The field of stem cell research has progressed immensely since its high-profile politicization in the early 2000s, with researchers now able to harvest cells from uncontroversial sources and manipulate them with ever-increasing accuracy and efficiency. Associate Professor of Biology and Biomedical Engineering Lance Lian talks about his key role in advancing our understanding and mastery of stem cells and the incredible medical applications they promise.

Sally Mackenzie is one of the world’s foremost experts on epigenetics, the study of how environmental changes affect the way genes are expressed. In this conversation we cover an epigenetic techniques she’s patented, the biotech company she founded, and the potential role that epigenetics could play in human health.

Relevant Links

• Mackenzie Laboratory Website
• Epicrop Technologies Inc.
• Trailblazers: Sally Mackenzie’s Vision for the Future of Plants

Featured Guest

• Sally Mackenzie
  Director of the Plant Institute; Huck Chair of Functional Genomics; Professor of Biology and of Plant Science

Laura Weyrich leads efforts to better understand the impact of diet on the communities of microorganisms residing in our mouths, and their influence on human health. In this livestreamed conversation, she talks about her work with Neanderthal teeth, the ethics of dealing with human remains, and shifts in human activity that have changed the makeup of our microbiomes.

Relevant Links

• MicroARCH Lab Website
• "The woman who loves the gunk on Neanderthal teeth." Cosmos Magazine, December 14, 2017
• Laura S. Weyrich Google Scholar Profile

Featured Guest

• Laura Weyrich
  Associate Professor of Anthropology