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Cultured meat or cultivated meat, made from cells, is not science-fiction any more.

It is pure science.

Though I could not help but thinking about Nancy Kress science-fiction book Beggars and Choosers when preparing to this episode. She writes about a world in 2106 where the society is split into a ruling class of Donkeys, who have access to real food, and Livers, who rely on government-provided cheap synthetic and soy-based food. It's just, the current reality of cell-grown meat already looks way more promising than the one in Kress's 1994 novel.

What if cultivated meat is healthier and tastes better than meat an animal meat?

Would you be tempted by a tasty steak grown in a lab?

In this episode, you’ll hear about

• what is cultivated meat?
• why it’s called lab meat and beer isn’t
• how meat is cultivated from cells
• does it taste like meat
• how healthy is it

and much more.

So today’s story isn’t about a medtech, biotech or digital health startup but it did begin with medtech in mind. And it is absolutely fascinating.

My guest, Dr. Nicole Kleger is the CEO of sallea. She began working on this project during her Bachelor’s degree in Materials Science and continued through her Master’s and Ph.D. She’s also a deidcated instructor of Bodypump, Bodyattack, and Bodybalance.

sallea is a Swiss startup, an ETH Zurich spin-off, developing edible scaffolds to grow cultivated meat. Their scaffolds, which enable cells to grow into meat, promise your taste buds real meat experience – without sacrificing animals.

Check out where is sallea on their goal to match the meat structure with taste in cultured meat

go to https://sallea.ch/

Timestamps
00:02:40 Why Cultivate Meat From Cells?
00:04:19 What Is Cellular Agriculture?
00:05:18 Where Is Cultivated Meat Produced?
00:06:54 How Healthy Is Cultivated Meat?
00:08:42 What Does Cultivated Meat Taste Like?
00:12:02 From Medtech To Food
00:19:00 What Is Cultivated Meat?
00:26:26 The Team Behind Swiss Cultured Meat
00:41:00 Thank You Follow sallea
00:41:46 Follow X-Health.show Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

If you've ever given up on something because you thought you didn’t have the predisposition, you should listen to this episode.

From sports genomics to genetic-based training.

Can genes predict sports performance? And injuries in athletes?

What is the contribution of genes to sports performance? We're speaking percentages.

Can some athletes be too gifted?

Can you predict a child’s talent by analyzing their genes?

We’ll also be speaking about 

• multiomics: genomics, genetics, proteomics, metabolomics, microbiome
• genetic testing for athletes, rare diseases, and longevity
• identical twins research
• althletes such as LeBron James, Michael Phelps, and Imane Khelif

My guest, Thomas Roos, is a sports genetics and genetic epidemiology scientist, entrepreneur, a retired professional triathlete, and an identical twin. He studied at Stanford University School of Medicine and has conducted research as part of multiple international consortiums.

AISTS or International Academy of Sports Science and Technology, where we’re speaking, was founded by the International Olympic Committee. It brings together experts in medicine, technology, management, economics, law, and sociology.

There’s loads to cover in this episode.

Timestamps:

00:00:18 Thomas Roos and AISTS
00:01:19 What Can Your Genes Tell You About Longevity Your Health and Performance
00:03:05 Can Genes Predict Athletic Performance
00:06:05 Identical Twin Brothers' Genetics
00:09:37 Genetic Tests for Children's Talents – Do They Make Sense
00:14:02 Genetics and Genomics Definitions
00:17:50 What Is Multiomics
00:20:51 Genetic Tests for Athletes
00:30:22 Genetic Risk Scores for Athletes
00:38:19 Favorable Genetic Profiles and Success in Sports
00:50:08 Twin Brothers Part After 30 Years: Stanford Twin Research Cohort
01:02:12 Joint Research to Beat Alzheimer's
01:13:25 Thank You Follow 5 Ironmans To Beat Alzheimer's
01:14:38 Follow X-Health.show Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

By helping pumping blood, Ventricular Assist Devices during end-stage heart failure can prolong life. They can be implanted instead of a heart transplant or while waiting for a heart transplant. 

They may, however, come with some unwanted side effects, such as infections of a wound that doesn’t heal. The reason is that a cable connecting the Ventricular Assist Device to its power source must pass through the skin on the abdomen and remain there.

This wound, a small hole in the abdomen, where the cable goes through the skin, would not heal and is therefore susceptible to infections that lead to hospitalization. Why?

You’ll hear about it in this episode, as well as

• what Ventricular Assist Devices are
• how a wound heals – from mechanical perspective
• what are mechanical and biological properties of the skin
• what is end-stage heart failure
• what makes a skin-friendly cable
• and for what else could such a biocompatible cable be used

My guest, Dr. Andreas Kourouklis, is a co-founder and the CEO of COSKIN. With a Ph.D. in biomaterials for biomedical applications he worked at Princeton University and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign before joining ETH Zurich.

COSKIN is a Swiss startup that develops a biocompatible medical cable to support end-stage heart failure patients. Unlike today’s cables powering mechanical circulatory support systems such as VADs, it resembles human tissue and prevents infections. 

Go ahead and follow what they do at

https://www.coskindevices.com/

Timestamps:
00:00:00 Dr. Andreas Kourouklis and COSKIN
00:01:20 What Is End-Stage Heart Failure?
00:06:47 Current Treatment for End Stage Heart Failure: Ventricular Assist Devices
00:15:02 Challenges Regarding VAD Insertion
00:21:23 Developing a Biocompatible Cable
00:40:28 Proving Compatibility with Ventricular Assist Devices
00:49:15 The COSKIN Team
00:49:59 Other Possible Uses of the Biocompatible Cable: Neurostimulators, Catheters, and More
00:53:42 Thank You, Follow COSKIN
00:54:24 Follow X-Health.show, Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

This might be a tool that sports psychologists have dreamed of:
a way to measure athletes’ mental training efficacy
for boosting sports performance.

You know, like when a runner runs slower today than the day before
their coach has the data to compare.

If that same runner puts less effort into their mental training,
their sports psychologist would not know.

This is what my guest is working on,
giving mental coaches a VR headset and metrics to rely on
to help athletes find flow and improve sports performance

You will hear

• why do professional athletes need mental training
• what flow is
• how your pupil size changes when you are relaxed or aroused
• and how by controlling your pupil, you can control your mind

Dr. Marc Bächinger is the co-founder and CEO of MindMetrix. He is a neuroscientist with a Ph.D. in health sciences and technology who completed his postdoc in pupil-based biofeedback to modulate the arousal system in the human brain.

MindMetrix is an early-stage Swiss startup that develops myflow. This Virtual Reality application allows professional athletes and sports psychologists to track, analyze, and optimize mental training by giving feedback on the size of their pupils.

Follow myflow’s development and their current call for study participants at
https://www.myflow.ch/

Timestamps:
0:00 Dr. Marc Bächinger and myflow
1:19 What is Flow?
7:28 Mental Training in Professional Athletes
13:08 How to Measure Mental Training Efficacy
17:03 Locus Coeruleus Pupil and Control Over Arousal Level
24:01 Family History and the Pursuit of Neuroscience
26:18 Sports Psychologists and Training the Pupil
33:20 VR-Supported Biofeedback Method for Relaxation and Activation
39:28 Noa Loosli Swiss Football Player
45:42 Call for Study Participants
48:02 Thank You Follow myflow
48:28 Follow X-Health.show Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

We are speaking about the world where wheelchairs will not be needed after a spinal cord injury.

There are 250 000-500 000 spinal cord injuries globally each year.

“A bunch of crazy guys,” in the words of my guest, him included, wants the spinal cord to self-regenerate.

He is sure that in the future, we won’t be even speaking about regenerating the spinal cord after an accident

but about healing.

In this episode, you will hear

• how much time it takes from a spinal cord injury event, an accident, to reach an operating theatre – in Switzerland
• why this time is crucial
• how proprietary hydrogel and stem cells stop the cascade of events further damaging the spinal cord
• how mice after a spinal cord injury, could walk again
• and when will people after the spinal cord injury not need a wheelchair

Prof. Giuseppe Perale is the CEO of Regenera. A bioengineer who became hooked on regenerative medicine in high school and never let go. Apart from heading the neuroregeneration research lab at USI, Università della Svizzera italiana, he is also a motorcycle rider and a pilot. 

Regenera is an Austrian-Swiss startup that aims to repair spinal cord injury in the subacute state. Their SpinoSave combines biomaterial – hydrogel and stem cells harvested from the patient’s fat tissue. The co-founders are Giuseppe Perale; Filippo Rossi, a chemical engineer; Pietro Rossi; Michael Raghunath, CMO.

Visit their website to stay up to date with progress in regenerating the spinal cord:
https://regenera.at/

Timestamps:

0:00 Prof. Giuseppe Perale and Regenera
1:10 Making Paralysis a Thing of the Past
3:17 What Causes Spinal Cord Injuries
5:44 What Is Paraplegia, What Is Tetraplegia
10:02 What Happens in the ER after a Spinal Cord Injury
17:56 Regenerative Medicine to Restore Damaged Tissue
26:59 Paraplegic Mice Could Walk Again, When Will People 
35:35 Why Time Matters after a Spinal Cord Accident
39:21 Stopping the Cascade of Events in the Acute Spinal Cord Injury Phase to Induce Self-Regeneration
54:36 Preparing for Clinical Studies
56:55 Restoring Movement after Spinal Cord Injury in the Future
1:00:29 Thank You, Follow Regenera
1:01:25 Follow X-Health.show, Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

How do you design a psychedelic trip that is predictable and effective?

That frees people from cocaine addiction

Without the common current side effects of psychedelics

Just imagine being free from an addiction in a few hours

This is what researchers and my guest today are trying to accomplish

You’ll hear

• how did psychedelic studies continue in Switzerland while banned elsewhere
• the differences between various psychedelics
• what is ayahuasca and its DMT ingredient
• how do magic mushrooms and psilocybin work
• LSD
• ecstasy
• and the potential of psychedelics in treating depression, anxiety, and cocaine addiction

My guest, Dr. Dario Dornbierer, is the Chief Scientific Officer and a co-founder of Reconnect Labs. A psychopharmacologist who’s done his post-doc research in psychedelics – drug development in mental health.

Reconnect Labs is a clinical-stage Swiss startup, a spin-off of the University of Zurich, developing psychedelic medicines for sleep, anxiety, and substance use disorders. This opens a new era in psychiatry: precision therapeutics with both immediate and long-term symptom alleviation.

Hit play to step into a sleep lab, where it all started.

Learn more about Reconnect Labs at:
https://www.reconnect-labs.com/

Timestamps

0:00 Dr. Dario Dornbierer and Reconnect Labs
1:19 Where Are Psychedelics Legal: LSD, Psylocybin, Ayahuasca
3:40 Psychedelics to Aid Psychiatry
6:02 What Are Psychedelics?
12:45 How Do Psychedelics Work?
16:03 What Is Ayahuasca? 
20:59 The Potential of Psychedelics in Depression, Anxiety, Addictive Disorders
26:40 Psilocybin vs DMT and Harmine
28:29 Set and Setting of a Psychedelic Trip
36:48 Developing a Predictable Trip with a Therapeutic Effect
42:28 Treating Addiction with Psychedelics
1:00:59 Thank You, Follow Reconnect Labs
1:01:53 Follow X-Health.show, Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

There are people who believe that stopping aging will be possible.

For now,
we can already speak about
slowing down aging
or even
reversing aging – as Bryan Johnson set off to accomplish waving his "Don't Die" slogan.

In this episode, you’ll hear about

• is collagen good for you?
• vegan collagen precursor
• at what age the production of some coenzymes slows down – meaning how early your body begins to age – you will be surprised how early!
• NMN
• coenzyme Q10, 
• resveratrol, 
• probiotics, 
• melatonin

as well as 

• skin health
• joint health 
• blood sugar
• gut and brain health
• energy
• and overall, longevity and healthspan

My guest, Sophie Chabloz, is a co-founder and Chief Science Officer at AVEA. A Food Science, Nutrition and Health expert. A mom. Used to teach yoga. She makes sure the supplement formulations make sense.

AVEA is a Swiss startup that launched a range of science-based longevity supplements. Among them, their collagen activator – a vegan collagen precursor.

Here is where you can find them:
https://avea-life.com/

Timestamps:
0:00 Sophie Chabloz and Avea
1:14 Is Collagen Good for You?
10:52 What Compounds and Coenzymes Do We Lose When Aging?
16:35 Melatonin as an Antioxidant
21:36 Supplements vs Nutraceuticals
26:28 Vegan Collagen Precursor
38:36 Improving Joint Health
40:41 Science Behind Longevity Supplement Formulas
49:27 Longevity Supplements Shipped Worldwide
55:14 Thank You, Follow Avea
55:42 Follow X-Health.show, Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

Fetal surgeons save the life of a fetus with a birth defect
– or improve the outcomes after birth –
operating while still in utero.

In a woman’s womb.

Unsolvable so far – a hole in an amniotic sac after the surgery
which causes preterm births.

But here is where bioengineers have stepped in
to support the surgeons.

In this episode, you’ll hear about 

• fetal abnormalities that can be addressed by surgeries before a child is born
• spina bifida
• twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome
• congenital diaphragmatic hernia
• how fetal surgeries are performed
• and how to prevent the side effect of fetal surgery, which is premature birth

Our guest, Dr. Yannick Devaud is the founder and CEO of KOVE medical. With a PhD in bioengineering and biotechnology, he embarked on a mission to develop a medical device for minimally invasive fetal surgery.

KOVE medical is a Swiss startup that develops a device to reduce the risk of preterm birth following surgeries on the fetus during pregnancy.

Here is more about them
https://kovemedical.com/

Timestamps:
0:00 Dr. Yannick Devaud and KOVE medical
1:20 World Fetal Medicine Foundation Congress in Lisbon
3:06 What Are Fetal Surgeries
13:03 Risks of Fetal Surgeries
17:44 Calling a Bioengineer to Prevent the Premature Birth
26:39 How to Stitch a Whole in an Amniotic Sack After a Fetal Surgery
28:45 Collaborations with the University Hospital Zurich and Centers Around the World
35:31 Future of the KOVE Device to Support Fetal Surgeons
46:27 Thank You, Follow KOVE medical
47:16 Follow X-Health.show, Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

The pain in your mouth is so bad that you cannot even drink, let alone eat.

What is horrifying is that 50-80% of cancer patients undergoing chemo or radiotherapy can experience it – oral mucositis.

And there is no approved treatment.

This is what you’ll hear in this episode

• how a cute-looking willowherb grown in the Swiss Alps is making its way from traditional medicine to prescription medicine – to treat oral mucositis, especially in cancer patients
• and in the long term, more broadly – fungal infections

My guest today is Dr. Pierre Morgon, the CEO of Ibex Therapeutics. With a PhD in pharmacy, he has held numerous senior positions in the life sciences industry and currently serves on the boards of biotech, medtech, and healthcare IT startups.

He decided to co-found Ibex Therapeutics, a Swiss startup that aims to alleviate the debilitating oral pain that often results from chemotherapies and radiotherapies. To combat oral mucositis, they employed a plant native to the Swiss Alps.

Here’s more about them if you’re curious:
https://ibextx.ch/en/

Timestamps:
0:00 Dr. Pierre Morgon and Ibex Therapeutics
1:18 Willowherb from the Swiss Alps
3:00 What is Oral Mucositis
11:01 Discovery of Epilobium Parviflorum Antifungal Properties: the Discovery 
20:49 Clear Unmet Need + Experienced Founders
25:32 Mouth Wash for Oral Mucositis: First Studies in Patients
33:34 Market Availability: Cosmetic and Pharmaceutical Products
43:15 Plant-Based Medicine
49:02 Thank You, Follow Ibex Therapeutics 
49:34 Follow X-Health.show, Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.

Do you know what is the % of cancer drug candidates that fail in human trials?

Guess, and I bet you underestimated it.

This is what we speak at the beginning of this episode and what my guest wants to change dramatically.

You will also hear about:

• the % of patients that actually benefit from approved cancer drug therapies (spoiler: so so low)
• cancer monotherapies vs. cancer combination therapies
• how to reproduce the human cancer ecosystem from a tumor
• precision oncology
• multiomics analysis
• and how to bring cancer drugs faster to patients

Dr. Marie-Agnès Doucey, the co-founder of Calico Biosystems, is a biotechnology engineer with a PhD in biochemistry.  She has over 15 years of experience in R&D and drug development programs in oncology.

Calico Biosystems is a Swiss startup developing a drug testing platform that uses patients’ tumors, multiomics profiling, and computational modeling to predict the clinical efficacy of anti-cancer drugs at the pre-clinical stage. Radically accelerating drug development.

Here is their website:
https://calicobiosystems.com/ 

0:00 Dr. Marie-Agnès Doucey and Calico Biosystems
1:15 Why Only 10% of Cancer Patients Benefit from Therapies
9:00 Complexity of Experimental Oncology
12:50 Cancer Monotherapies vs. Cancer Combination Therapies
15:11 How to Reproduce Human Cancer Ecosystem
17:10 What is Precision Oncology
20:35 Platform for Cancer Drug Developers Instead of Animal Models
32:34 Collaboration with the University of Lausanne
37:49 What is Multiomics Analysis
40:35 De-risking Clinical Studies and Moving to the Clinical Stage
47:16 More Than a Decade of Research to Found a Startup
53:07 Thank You, Follow Calico Biosystems
53:55 Follow X-Health.show, Disclaimer

If you've enjoyed listening, you'll make us happy by clicking "Follow" on X-Health.show and leaving a review.

The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your healthcare practitioner. The opinions on the show are Alex's or her guests. The podcast does not make any responsibility or warranties about guests statements or credibility. While the podcast makes every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, please let us know if you have any comments, suggestions or corrections.