Cartoon: Bridging the gap between advances in biology and their application to major human diseases

Demystifying Medicine

The Demystifying Medicine Series, jointly sponsored by FAES and NIH, includes presentations on pathology, diagnosis, and therapy in the context of major disease problems and current research. Primarily directed toward PhD students, clinicians and program managers, this series is designed to help bridge the gap between advances in biology and their application to major human diseases. Each session includes clinical and basic science components presented by NIH staff and invitees. All students, trainees, fellows, and staff are welcome to participate.

2023 Schedule
Location: Online - NIH Videocast http://videocast.nih.gov
Dates: Tuesdays from January 10 through May 16
Time: 4:00pm - 5:30pm Eastern Time
Coordinators: Dr. Win Arias and Dr. Dan Kastner

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Speaker Profiles
Email Notifications
CME Credit Information

Email Notifications

January 10 -
Pandemic Preparedness and Response: Lessons from COVID-19
The Demystifying Medicine course series enters its 22nd season with a lecture, titled "Pandemic Preparedness and Response: Lessons from COVID-19," by Anthony Fauci, M.D., on January 10, 2023, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. exclusively on NIH VideoCast at https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48782.

Dr. Fauci has been the public face of the COVID pandemic response since January 2020. For this lecture, he will share his keen insights on COVID, including newly emerging strains, vaccine development, anti-viral drugs, and public health messaging.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED or review the NIH Calendar of Events, as our messaging is no longer distributed via the NIH Staff Listserv.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45. Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for most lectures.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


January 17 -
Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Vaccination and the Prevention of Cancer
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture is "Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Vaccination and the Prevention of Cancer," on Tuesday, January 17, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Andrea Lisco, M.D., Ph.D. of NIAID and John Schiller, Ph.D. of NCI.

Watch at https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48785.

Actually, before Monday's MLK day of service, do a service to yourself and add this to your calendar with this special link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48785.

Andrea Lisco is an Assistant Clinical Investigator in the NIAID HIV Pathogenesis Section, where he studies immune-based therapeutic strategies of severe HPV-related diseases at a clinical level. He also studies the immunological, genetic, and virological determinants of the susceptibility to severe HPV-related diseases.

John Schiller, co-winner of the 2017 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award, is an NIH Distinguished Investigator in the NCI CCR Laboratory of Cellular Oncology. With NCI's Doug Lowy, Dr. Schiller made numerous technical advances that culminated in the development of human papillomavirus vaccines, which prevent cervical cancer and other tumors and have saved countless lives.

Come learn about remarkable HPV research right in your own backyard. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED or review the NIH Calendar of Events, as our messaging is no longer distributed via the NIH Staff Listserv.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45. Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for most lectures.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


January 24 -
Salivary Secretion of Epidemic Viruses
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture addresses the topic of salivary secretion of epidemic viruses, on Tuesday, January 24, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Nihal Altan-Bonnet, Ph.D., of NHLBI and Natalie Porat-Shliom, Ph.D., NCI.

Watch at https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48787.

Dr. Altan-Bonnet leads the NHLBI Laboratory of Host-Pathogen Dynamics, where her multidisciplinary team of cell biologists, virologists, environmental engineers, and computational biologists apply their talents to understand how viruses transmit themselves effectively among hosts and establish successful infections.

Recently she and her colleagues discovered that enteric viruses such as norovirus, rotavirus, and astrovirus also replicate in salivary glands and transmit through saliva. See their 2022 Nature paper at https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35768512.

Dr. Porat-Shliom is a Stadtman Investigator and leads the Cell Biology and Imaging Section in the NCI CCR Thoracic and GI Malignancies Branch, where she studies mitochondrial responses in intact liver tissue. Her research includes the use of intravital microscopy of salivary glands as an experimental system to study cell biology in live animals.

Come learn about new and important discoveries of salivary secretion in this era of contact pandemic threats. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED or review the NIH Calendar of Events, as our messaging is no longer distributed via the NIH Staff Listserv.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45. Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for most lectures.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


January 31 -
CANCELED: Diabetes Mellitus: Great Progress
CANCELED: Diabetes: The Marathon of Life
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture explores the progress in treating diabetes mellitus, on Tuesday, January 31, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Drs. Douglas Melton and Courtney Duckworth of Harvard University, and with an introduction by Dr. Francis Collins.

This is a remote-only event. Watch via https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48789.

Douglas Melton, Ph.D., is the Xander University Professor at Harvard, co-director of Harvard Stem Cell Institute, and an HHMI Investigator. His research goal is straightforward enough: to cure diabetes. His lab has developed a method to make hundreds of millions of functional beta cells from human stem cells (ES or iPS cells) to form the central theme for their research.

Courtney Duckworth, M.D., is resident physician training in pediatrics at Boston Children's Hospital and Boston Medical Center. A marathoner and accomplished ice skater with Type 1 diabetes herself, Duckworth's clinical work includes preventative care, social determinants of health, endocrinology, and sports medicine.

Come learn about the remarkable progress to eradicate diabetes, a leading cause of death globally and a medical burden of more than $300 billion in the United States alone. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED, as our messaging is no longer distributed via the NIH Staff Listserv. Chances are, you aren't on our mailing list.

What's Demystifying Medicine, you ask? Well...

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for most lectures, including on January 31.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


February 7 -
The Interferonopathies: Interferon Running Amok
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture concerns autoinflammatory diseases and dysregulation of the interferon pathway, on Tuesday, February 7, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Raphaela Goldbach-Mansky, M.D. (NIAID) and Yanick Crow, M.D., Ph.D. (University of Edinburgh).

This is a remote-only event. Watch at https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48791.

We have titled this week's course "The Interferonopathies: Interferon Running Amok." Interferonopathies are a recently defined group of inherited autoinflammatory diseases, characterized only in the past decade. However rare, these disorders appear to have a significant role in elucidating innate immunity and interferon signaling as it relates to human health.

Dr. Raphaela Goldbach-Mansky is a senior investigator and chief of the NIAID Translational Autoinflammatory Diseases Section. Her translational autoinflammatory research program focuses on clinical and translational studies in patients with disorders of both IL-1 and interferon-mediated signaling. This includes her recent clinical work on two interferon-mediated disorders, SAVI and CANDLE (see below for definitions).

Dr. Yanick Crow leads the Genetic Disorders of Human Neurological and Immune Function at University of Edinburgh. A clinician scientist, Dr. Crow studies Aicardi-Goutières syndrome and other disorders associated with type I interferonopathies.

For a wonderful overview of interferonopathies, be sure to read Dr. Crow's 2021 paper in Nature, "The type I interferonopathies: 10 years on." But, uh, be sure to join us nevertheless for the very latest in this new, dynamic field of research! And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED or review the NIH Calendar of Events, as our messaging is no longer distributed via the NIH Staff Listserv.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


February 14 -
The Role of Epstein-Barr Virus and Molecular Mimicry in Autoimmune Disease
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture explores the role of Epstein-Barr virus and molecular mimicry in autoimmune disease, on Tuesday, February 14, at 4:00 p.m. ET with William Robinson, M.D., Ph.D. and Judith James, M.D., Ph.D.

This is a remote-only event. Watch at https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48819.

Molecular mimicry is a primary mechanism by which infectious or chemical agents induce autoimmunity. Recent research has revealed that the ever-menacing Epstein-Barr virus - one of the most common viruses in humans, and one of the nine known human herpesvirus types - may trigger multiple sclerosis by mimicking a nervous system protein, causing the immune system to mistakenly attack the body's nerve cells.

What can be done about this stealth assault? Our speakers this week are at the forefront of this emerging research field.

William Robinson is the James W. Raitt M.D. Professor of Medicine, Immunology & Rheumatology at Stanford University. His research focuses on elucidating the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying autoimmune diseases, and to leverage these insights to develop next-generation diagnostics and therapeutics.

Judith James is the Vice President of Clinical Affairs at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. Her research defines the various pathways that can lead from early immune imbalances to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) diagnosis.

Shower your brain in love and treat yourself on this Valentine's Day by learning about how common viruses can foul the body's natural defense system. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED or review the NIH Calendar of Events, as our messaging is no longer distributed via the NIH Staff Listserv.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


February 21 -
The Use of JAK Inhibitors in Autoimmune Disease
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture explores JAK inhibitors, autoimmune disease, and a new treatment for hair loss caused by alopecia areata, on Tuesday, February 21, at 4:00 p.m. ET with John O'Shea, M.D., (NIAMS) and Angela Christiano, Ph.D. (Columbia).

This is a remote-only event. Watch at https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48821.

JAK inhibitors are immune modulating medications used in the treatment of cancer, inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, and numerous skin conditions. And the NIH has had a leading role in the development and approval of these amazing drugs.

John O'Shea, scientific director of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), discovered the potential significance of JAK3 inhibition in the 1990s. Research by him and his colleagues at the NIH and in industry led to the 2012 FDA approval of tofacitinib, used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and ulcerative colitis.

Angela Christiano is the Richard and Mildred Rhodebeck Professor of Dermatology at Columbia University. She studies inherited skin and hair disorders through a classical genetic approach including identification and phenotyping of disease families, genetic linkage, gene discovery, and mutation analysis. Recently, her team repurposed small molecule JAK inhibitors as treatment for alopecia areata, a disease marked by the immune system attacking hair follicles and causing hair loss.

Come learn about the remarkable JAK inhibitors and their ever-expanding utility. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48821.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: We will wager that you are NOT yet on the Demystifying Medicine listserv. Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


February 28 -
The Human Genome at 20
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture highlights the history of human genome sequencing and discusses the field of rare disease study, on Tuesday, February 28, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Cynthia Tifft, M.D., Ph.D., and Adam Phillippy, Ph.D., both from the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI).

This is a remote-only event. Watch at https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48823.

The genome is the operating manual containing all the instructions that help us develop from a single cell into who we are today. It guides growth, helps organs to do their jobs, and repairs itself when it becomes damaged.

Dr. Tifft is a senior clinician at the NHGRI, where she serves as deputy clinical director and leads the Pediatric Undiagnosed Diseases Program. Her clinical and research interests have been lysosomal disorders affecting the central nervous system. Dr. Tifft and her collaborative team lead a dynamic research program on glycosphingolipid and glycoprotein storage disorders. These rare, uniformly fatal, disorders affect males and females, children and adults, and the diagnosis is often delayed years to decades from the onset of symptoms. Dr. Tifft leads a gene-therapy protocol for one of these illnesses, and her presentation will include interviews with two treated patients.

Dr. Phillippy is head of the Genome Informatics Section and is a senior investigator in the Computational and Statistical Genomics Branch at NHGRI. He is a bioinformatician who bridges the fields of computer science and genomics. He joined NHGRI in 2015 and co-founded the Telomere-to-Telomere (T2T) consortium with the goal of finishing the human reference genome. Under his leadership, the consortium successfully completed this project 2021, revealing approximately 200 million bases of newly mapped human genomic sequence.

As Rare Disease Day takes place at the NIH and across the world on February 28, please join us as we learn where we are today with regards to genomic research, and how these two leaders in the field are helping patients with rare diseases make informed health decisions. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48823.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: We will wager that you are NOT yet on the Demystifying Medicine listserv. Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


March 7 -
Tests for Early Cancer: Facts vs. Opinions
Can We Detect Early Cancer?
Dear Colleagues,
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture will focus on facts vs. opinions and detecting early cancer, on Tuesday, March 7, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Phillip Castle, Ph.D., M.P.H. (NCI) and Robert Nussbaum, M.D., (Invitae).

This is a remote-only event. Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48825.

Multi-cancer early detection (MCED) tests have the potential to find more than one type of cancer from a single sample of blood by searching for certain pieces of DNA or proteins from cancer cells. Sometimes the test can pinpoint the organ the cancer started in; other times, MCED tests determine the likelihood that there is cancer somewhere in the body, necessitating further tests, such as imaging, to determine where in the body the abnormal DNA or proteins came from.

Dr. Castle is Director of the NCI's Division of Cancer Prevention and a Senior Investigator in the Clinical Genetics Branch, Clinical Epidemiology Unit. A internationally recognized expert in the field of cervical cancer prevention, he has contributed critical insights to the design and conduct of randomized trials and cohort studies of the effectiveness of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinations, screening regimens, and the natural history of cervical precancer and cancer. Another focus of his research is the development and validation of new technologies for cervical cancer prevention, including HPV tests. His work has enhanced clinical practice and informed the U.S. screening and management guidelines, notably the implementation of primary HPV testing for cervical cancer screening.

Dr. Nussbaum is Chief Medical Officer of Invitae and Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCSF Medical Center. He was chief of the Division of Genomic Medicine at UCSF Health, where he also held leadership roles in the Cancer Genetics and Prevention Program. Dr. Nussbaum is a physician and clinical geneticist with an intense interest in molecular genetics testing and its role in the provision of medical care and disease prevention. He has carried out research for over 35 years in the area of cell biology of phosphoinositides and neurodegenerative disease due to abnormalities in alpha-synuclein.

Please join us as we learn more about cancer genetics from these two leaders in the field. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48825.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: We will wager that you are NOT yet on the Demystifying Medicine listserv. Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


March 14 -
Neurodegeneration and Aging: Are They Preventable or Reversible?
Dear Colleagues,
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture will focus on Neurodegeneration and Aging, on Tuesday, March 14, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Saul Villeda, PhD (UCSF), and Luigi Ferrucci, MD, PhD (NIA).

This is a remote-only event. Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48827.

Changes in brain structure and function may continue throughout life, and studies in model organisms and humans are helping to define the normal trajectory of changes in the brain over the adult lifespan. Structural neuroimaging and anatomical studies of the brain have shown declines in total gray and white matter, along with shrinkage or atrophy and synaptic changes in certain regions of the brain in aging.

Dr. Ferrucci is the Scientific Director of the National Institute on Aging, and the director of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging. He is a geriatrician and an epidemiologist who conducts research on the causal pathways of age-related declines in health and functioning. Dr. Ferrucci has made major contributions in the design of many epidemiological studies conducted in the U.S. and in Europe, including the European Longitudinal Study on Aging, the "ICare Dicomano Study," the AKEA study of Centenarians in Sardinia and the Women's Health and Aging Study. He was also the Principal Investigator of the InCHIANTI study, a longitudinal study conducted in the Chianti Geographical area (Tuscany, Italy) looking at risk factors for mobility disability in older persons.

Dr. Villeda is an associate professor and holds an endowed chair in biomedical science at the University of California, San Francisco. Villeda began investigating the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the rejuvenation of the aging brain. Villeda discovered that the aging process in the brain can be reversed by altering levels of circulating factors in blood. This work challenges traditional views that the aged brain lacks the inherent ability to combat the effects of aging, resulting in permanent functional impairments. Villeda is best known for his use of innovative heterochronic parabiosis and blood plasma administration approaches to investigate the influence of exposure to young blood in promoting molecular and cellular changes underlying cognitive rejuvenation. His work has garnered accolades including a National Institutes of Health Director's Early Independence Award, a W.M. Keck Foundation medical research grant, and the Glenn Award for Research in Biological Mechanisms of Aging.

Please join us as we learn more about aging and brain disorders from these two leaders in the field. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48827

ATTENTION TRAINEES: We will wager that you are NOT yet on the Demystifying Medicine listserv. Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


March 21 -
It's a Bacterial World
Dear Colleagues,
The next Demystifying Medicine lecture will focus on bacteria, on Tuesday, March 21, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Andrew Knoll, Ph.D.

This is a remote-only event. Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48829.

Bacteria are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically, a few micrometers in length, bacteria were among the first life forms to appear on Earth, and are present in most of its habitats.

Dr. Andrew Knoll https://eps.harvard.edu/people/andrew-h-knoll is the Fisher Professor of Natural History at Harvard University. He received his B.A. in Geology from Lehigh University in 1973 and his Ph.D., also in Geology, from Harvard in 1977. Following five years on the faculty of Oberlin College, Dr. Knoll returned to Harvard as Associate Professor of Biology in 1982. He has been a member of the Harvard faculty ever since, serving as both Professor of Biology and Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences. Professor Knoll's honors include the Walcott Medal and the Mary Clark Thompson Medal of the National Academy of Sciences, the Phi Beta Kappa Book Award in Science (for his 2003 book Life on a Young Planet), the Moore Medal of the Society for Sedimentary Geology, the Paleontological Society Medal, and the Wollaston Medal of the Geological Society of London. Knoll is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, and the American Academy of Microbiology.

Dr. Knoll's research focuses on the early evolution of life, Earth's environmental history, and, especially, the interconnections between the two. For the past decade, he has served on the science team for NASA's MER mission to Mars.

Please join us as we learn more about the origin, life and importance of bacteria as the dominant species of our planet. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48829

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to May, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov>. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov>. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


March 28 -
CANCELED: Solar Winds and Magic Bullets: Making Our Way in a World of Radiation
RESCHEDULED TO JUNE 6


April 4 -
How is the Brain Organized and How Does it Work?
Dear Colleagues,

The next Demystifying Medicine lecture concerning how the brain works is Tuesday, April 4, at 4:00 p.m. ET. The speaker are Nelson Spruston, P.hD., (Janelia HHMI) and Marcus Raichle, M.D., (Washington University).

This is a remote-only event. Watch at https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48833.

For centuries, the brain was inaccessible for structural and functional studies. The advent of in vivo imaging technologies coupled with advances in neurobiology have made neuroscience an exciting field. Our next Demystifying Medicine speakers are at the forefront of in vivo and in vitro studies of complex brain structure and function. Join us in this exciting adventure into the challenging "brave new world"!

Marcus E. Raichle, M.D., is the Wolff Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Senior Investigator in the Neuroimaging Labs Research Center of the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis. Previously the director of the Neuroimaging Research Center, Raichle is a trailblazer in the study of human brain function through development and use of positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). His landmark studies described the first integrated strategy for the design, execution and interpretation of functional brain images.

In other seminal studies, Raichle and colleagues developed the concept of a default mode of brain function and invigorated studies of intrinsic functional activity, an issue largely dormant for more than a century. An important facet of this work was discovery of a unique fronto-parietal network in the brain known as the default network which is now a worldwide focus in studies of brain function in health and disease.

Nelson Spruston, Ph.D. is chief of scientific operations and Senior Investigator at Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Janelia Research Campus. His research focus is on hippocampal diversity and the complexity of cells and synapses which contribute to memory-guided behavior, such as spatial navigation and emotional responses. Spruston and his team use imaging methods, next-generation RNA sequencing, in vitro and in vivo electrophysiology, and behavior to study the diversity of cell types in the mouse hippocampus. His research is critical for understanding how memories are stored and recalled, as well as diseases that affect these processes.

Please join us as we learn more about the most complex part of the human body. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48833.

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?SUBED1=DEMYSTIFYINGMED&A=1.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered virtually on Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to June this year, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH. See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


April 11 -
Psychobiology: Mushrooms...Others
Dear Colleagues,

The next Demystifying Medicine lecture will focus on Psychobiology: Mushrooms...And Others, on Tuesday, April 11, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Frederick Barrett, PhD (Johns Hopkins University) and David Olson, PhD (University of California, Davis). This is a remote-only event.

Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48835 .

There are many types of hallucinations and many causes. Among known causes are psycho-active mushrooms (Magic Mushroom) and LSD. This session will present exciting developments which address: How are hallucinations produced? Can administration of hallucinogenic compounds be therapeutically helpful in neuropsychiatric and other diseases? Are the putative therapeutic effects due to specific neural pathways? Can these effects be separated from hallucinations? Is this a "brave new world" for therapy and neuroscience?

Frederick Barrett, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University's Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research explores the neural basis of emotion and altered states of consciousness relating to music, pharmacological interventions, behavioral measures, computerized testing, and brain imaging techniques. His research includes acute and long-term effects of psychedelic experiences on emotions, cognition, and the brain. Psychedelic drugs, such as psilocybin and LSD, disrupt brain networks for cognitive control and activate brain regions that support emotions and memories, Long-term effects include reduced negative emotions and increased positive emotions, which may explain their therapeutic effects.

David Olson, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis uses synthetic chemistry, molecular neurobiology, and behavioral neuropharmacology to understand mechanisms underlying the effects of psychoplastogens on the nervous system. The goal is to develop next generation neurotherapeutics.

Please join us as we learn more about the Psychobiology. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48835

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.


April 18 -
Fat: Biology and Staying Thin
Dear Colleagues,

Everyone is concerned about being overweight due to fat accumulation which is a risk factor in cancer, diabetes, immunity, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases and life span. It is mainly a result of high caloric diets, physical inactivity and altered metabolism. How does fat accumulation occur and play a critical role in human health?

The next Demystifying Medicine lecture will focus on Fat: Biology and Staying Thin, on Tuesday, April 18, at 4:00 p.m. ET with Kevin Hall, PhD and Aaron Cypress, MD, PhD, from the NIDDK/NIH. This is a remote-only event.

Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48837 .

Kevin Hall, PhD is the Integrative Physiology Section Chief at NIDDK. His goal is to improve the understanding of body weight regulation and develop practical tools for research and clinical use. Dr. Hall's research concerns how metabolism and the brain adapt to diet and physical activity interventions. Experiments in both humans and rodents are revealing the complex mechanisms regulating macronutrient metabolism, body composition and energy expenditure. His research also involves mathematical models to quantitatively describe and predict experimental results. Dr. Hall has received many awards including NIH Director' NIDDK Director's Award twice; E.V. McCullum Award from the American Society for Nutrition, Lilly Scientific Achievement Award from The Obesity Society, and the Guyton Award for Excellence in Integrative Physiology from the American Society of Physiology. His award-winning Body Weight Planner (http://BWPlanner.niddk.nih.gov) has been used by millions of people to help predict how diet and physical activity dynamically interact to affect human body weight.

Aaron Cypress, MD, PhD, MMSc is Acting Section Chief: Translational Physiology Section, Diabetes, Endocrinology, & Obesity Branch. His research focusses on cell and molecular biology, biochemistry and integrated physiology of white and brown fat, using noninvasive measurement techniques. Clinical trials and basic science are used to understand how brown fat works at the levels of cells and translate the results into practical treatments of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic illnesses.

Please join us as we learn more about why and how are excessive fat bad for your health. Can we really become thin? And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48837

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered virtually on Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to June this year, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH.

See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


April 25 -
Out of Africa: Genomic and Environmental Determinants of Global Health
Dear Colleagues,

The next Demystifying Medicine session, entitled Out of Africa: Genomic and Environmental Determinants of Global Health, will be held on April 25 at 4 p.m. EDT with Charles Rotimi, PhD (NHGRI) and Clement Adebamowo, BM, ChB, ScD, FWACS, FACS (University of Maryland).

This is a remote-only event.

Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48839 .

The range of personal, social, economic, and environmental factors that influence health status are known as determinants of health. Some biological and genetic factors affect specific populations more than others. Examples of biological and genetic determinants of health include age, sex, inherited conditions, and genetic make-up.

Charles Rotimi, PhD is an NIH Distinguished Investigator and the Scientific Director of the NHGRI intramural research program. Dr. Rotimi came to the NIH in 2008 to found the trans-institute Center for Research on Genomics and Global Health, with the mission of advancing research into the role of culture, lifestyle, and genomics in disease etiology, health disparities, and variable drug response. His lab develops genetic epidemiology models and conducts epidemiologic studies that explore the patterns and determinants of common complex diseases in human populations with particular emphasis on populations of the African Diaspora. His team published the first genome-wide scan for hypertension in African Americans and for type-2 diabetes in West Africans. His lab contributes to the global understanding of human genetic variation by actively participating in the development of international genomic resources including the HapMap, the 1000 Genomes, and the African Genome Variation Projects.

Clement Adebamowo, BM, ChB, ScD, FWACS, FACS is a tenured Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health and member of the Program in Oncology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, and Director for Global Health Cancer Research and Associate Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Maryland School of Medicine. Dr. Adebamowo conducts population science cancer research focused on using epidemiology, genomics, microbiomics, and metagenomics to understand the role of persistent high-risk HPV infections in development of cervical cancer and discovery of novel biomarkers for cervical cancer screening. In the area of cancer health disparities research, he works with colleagues on developing scientifically accurate messages to optimize recruitment strategies and study procedures in clinic-based settings for increased uptake of HPV vaccines in the West Baltimore community. Dr. Adebamowo and his research team are also using chatbots to provide health education for HPV vaccination among African Americans in Baltimore.

Please join us as we learn more about genomic determinants of global health from these two experts. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48839

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered virtually on Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to June this year, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH.

See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


May 2 -
Cancer: Metastasis and Drivers
The next Demystifying Medicine session, entitled Cancer: Metastasis and Drivers, will be held on May 2 at 4 p.m. EDT with Jonathan Hernandez, MD and Kandace Tanner, PhD from the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

This is a remote-only event.

Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48841

Most cancer patients die from metastasis and not their primary tumor. With few exceptions, metastatic disease is incurable. How cancer cells manifest metastatic potential, enter and exit a dormancy stage, develop honing to specific sites and eventually establish metastatic focus are challenging problems for basic science and clinical investigation. The hope for effective therapy lies in understanding these basic processes.

What do we know about these processes and what do we need to know is the topic of the next DM session.

Jonathan Hernandez, MD is a NCI Surgical Oncologist, Head of Metastasis Biology Section, Chief of the Surgical Oncology Section, and an Associate Professor of Surgery at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. Dr. Hernandez specializes in clinical and basic research of metastasis, particularly involving the liver. His research efforts focus on implementation of ex-vivo human tumor systems that allow his lab to fully characterize tumors from the operating room and evaluate new therapies in an unfettered platform.

Kandace Tanner, PhD is a NCI Senior Investigator in the Laboratory of Cell Biology, and Head, Tissue Morphodynamics Section. Dr. Tanner is a biophysicist who investigates basic mechanisms of metastasis particularly regarding local tissue environment requirements. To fully evaluate the dynamic nature of metastatic disease, Dr. Tanner's group has developed new 3D culture models which incorporate architectural complexity. Using well-defined extracellular matrix ligands to mimic physiological tissue we developed tools that directly quantitate the physical cues that a cell will see in vivo within native tissue, and in the presence of physiologic noise.

Please join us as we learn more about metastatic disease from these two experts. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48841

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered virtually on Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to June this year, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH.

See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


May 9 -
mRNA: Will it Deliver Us from Illness?
The next Demystifying Medicine session on Tuesday, May 9th at 4pm EDT is entitled mRNA: Will it Deliver Us from Illness? The speakers are John Coffin, PhD (Tufts University and NCI) and Paolo Lusso, MD, PhD (NIAID).

This is a remote-only event.

Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=49725

mRNA instructs cells in the body to make specific proteins, and proteins play many essential roles in our bodies. mRNA basically uses our own body and biological processes to potentially treat diseases and prevent infections.

Development of mRNA vaccines against several viral disease, most notably COVID-19, has dramatically changed the landscape in vaccinology. Can the same technology be applied for prevention of other infectious diseases...particularly HIV and influenza? Can mRNA methods be useful in treatment of non-infectious diseases? How do some viruses respond to vaccines by producing protective antibodies but the disease progresses without interruption? These and other challenging questions regarding use of mRNA in medicine will be discussed by two global experts in the next Demystifying Medicine session.

John Coffin, PhD is the American Cancer Society Research Professor and Distinguished Professor at Tufts University, and the founding Director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) HIV Drug Resistance Program, to which he still serves as a consultant. His research areas of interests focus on the interaction of retroviruses' host cells and organisms. His team uses avian and murine viruses to elucidate the nature of the retrovirus-receptor interactions.

Paolo Lusso, MD, PhD is Chief, Viral Pathogenesis Section, in the Laboratory of Immunoregulation. NIAID. Dr. Lusso's research focusses on novel approaches (including mRNA) to the development of an HIV-1 vaccine; structure-function relationships in the HIV-1 envelope; structure-based design of improved therapeutic monoclonal antibodies; molecular basis of HIV-1 immune evasion; and the role of chemokines and other endogenous immune modulators in HIV-1 disease.

Please join us as we learn more from these two experts about how mRNA technology helps treat existing diseases. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=49725

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered virtually on Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to June this year, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH.

See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


May 16 -
Diabetes Mellitus: Great Progress
Diabetes: The Marathon of Life
The next Demystifying Medicine session on Tuesday, May 16th at 4pm EDT is entitled: Diabetes Mellitus: Great Progress - Diabetes: The Marathon of Life with Douglas Melton, PhD (Harvard University) and Courtney Duckworth, MD (Harvard University - Boston Children's Hospital).

This is a remote-only event.

Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48789

Over one hundred years ago, insulin was discovered and quickly proposed to be the "answer" to "cure" for diabetes mellitus. History has not been neither kind nor straightforward. Both "cure" and "treatment" of diabetes remain challenging even as its frequency increases worldwide. Treatment of diabetes by meticulous control of blood glucose levels continues to improve due to different types of insulins, techniques for on-line measurement of glucose levels and insulin administration and greatly improved general medical care to lessen complications related to body weight, infection, exercise, etc. Overcoming insulin resistance in Type 2 diabetes presents additional challenges.

For over 50 years, attempts to replace pancreatic islets or beta cells have not been successful due to immunologic, cell biologic and technical issues. Can these problems be overcome through use of pancreatic stem or iPS generated cells from the individual patient, immunologically matched donor or other novel methodologies?

The May 16th session of Demystifying Medicine addresses these and other questions by presenting astounding progress in the cell biology of diabetes as well as clinical progress in learning how to live with the disease.

Courtney Duckworth, a type 1 diabetic, is a Pediatric resident at Boston Children's Hospital (Harvard) and has contributed greatly to understanding how to live successfully with the disease.

A leading developmental biologist, Dr. Douglas Melton of Vertex Pharmaceutical and formerly Harvard Professor of Developmental Biology and Co-Director of the Stem Cell Biology Program, has made exciting progress in use of beta cell stem cells to treat diabetes.

Please join us as we learn more from these two experts speakers, who are at the forefront of these advances. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48789

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered virtually on Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to June this year, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH.

See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


June 6 -
Solar Winds and Magic Bullets: Making Our Way in a World of Radiation
Dear Colleagues,

The last Demystifying Medicine session of 2023 will occur on Tuesday, June 6th at 4pm EDT and is entitled: Solar Winds and Magic Bullets: Making Our Way in a World of Radiation, with Nicola Fox, PhD (NASA) and Freddy Escorcia, MD, PhD (NCI, NIH).

This is a remote-only event.

Watch at: https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=48831

The topic of this week's Demystifying Medicine session is ionizing radiation. For astronauts traveling beyond the protective electromagnetic fields and atmosphere of the Earth, ionizing radiation is a potentially lethal danger. In the hands of a skilled radiation oncologist, ionizing radiation can save lives. This week's speakers will discuss the latest advances in our knowledge, starting with NASA's missions into the wild blue yonder and then turning to NCI studies in advanced clinical settings.

Nicola Fox, PhD is the associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. As NASA's head of science, Fox's portfolio includes more than 100 NASA missions to explore the secrets of the universe. She began her NASA career in 2018 leading the Heliophysics Division, overseeing the agency's efforts to study the Sun and how its constant solar wind affects Earth and other planets. Dr. Fox oversaw NASA's work to study key space phenomena and improve situational awareness of the very space our astronauts, satellites, and robotic missions travel through as they explore the solar system and beyond. Her portfolio also included NASA's robust space weather research to help the U.S. government better predict space weather, which can interfere with radio communications, affect GPS accuracy, and, when extreme, can affect electrical grids on the ground. Prior to that, she worked at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, where she was the chief scientist for heliophysics and the project scientist for NASA's Parker Solar Probe.

Freddy Escorcia, MD, PhD is an Investigator and Lasker Clinical Research Scholar within the Molecular Imaging Branch and the Radiation Oncology Branch at NCI's Center for Cancer Research. His research is focused on engineering radioconjugates to yield molecular PET or SPECT imaging agents for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), which is critical in early diagnosis and surveillance of this disease and suboptimal with existing conventional methods, especially following local treatments. His research team also focuses on the development of novel imaging agents for HCC, yielding insights that we can use to inform development of therapeutic agents. While their focus is on radiopharmaceuticals, what they learn can be translated to similar technologies including antibody- or peptide-drug conjugates, and have applications beyond HCC as well.

Please join us for our last session of the year, as we learn more from these two expert speakers. And, as always, be prepared to be dazzled and demystified.

Add this to your calendar now with this nifty link, https://videocast.nih.gov/ical.ics?live=48831

ATTENTION TRAINEES: Don't miss a lecture. Join the Demystifying Medicine listserv at https://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?A0=DEMYSTIFYINGMED.

The Demystifying Medicine course, offered virtually on Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. ET from January to June this year, bridges developments in medicine with advances in the basic biological and engineering sciences. When possible, a live patient introduces the course topic by discussing their disease, followed by a physician scientist who describes clinical aspects of the disease including therapy and challenges, followed by a bench scientist who describes what we know and don't know regarding mechanism.

Demystifying Medicine is sponsored by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (FAES) and the NIH.

See the 2023 course schedule at https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov. All past Demystifying Medicine lectures are archived at https://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents?c=45.

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits are available for this week's lecture and most others in the series.

Sign language interpreting services are available upon request. Individuals who need interpreting services or other reasonable accommodations to participate in this event should contact Kenny Williams, williajk@cc.nih.gov. Requests should be made three days in advance of the event when possible.


 

For questions about the course, please contact ariasi@mail.nih.gov.

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This web page was last modified on 5 June 2023.