemistry, explaining how genetic variants in the heme biosynthetic pathway (porphyria) connect to vampire legends, and how ergot fungus poisoning matches old trial records from the Salem witch trials. The conversation shifts from spooky folklore to real-life cellular horror: protein misfolding, degradation impairments, and Dr. Fahlman's grant-winning research into the "Dark Side of the Proteome"-using mass spectrometry and machine learning to analyze the two-thirds of cellular data traditionally ignored in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and neurological research.

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Ever wonder which organ you built entirely on your own before you were even born? For nine months, the placenta acts as the lung, liver, and partial heart of the developing fetus, yet most people forget it exists as soon as biology class ends. In this episode of Science at the Fifty-Third Degree, host Dr. Nayiar Shahid sits down with Dr. Meghan Riddell from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Physiology at the University of Alberta.

Dr. Riddell debunks common social myths by revealing that the placenta isn't built by the mother, but by the embryo's very first committed cells: trophoblasts. The conversation explores how her lab uses human trophoblast stem cells to build a "placenta in a dish" to model conditions like preeclampsia and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Dr. Riddell introduces the mind-boggling biology of the syncytiotrophoblast-a single cell containing 53 billion nuclei that expands to 10 to 12 square meters-and makes a compelling case for why pregnancy health isn't just "women's health," but a shared responsibility for everyone.

This episode covers:
● Why the placenta is built by the baby's embryo rather than the mother's body.
● How trophoblast dysfunction leads to pregnancy complications like preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction.
● The "placenta in a dish" model and why rodent placentas are too evolutionarily divergent to mimic human biology.
● The extreme cell biology of the syncytiotrophoblast-a single cell containing 53 billion nuclei.
● Reframing pregnancy research to include paternal lifestyle contributions and community-wide support.

This episode covers:

● The heart-kidney mystery: How SGLT2 inhibitors offer direct cardioprotection even though SGLT2 receptors aren't expressed in the heart.

● How radio frequencies combined with AI match the accuracy of traditional glucose sensors completely non-invasively.

● Fostering intrinsic motivation: How real-time trend visualization helps prevent Type 2 diabetes far better than static finger-prick numbers.

● The "Beyond Glucose" initiative: Adapting radio frequency software to measure other vital blood metabolites like lactate and ketones.

What springs to mind when you think of a local pharmacy—a pill bottle, a quick prescription pickup, or a simple errand? In Alberta, pharmacists are doing far more. They can independently prescribe, order laboratory tests, administer vaccinations, and manage chronic conditions as an integral part of your primary care team.

In this season premiere of Science at the Fifty-Third Degree, host Dr. Nayiar Shahid sits down with Dr. Yazid Al-Hamarneh from the EpiCore Center at the University of Alberta. With Alberta boasting the fullest scope of pharmacy practice in the world, Dr. Al-Hamarneh shares groundbreaking research on what happens when community pharmacies become accessible primary care health hubs.

This episode covers:

● Why Alberta leads the world in scope of practice, allowing pharmacists to independently prescribe and order lab tests.

● How local pharmacies fill primary care gaps in a system where 50% of Canadians lack timely access to a family physician.

● The "three-legged stool" of research proof: superior clinical outcomes, high patient satisfaction, and billions in health economic savings.

● The critical role of community pharmacists in catching and managing "silent killers" like high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol.

● How nonjudgmental conversations and strong patient rapport help address health hesitancy with evidence-based care.

Note: Science at the Fifty-Third Degree is produced by the University of Alberta Basic Science Administrative Team and is available on the Aviary platform and wherever you listen to podcasts. Questions or feedback? Reach us at [email protected].

Right now, billions of your brain cells are talking in unison, communicating in rhythms so complex that visually you would never understand them. But what if you could hear them instead? In this episode of Science at the Fifty-Third Degree, host Dr. Nayiar Shahid explores the cutting edge of data sonification with Mitch Prostebby, a graduate student in Dr. Clayton Dickson's lab at the University of Alberta. Mitch recently took home the top prize at the university's Sounds of Research competition with his track, "Thunderstorms and Symphonies of the Brain," which maps the neural activity of a rat during sleep.

Merging his background as an aspiring jazz musician with electrophysiology, Mitch shows how our ears can instantly pick up on subtle data patterns—like neural ripples—that are easily obscured on a static visual graph. The conversation covers the potential for creating a "brainwave dictionary," using music theory to map neural pathways, and the revolutionary future of medical therapies that actually "sing back to the brain" to correct cognitive dysfunction.

This episode covers:

● How short staccato electrical pops from a sleeping rat's hippocampus are converted into musical notes across the octave spectrum.

● Why combining auditory and visual data helps researchers spot subtle patterns—like neural ripples—that are easily obscured on static graphs.

● The concept of the "Neural Orchestra," where distinct cell circuit motifs cooperate flexibly to produce overlapping frequency ranges.

● Moving away from simplistic, single-frequency neurostimulation toward a dynamic frequency dialogue that mimics natural brain communication.

● Future goals of using EEG headsets to map how the human brain musically responds to art, poetry, and favorite foods.

Imagine taking a page from a book, wiping it completely blank, and writing an entirely different story on it. In the world of cell biology, this is called cellular reprogramming. In this episode of Science at the Fifty-Third Degree, host Dr. Nayiar Shahid steps into a cellular time machine with Dr. Sandeep Gupta from the Department of Cell Biology at the University of Alberta to look at how scientists are turning back the clock on human cells.    Using Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (iPSC) technology, Dr. Gupta’s lab takes simple skin or blood cells from patients and coaxes them to forget their adult identity, returning them to an embryonic blank slate. From there, they can grow patient-specific brain and spinal cord neurons in a dish. This groundbreaking approach allows researchers to study the fundamental biology of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and explore sensory dysfunction directly at its source.

This episode covers:

● The high-tech wizardry behind cellular reprogramming and rewiring transcriptomic structures.

● How the discovery of the Yamanaka factors (OSKM: OCT4, SOX2, KLF4, c-MYC) eliminated the need for human embryos in stem cell research.

● Mapping the massive diversity of autism by looking at mutations across nearly 1,000 risk genes.

● Dr. Gupta's exciting, brand-new data revealing the critical role of the spinal cord as a sensory gating mechanism in autism.

● How "brain in a dish" models have moved from science fiction to standardized drug-discovery platforms for precision medicine.

Imagine walking into a research lab in 1980: no laptops, no automated kits, manual sequencing gels read entirely by eye, and a physical slide box for every single medical student. In this episode of Science at the Fifty-Third Degree, host Dr. Nayiar Shahid sits down with Julie Haskins from the Department of Cell Biology at the University of Alberta. With an incredible 45-year milestone career, Julie has served as a constant, brilliant anchor while the biological world exploded with technological revolutions around her.

From her start as a histology technician in the original Department of Anatomy to navigating modern digital workflows and next-generation sequencing, Julie shares her perspective on what has changed, what has stayed the same, and what it truly takes to stay engaged in the lab marathon for over four decades.

This episode covers:

● What the "vibe" and operational setup of a university lab looked like in 1980.

● The profound shift from hands-on reagent mixing to automated core facility testing.

● Why senior technicians hold irreplaceable institutional knowledge and continuity for new graduate students.

● How staying fresh means evolving—revealing how Julie stayed excited by working across six completely different labs.

● Essential life lessons for day one in the lab, starting with a golden rule: "Keep good notes"