Talking Biotech with Dr. Kevin Folta

The COVID19 vaccines have the potential to squelch a dangerous pandemic. However, the public has many questions about their safety and efficacy that could limit their broad administration. Some of th…

Two mRNA vaccines have been approved to lead the fight against COVID19. Both have been rapidly approved with Emergency Use Authorization, which does not build public trust. Ultimately compelling the …

Apples seem rather ubiqutous, but what we see in the stores are just a sample of the genetic diversity that is out there.  Today’s podcast discusses apple domestication and diversification with Dr. N…

Despite its essential role in the economy and food security, agriculture has lagged behind with respect to adoption of new technology. This has happened for many reasons, partially from technology co…

mRNA vaccines have recently been in the news as an exciting potential preventative of SARS-CoV2.  The technology seems new, but has roots in the 1990’s and a long history of maturation, plagued by te…

Technology is driving innovation on the farm, and there have been significant efforts in improving livestock.  Whether it was to produce a novel therapeutic or to solve a critical disease in animals,…

Gene editing is a relatively new technology that has revolutionary applications in agriculture and medicine.  The drawback to the technology is that it typically can only be used to disrupt a deleter…

The onion has tremendous value in culinary applications all over the world.  Where did it come from?  What are the major breeding efforts and the important traits.  Today’s podcast discusses the onio…

On Halloween it is hard to remember that the pumpkins used for decoration are actually an important food for indigenous people of the Americas.  There are multiple species of pumpkins that originated…

Gene editing moved quickly from the lab to application, so fast that the public is unsure how to think about it.  We can cure disease, but are we playing with the natural order of things? These are q…

This week two scientists pioneering gene editing won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry.  Days later, a group of perennial naysayers gathered to denounce the technology.  Gene editing is a revolutionary t…

 Digestive cancers are among the most common and deadly cancers in the world, comprising metastases of the colon, esophagus, stomach and rectum.   These all share some cellular commonalities, namely …

Dr. Cami Ryan has examined the social factors that underlie decisions.  Today these human tendencies are critical to understand, as everyone is bombarded by information through social media.  How do …

 The human immunodeficiency virus remains prevalent in the population, yet it as silently moved out of the public’s consciousness, overshadowed by COVID19 and drug cocktails that can control its prog…

Sepsis is an infection of the blood.  It can be critical and life threatening, and can complicate other co-morbidities.  One of the main problems is that a number of bacterial and fungal pathogens ca…

Indoor air contains a variety of harmful compounds.  We invite many of these compounds into our homes in electronics, and others occur spontaneously from our water supply, and as homes become more en…

This week’s guest is the host!  It was important to discuss communication tips during a pandemic, especially around popular myths and news stories involving COVID19.  Kevin Folta provides counterargu…

Florida is the canary in the coalmine for mosquito-transmitted disease in the USA.  The Florida Keys are especially vulnerable.  Traffic through this sensitive string of islands allows infected insec…

Penguins are charismatic, flightless, diving birds.  While typically associated only with Antarctica, their center of origin, radiation and speciation has been widely debated.  Dr. Juliana Vianna is …

Most experts agree that the COVID19 pandemic will not end until a vaccine is available.  But traditionally, vaccines take a decade to develop and test.  The crisis has ignited efforts from over 130 c…