Science with a Twist
39 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 2 months ago - ★★★★★ - 29 ratingsIt’s almost impossible to overstate how many aspects of daily life are impacted by science. From technologies that help ensure the quality of the water we drink, to medicines that deliver lifesaving treatments – it’s all thanks to science. Each month, members of Thermo Fisher Scientific's team talk to experts who are on the cutting-edge of redefining how we exist. This is Science with a Twist.
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Episodes
It’s In Our Genes: The Potential of Gene Therapy with Dr. Peter Marks
March 06, 2024 19:30 - 24 minutes - 22.9 MBGene Therapy's Potential to Transform Rare Disease Treatment Dr. Peter Marks highlights the groundbreaking advancements in gene therapy, especially for rare diseases with high unmet medical needs. He discusses the FDA's role in fostering these innovations, underscoring the importance of understanding gene therapy's application and ensuring its safe delivery. Dr. Marks emphasizes the challenges in manufacturing gene therapies, noting that overcoming these hurdles is essential for treating la...
Decoding Cellular Secrets: Advances in Mass Spectrometry Technology
December 21, 2023 15:15 - 19 minutes - 17.9 MBRevolutionizing Biomedical Research with Mass Spectrometry Joshua J. Coon discusses the transformative role of mass spectrometry in biomedical research. This technology, as he explains, allows for the precise weighing of molecules, providing critical insights into their identity and quantity. Coon's lab utilizes mass spectrometry to analyze complex biological systems, such as cells and tissues, identifying over 10,000 molecules in a single sample. This capability has significant implication...
Tackling HIV Drug Resistance: Brazil's Approach and Global Implications
November 29, 2023 21:00 - 35 minutes - 32.8 MBBrazil's Proactive Measures Against HIV Brazil has been at the forefront of combating HIV, implementing proactive measures that have made a significant difference. The country began providing no-cost access to CD4 and viral load testing and antiretroviral drugs as early as 1996. This early intervention and consistent approach led to a remarkable outcome: the number of HIV cases in Brazil was significantly lower than initially predicted. An article from the New England Journal of Medicine st...
Powering Everyday Life: The significance and impacts of the semiconductor industry
September 27, 2023 20:00 - 19 minutes - 17.5 MB⚡Semiconductor chips go through a long manufacturing process. It all depends on the type of chip, but the standard timeframe is between 120 days and nine months. It is a three-phase process that includes design and frontend and backend manufacturing, all dependent on various factors. ''These are global supply chains supporting the completed product. Semiconductor chips could be manufactured by a large fab, maybe most of it within the house, but there are diversified approaches too, where the...
Shaping the Future through STEM Education: The importance of access and equity
August 30, 2023 19:00 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBThe Power of Passion in STEM Eleanor emphasizes the importance of pursuing what you love in STEM. She advises students to focus on their interests rather than trying to impress judges or make a big impact. Eleanor encourages students to be scrappy and innovative and to believe in their ability to navigate through challenges. She underscores that STEM is not just for prodigies and professionals and that anyone can make a difference. Community Can Help Advance STEM Eleanor and Maya disc...
Pharmacogenomics: A New Era of Patient-Centric Care
July 26, 2023 22:30 - 21 minutes - 19.4 MBThe Power of Pharmacogenomics Jeff explains how pharmacogenomics, the study of how genes affect a person's response to medications, can revolutionize healthcare. By understanding a patient's genetic makeup, healthcare providers can prescribe the right medication and dosage, reducing trial and error, improving treatment effectiveness, and minimizing side effects. This approach acknowledges that each person is unique and recognizes the complex interplay of genetics and non-genetic factors to ...
Forever Chemicals: The effects of PFAS and how to protect against it
May 24, 2023 20:00 - 24 minutes - 22.5 MB⚡PFAS stands for Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances. Simply put, PFAS are man-made compounds synthesized in a laboratory. ''They were first made in the 1940s. Teflon was one of the very first developments of PFAS. PFAS is a universe of chemicals useful for lots of different consumer and industrial applications over the last 60 to 70 years. These include things like firefighting foam, stain repellents on carpets and textiles, and also mist suppressants to protect workers in chromium plating ...
Green Chemistry: Designing for a Sustainable Future
April 19, 2023 21:00 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MB⚡ Green chemistry aims to anticipate toxicity and global climate change. Green chemistry is an area of chemistry that focuses on reducing pollution and building a more sustainable world. John explains, "What you may be surprised to learn is that if you look at the curriculum, if you look at the classes that a chemist takes from the very beginning to getting a Ph.D., very few, if any, universities have within that curriculum, any skills, any ability to predict, ‘Will this molecule be toxic? W...
Delivering on the promise of cell therapies: Programmed immune cells attack cancer and other diseases
March 22, 2023 21:00 - 23 minutes - 21.5 MB⚡ Cell therapy is a promising field. Cell therapies can potentially transform medicine and treat some of the most severe diseases, like cancer. Wendell says, "That's one of the innate challenges here — how do you make something that's very controlled and specific and yet also very potent enough to really overcome the disease. And that's where we really think that cell therapies can be very powerful because cells can read different signals and then process that information almost, like I said...
Disrupting the Status Quo: The Importance of Diversity in Clinical Trials
February 22, 2023 22:00 - 24 minutes - 22.1 MB⚡ What are the ramifications from a clinical research perspective if diversity is not appropriately represented in a clinical study populations? Even as diversity becomes increasingly important across different sectors, minorities continue to be left out of clinical trials and medical research studies. So, why is diversity so critical in clinical trials? Nik explains, "I think in terms of the ramifications if diversity is not appropriately represented — I think we, unfortunately, saw this cl...
Putting Patients First: The Benefits of Decentralized Clinical Trials
January 26, 2023 00:00 - 26 minutes - 23.9 MB⚡ Decentralized clinical trials aim to reduce patient burden. Decentralized clinical trials can help make research more patient-centric. Tim explains the role of decentralization, "It's fair to say that that change management component is absolutely critical in terms of the decentralized adoption, and I think, when I look ahead in terms of decentralization, I see an amazing landscape for patients and the partnerships with EmVenio and also the kind of opportunities Thermo Fisher Scientific ha...
No One Missed: Empowering Lung Cancer Patients with Biomarker Insights
December 21, 2022 23:05 - 29 minutes - 26.6 MB⚡ There's a diversity mismatch in the oncology workforce. One of the biggest challenges in the oncology space is a lack of diversity in the workforce. The population of the United States is very diverse, while the oncology field is not. Dr. Upal Basu Roy says, "We know that the United States is very diverse. As we speak, the population is very diverse, and we have about 12% African Americans in the population — about 18% who identify as Hispanic/Latinx — and 3% of the population who identify...
Saved Time Saves Lives: The Impact of Rapid Turnaround Time for Cancer Patients
November 29, 2022 15:00 - 19 minutes - 17.8 MB⚡The most critical part is to shorten the time between doing the test and getting the results. From there, doctors will be better positioned to provide the best care to the patient. ''There's always pressure from the patient, the family, and the physician to start therapy as soon as possible. [...] So getting that test earlier allows us to do the right thing for the patients, improve their outcomes, and frankly, reduce costs. ⚡Staying up to date with changes is the most noticeable obstacle ...
Freezing Cancer: How Cryo-EM is advancing oncology research
October 31, 2022 14:45 - 22 minutes - 20.4 MB⚡ Cryo-EM is a powerful tool that helps look at cancer molecules differently. Penn State University uses the cryo-EM technique to understand and outsmart cancer. Professor Kelly explains, "Our lab uses a very high-tech imaging approach. It's called cryo-electron microscopy or cryo-EM, which pioneers in our field actually won the Nobel Prize for just a few years ago. And what we'd like to do is dive deep into cancer cells, understand what molecules look like using these instruments, take pict...
One Health: How human, environmental, and animal health intersect
September 14, 2022 17:30 - 28 minutes - 26.2 MB⚡ We can't limit ourselves to only humans and animals to fight diseases and cure illnesses. To cure diseases and illnesses, we need to understand how the environment, humans, and animals intersect. Professor Akebe explains, "We get that whole cycle that starts again. It [waste] leaves from our homes. It leaves from our hospitals. It gets into the treatment plants, gets into the river. It is used to irrigate our crops, goes back to the animals, and you see the whole vicious cycle continue. So...
Behind the MoonArk: How a Team of Artists Embraced Science to Send a Time Capsule to the Moon
July 28, 2022 14:00 - 20 minutes - 19.2 MB⚡ The MoonArk is both conceptual art and a time capsule. Almost 15 years ago, the idea was to create a time capsule carrying fragments of the world as we know it today and send it to the moon to be discovered in the distant future. Today, the project has 60 members from 18 institutions and over 250 contributing designers, scientists, poets, musicians etc. Mark Baskinger, one of the first to get involved with the project, shares what it was like at the beginning. ''The MoonArk was a conceptu...
Uncovering the Past: How Jewish Holocaust victims were discovered at a death camp in Sobibór
April 29, 2022 14:00 - 19 minutes - 17.9 MB💡 DNA analysis enables the identification of missing persons. Asked about the impact of DNA analysis, Dr. Diepenbroek explains that such a method helps identify the victims regardless of time passed. Forensics uses the DNA from unknown remains and matches them with the DNA of missing persons’ relatives. Alongside her colleagues — including experts from the Institute of Legal Medicine in Innsbruck — Dr. Diepenbroek worked on several projects to identify the victims of World War II and totalit...
Virus Variants Explained: Why COVID-19 Variants Arise
March 29, 2022 20:45 - 29 minutes - 27 MB🎙 What are virus mutations, and what do they mean? Just like other viruses, COVID mutates all the time. Andy explains what mutation is, how it happens, and the importance of monitoring it. "What we need to capture in these surveillance efforts is how these viruses are changing and how quickly they are changing. So you've heard of mutations, and they are a result of these changes in the viruses. They change the nucleic acid or the DNA sequence of the virus itself and that changes the infecti...
COVID In the Air? How a new in-air pathogen surveillance solution was used in some Wisconsin schools to detect airborne coronavirus particles
February 23, 2022 19:00 - 32 minutes - 29.4 MB🎙️ The AerosolSense Sampler is an in-air pathogen monitoring solution. Miguel introduced the AerosolSense Sampler, a new technology that can be used in conjunction with other risk mitigation tools (masks, vaccines, testing) in the fight against COVID-19. It is designed to detect the presence of coronavirus and other airborne pathogens in the air in indoor spaces. ''So essentially, the way it works is that our tool, the AerosolSense unit, draws in air from the room it's in. And it can be depl...
Patient Perspectives: CAR-T Cell Therapy
May 05, 2021 20:31 - 22 minutes - 20.5 MBOn this episode of Science With a Twist, Ron O’Brien interviews Matthew Moon, a CAR-T cell therapy recipient who was able to beat leukemia thanks to the advances in the field. Matthew and Ron discuss the timeline of health-related events that led to Matthew’s diagnosis and his unique journey to find a life-saving cell therapy clinical trial. After speaking with Matthew, Ron interviews Stephen Majors, Director of Public Affairs at the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine. Stephen gives Ron an ...
Sustainability: What is it and why should we care?
April 21, 2021 21:45 - 13 minutes - 12.5 MBOn this special Earth-Day episode of Science With a Twist, Ron O’Brien speaks with Emelia DeForce, Field Applications Scientist for Laboratory Plastics & Essentials at Thermo Fisher Scientific. Emelia and Ron chat about sustainability, what it means, and why we should all care about it.
COVID-19: Why We Need to Continue Testing
March 25, 2021 22:00 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBManoj Gandhi, Sr. Medical Director at Thermo Fisher Scientific, interviews Dr. Stephen Morse, professor of epidemiology at Columbia University. Manoj and Stephen address the doubts expressed by the general public regarding testing for COVID-19 and the need for continued testing even as vaccination rates continue to increase.
Breath Biopsy: Non-invasive analysis of biomarkers in early detection and precision medicine
March 12, 2021 01:00 - 16 minutes - 15.3 MBBilly Boyle, CEO of Owlstone Medical, sits down with Ron O'Brien to talk about breath biopsy. This technology provides an entirely new way to access this information by collecting and analyzing breath samples.
The Just Project: Facilitating the Safe Reopening of HBCUs
January 08, 2021 11:31 - 23 minutes - 21.2 MBSocial and economic inequality has made minority communities more prone to contracting SARS-COV-2; the virus that causes COVID-19. One of those severely affected is the black community in the United States. On this episode of Science With a Twist, Fred Lowery, Senior Vice President and President of Life Sciences Solutions and Laboratory Products at Thermo Fisher Scientific, interviews Dr. James Hildreth, American immunologist and academic administrator. Fred and James discuss the “Just Projec...
Twindemic: How the Seasonal Flu Collides with the COVID-19 Pandemic
December 07, 2020 12:54 - 22 minutes - 20.3 MBRon O'Brien speaks with Dr. Stephen Young, an expert in Microbiology, with a background in pathology, virology, and infectious diseases. They discuss what we should know during the potential viral storm produced by the collision of the seasonal flu and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reinventing Plastics
October 29, 2020 23:00 - 21 minutes - 19.6 MBPaolo Braiuca interviews Dr. Frank Leibfarth from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Frank talks about his group's exciting work in polymer chemistry as well as topics related to his collegiate football career and the challenges of managing an academic lab in the era of COVID-19.
Chemistry of Human Milk
October 14, 2020 22:00 - 19 minutes - 18.3 MBOn this episode of Science With a Twist, Paolo Braiuca interviews Dr. Steven Townsend. Through his research, Steven is trying to demystify the science of human milk. His work on human milk oligosaccharides, carbohydrates whose molecules are composed of a relatively small number of monosaccharide units, won him the consideration for the American Chemical Society Talented 12 program in 2019.
COVID-19: Insights on Vaccine Development
September 10, 2020 12:00 - 17 minutes - 16.2 MBRon O’Brien speaks with Mary Kay Bates, Senior Cell Culture Scientist at Thermo Fisher Scientific. Mary gives us an inside look into the complex world of vaccine development and why developing one for COVID-19 has been so different. You can listen here or on your favorite podcast platform.
World Water Day: The importance of (clean) water and conservation
March 19, 2020 13:14 - 24 minutes - 22.8 MBWater is everywhere, but accessible drinking water is not. In celebration of World Water Day (March 22), we’re tackling the importance of water preservation and why improving global access to clean water matters now.
Seeding Labs: Empowering Scientists Around the Globe
March 04, 2020 09:00 - 21 minutes - 20 MBInstrumental Access is enabling scientists around the world to make life-changing discoveries. Listen to hear how Seeding Labs, a nonprofit partner of Thermo Fisher, is providing the tools and training needed for researchers in developing countries to make the greatest global impact.
Fighting Coronavirus: Confirming and Containing an Outbreak
February 19, 2020 16:35 - 19 minutes - 17.8 MBAs the Coronavirus continues to spread, doctors, scientists and health agencies are racing to contain the outbreak. Listen to hear how they are using scientific technologies to detect, prevent and develop a vaccine for this respiratory syndrome.
Cells Fighting Cancer: A Patient's Story
January 22, 2020 14:28 - 15 minutes - 13.9 MBNicole Gularte was diagnosed with leukemia in 2010. Since then, she’s participated in several clinical trials, one of those helped her save her life. Listen again to hear the story behind CAR T-cell therapy and how it’s improving outcomes for cancer patients across the country.
One Decision, Two Lives: The Power of Organ Donation
December 17, 2019 11:00 - 20 minutes - 19 MBIn 2008, the bond between two friends became even closer when one of them made the life-altering decision to donate a kidney to the other. Since then, Louise Lerminiaux and Conna Jones have been on a journey to live their lives to the fullest, while telling their inspirational story and advocating for organ donation.
Detecting and Protecting: Technology to Help Determine if a Threat is Real
November 14, 2019 18:15 - 16 minutes - 15.4 MBFor first responders at the local, state and federal level, coming into contact with unknown substances in the field can be a life-threatening situation. From opioid and bomb detection to identifying toxic chemicals in the environment, all pose physical and health hazards. Hear from Thermo Fisher field instrumentation experts Bill Kotowski and Erica Hirsch to learn more about the critical process of identifying harmful substances and how emerging technology, including a handheld narcotics ana...
Cells Fighting Cancer: The Science Behind It
October 17, 2019 10:00 - 19 minutes - 17.9 MBIn part II of this series, Amy Butler, vice president of cell biology at Thermo Fisher Scientific, talks with host Ron O’Brien about the science behind CAR T-cell therapy and how it uses the body’s own immune system to fight cancer.
Cells Fighting Cancer: A Patient’s Story
October 10, 2019 12:00 - 15 minutes - 14.2 MBNicole Gularte was diagnosed with leukemia in 2010. Since then, she’s participated in several clinical trials, one of those helped her save her life. Listen now for part I of our two-part series on the groundbreaking treatment behind CAR T-cell therapy and how it’s improving outcomes for cancer patients across the country.
Prevent the Sneeze: The Science Behind Allergy Testing
September 19, 2019 04:00 - 23 minutes - 21.6 MBAllergies are everywhere and for some, even the smallest particle can trigger a reaction. In this episode of Science with a Twist, host Ron O’Brien sits down with Dr. Lakiea Wright, an allergy and immunology expert, to discuss the latest in allergy testing and why it’s critical to avoid a potentially dangerous reaction.
From ionic to iconic: The story of Nalgene
August 14, 2019 19:11 - 30 minutes - 28.3 MBThe Nalgene water bottle has become a hydration staple for many, but did you know it was born from science? That’s right! The Nalge Company, founded in the 1949, went on to launch Nalgene Outdoor changing the face of high-quality hiking and camping essentials. Eric Hansen and Elissa McGee join host, Ron O’Brien, to discuss how the bottle we all know and love evolved into what it is today.
Trailer: Science with a Twist
July 18, 2019 15:39 - 51 seconds - 793 KBWelcome to Science with a Twist. Each month, join Ron O’Brien, a science enthusiast from Thermo Fisher, the world leader of serving science, as he talks to experts on the cutting-edge of redefining how we exist.