So far this season we’ve talked about the immune system a lot – how immune cells communicate, traffic along connective tissue, and invasive tumors. But what actually is the immune system? What’s it made of? How does it work? To close out our second season, Jane speaks with Andy Chan, Senior Vice President of Research Biology, to unravel the mysteries behind the immune system.

Pharmacology is the study of how a medicine works in the body, which is a critical step in understanding what medicines people should be given, and at what dose and schedule. As we learn more about the complex genomics that make each person unique, the role of pharmacologists is becoming increasingly important for personalizing safe and effective treatments. Jane speaks to Sara Kenkare-Mitra, Senior Vice President, Development Sciences, to get a glimpse into the future of this field.

Neurons, the cells that make up our brain, are some of the most unique cells in our bodies. The complex nature of how they communicate leads to everything we say, think, or do. That complexity makes it hard to correct neural communication when something goes wrong, as in neurodegenerative diseases. What can we do to fix that? Jane talks to Casper Hoogenraad, Senior Director and Staff Scientist in Neuroscience, to find out more.

The lifecycle of a cell mirrors our own lives – cells live and die as we do. It would be easy to think of cell death, or apoptosis, as a negative action, but the death of a cell is actually critical to many of the important biological functions that keep our bodies running. Learn more about the mysteries behind cell death from Vishva Dixit, M.D., Vice President, Physiological Chemistry.

Despite the best efforts of the human immune system, viruses and bacteria are constantly evolving to find new ways to breach our bodies’ natural defenses. Over the years, scientists have stepped in to develop novel ways to help the immune system in fighting infectious diseases. It’s a complicated field, which is why in this episode Jane is bringing in two scientists – Man Wah Tan, Senior Director and Principal Scientist, and Jorge Tavel, Group Medical Director, from the infectious disease team – to talk about where the field is headed.

Chemistry is all around us – from the air we breathe, to the food we eat, to the medicine we take when we’re sick. And for the researchers working to figure out how to make those medicines, chemistry can be an art as well as a science. Learn more as Jane talks to Wendy Young, Vice President, Discovery Chemistry.

The world of proteins is a minuscule and elegant ballet. Recent advances in imaging techniques have given us unprecedented views into this microscopic world, which could help us design better targeted therapies for a wide range of diseases. Learn more from Sarah Hymowitz, Vice President, Protein Sciences at Genentech, about why she has fallen in love with all things protein.

If your body was a city, then connective tissue would be the infrastructure tying everything together. It’s a hidden universe that helps many types of cells talk to each other and helps us fight diseases like rheumatoid arthritis or cancer. That’s why Shannon Turley has dedicated her research to uncovering the complexities of connective tissue, from her days as a graduate student shuttling ice boxes of live cells on the train to Principal Scientist of Cancer Immunology at Genentech. Hear more from Shannon on our debut episode of Season 2!

Jane Grogan and her producer Wellington Bowler are back for a second season of Two Scientists Walk Into a Bar. After a summer hiatus, Jane is eager to take on a new season of topics, including the 101 on proteins, infectious disease, how tumor microenvironments work and cell death. Subscribe today so you don’t miss an episode!

Designing a clinical trial is fascinatingly complex. There are dozens of variables that could influence the ability of any given trial to be successful. Navigating this complexity is truly a science unto itself. In our latest episode, Merdad Parsey, Senior Vice President of Early Clinical Development, explains how the science of clinical trial design has evolved, and where it’s headed.