Science Never Sleeps

Landing on the moon was the first big step in space exploration, opening a new frontier beyond our own atmosphere. Since then, researchers have been exploring the effects of space flight and micro-gravity on the human body. To stay in space for longer periods we need to understand the effects of space on our bodies. But can the things we’re learning about space flight and the human body provide any lessons we can use here on Earth? How can the goal of health in space also help us achieve better health here at home? 

In this episode of Science Never Sleeps, we’ll be chatting with researchers who are looking at the challenges of healthy space travel and the solutions necessary, both in the stars and here on Earth.

Guest Info: Dr. Donna Roberts is a NASA-funded Professor of Radiology at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Mark Rosenberg is a neurology resident at MUSC who is focusing on aerospace medicine. 

Show Reference Links:

International Space Station

NASA's Study of Astronaut Twins Creates Human Portrait of What a Year in Space Does to the Human Body - Smithsonian Magazine

Space X

Blue Origin

Inspiration 4

As we’ve weighed the options for protecting ourselves and our loved ones throughout the pandemic, we’ve seen just how important understanding the role of research can be. During the past two years we’ve had front row seats to research in action. We’ve heard about research that’s led to the discovery of variants, research that helped build the foundation of the vaccines, and research that helped us understand how masking and social distancing can keep us safe. But at the same time, it’s sometimes hard to understand research and the role it plays in our lives - and it can be tough to communicate the importance of research to others.  

In this episode of Science Never Sleeps, we’re going back to basics to ask – what is research and why is it important? Why should the quest for knowledge through research matter to us now, and what are the implications for the future? How can we continue to educate ourselves on the importance of research and build trust in the process? And how can we share this information with family, friends, and our communities so we can all be safer and healthier? 

Guest Info:

Dr. Lori McMahon is the Vice President for Research and a professor of neurobiology at the Medical University of South Carolina. She is a federally funded basic and translational neuroscience researcher who is nationally and internationally recognized for her work in the areas of neurodegenerative disease and neuropsychiatric illness, with a focus on synaptic plasticity and sex differences. 

Show reference links:

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine - https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/

National Institutes of Health - https://www.nih.gov/

National Institute on Drug Abuse - https://nida.nih.gov/

American Diabetes Associaton - https://www.diabetes.org/

A conversation on how MUSC science innovates health care with Drs. Sunil Patel, Russell "Chip" Norris, and doctoral student Cortney Gensenmer on Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, pulmonary support and palliative care have become critical healthcare needs.

Dr. Kathleen Lindell, is well-versed in these issues. An associate professor in the College of Nursing, and the Mary Swain Endowed Chair in Palliative Care, Dr. Lindell has extensive clinical experience working to improve support available to patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF. She's a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing where she received her Bachelor's and Master's of Science in Nursing as well as her PhD.

Dr. Lindell's passion for her patients and their caregivers has led to the development of a palliative care intervention entitled, A Program of SUPPORT, which is symptom management, understanding the disease, pulmonary rehabilitation, palliative care, oxygen therapy, research participation, and transplantation.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental disorder that is frequently mentioned but poorly understood. This episode's guest, Dr. Laura Arnstein Carpenter, specializes in Autism Spectrum Disorder and has much to offer us in understanding and clarifying this disease.

Dr. Carpenter is a professor in the College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics. She received her PHD from Binghamton University and completed her residency and fellowship at the Medical University of South Carolina.

You may have noticed a label on one or more of your prescriptions advising you not to take that medication with grapefruit. That label is the result of the discovery of a compound in grapefruit that alters the absorption of certain medications, impacting the effectiveness of the drug. This discovery was made in 1996 by David Edwards and today's guest, Dr. Patrick Woster.

Dr. Woster is Professor and Chair of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Sciences at MUSC's College of Pharmacy. Additionally, he is a South Carolina SmartState Endowed Chair in Drug Discovery, Director of MUSC's Drug Discovery Core, a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, and is an inductee in the American Chemical Society's Medicinal Chemistry Hall of Fame.

Dr. Wally Renne is a Professor of Dental Medicine and Assistant Dean of Innovation in Digital Dentistry in the James B. Edwards College of Dental Medicine at MUSC. Wally was recently recognized as the world's best digital dentist from the International Digital Dental Academy, and was the recipient of the COVID-19 Innovation Award for 3D printing face mask designs to be used as PPE during the COVID-19 pandemic. The face mask became an international success. The South Carolina state museum will feature the mask as part of a COVID-19 display.

Meniere's disease is an inner ear disease named after the physician who actually discovered it. The patients usually present with fluctuation of hearing loss, ringing in the ears, and episodes of dizziness characterized by a spinning sensation or an illusion of movement sensation that we call vertigo.

Dr. Habib Rizk is an Associate Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery. Dr. Rizk completed his medical degree and residency training at St. Joseph University in Beirut, Lebanon, and went on to complete a fellowship at MUSC. Dr. Rizk is on the Board of Directors of the American Balance Society, a member of the Equilibrium Committee of the American Academy of Otolaryngology, as well as a representative of the Academy in a joint task force of the American Academy of Neurology to investigate quality improvement measures in neurotology. His research focuses on hearing-related and dizziness-related research.

One of the hardest addictions to manage or quit is smoking cigarettes. The CDC's latest analysis notes that smoking-related illness in the United States costs more than $300 billion each year, including nearly $170 billion for direct medical care for adults, more than $156 billion in lost productivity, including $5.6 billion in lost productivity due to secondhand smoke exposure.

So what should we do to address this health and economic concern? Why are cigarettes still readily available and so addictive? And how do we help those who want to quit and have not been successful or encourage loved ones to quit who continue to smoke while suffering its deadly effects?

Dr. Matthew Carpenter is a professor in MUSC's Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. A clinical psychologist with a PhD from the University of Vermont, Dr. Carpenter's research interests relate to tobacco use across a broad methodological continuum, from lab-based studies of craving and nicotine dependence to small and large-scale clinical trials for smoking cessation, to public health policy for effective tobacco control. He has led multiple studies and trials on smoking cessation and alternative tobacco products.

It is springtime, which means we are on the verge of regeneration of nature, our enthusiasm, and enjoyment of warmth and beauty. And so it is appropriate to turn our attention to regeneration as it relates to biomedical research and precision medicine as a tool in that research.

Dr. Stephen Duncan is a professor and the chair in the Department of Regenerative Medicine and SmartState chair in liver development and disease. A native of Glasgow, Scotland in the United Kingdom, Dr. Duncan received his PhD and doctorate in Philosophy from Wolfson College at Oxford University in 1992. He then moved to the Rockefeller Center in New York City to undertake a post-doc fellowship. He transferred to the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee in 1997, where he moved through the ranks to become the Marcus Professor in Human and Molecular Genetics in the Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology, and Anatomy. In 2007, he accepted a position as the founding director of Medical College of Wisconsin's program in regenerative medicine. He joined MUSC in 2015.