Show Notes
Send us Fan Mail Endogenous peptide diversity, GLP-1 drugs, and methods for novel peptide discovery. TOPICS DISCUSSED: Peptide Structure & Production: Short amino acid chains (3-50 residues) cleaved from larger precursors by PCSK enzymes, stored in dense-core vesicles, and released upon stimuli rather than acting as folded enzymes like proteins.Tissue-Specific Processing: The same precursor yields different peptides by tissue; preproglucagon produces glucagon in pancreas but GLP-1 in gut ...
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Send us Fan Mail Nick talks with Prof. Gary Lewin (Max Delbrück Center, Berlin) about naked mole-rats, which in lab tests survived 18 minutes in pure nitrogen by shutting down brain activity, keeping the heart beating, and switching to fructose for fuel. TOPICS DISCUSSED: • From Pain Research to Mole-Rats: The work began when the animals turned out not to feel the burn of capsaicin. • Ecology & Eusociality: Colonies with a queen, one breeding male, workers, and soldiers, spread across sem...
Send us Fan Mail Nick talks with Prof. Lutz Schomburg about selenium biology in the endocrine system: selenoprotein P as the liver’s selenium transport protein and status biomarker, autoantibodies that can impair delivery despite normal blood selenium, thyroid autoimmunity (Hashimoto’s and Graves’), diabetes, aging, and what selenium supplementation trials show. TOPICS DISCUSSED: • Selenoprotein P: Liver-made transport protein that delivers selenium to tissues and serves as a status biomarker...
Send us Fan Mail Controlled human feeding trials show added fructose raises liver fat, triglycerides, uric acid, and insulin resistance at real-world doses. TOPICS DISCUSSED: Glucose vs Fructose in the Liver: Glucose and fructose are handled by the liver in distinct ways.Natural Sugars vs Processed Sugars: Whole fruit is mostly water, fiber, and micronutrients at modest sugar density; cookies and sodas pack far more sugar per weight and are easier to overconsume.HFCS on Store Shelves: Industr...
Send us Fan Mail How genomics is used to study what makes a human brain, and how genetically damaged neurons get removed. TOPICS DISCUSSED: Scale & Size: A human brain is about three times a chimpanzee brain by mass, but the larger change is extra association cortex and extra upper-layer circuits that talk mostly to other cortex.When Development Ends: Most cortical neurons are born before birth. Myelin and other glia keep forming into the twenties. Synapses keep changing after that.Broken...
Send us Fan Mail The biology of endogenous cannabinoids & history of cannabinoid-based therapeutics TOPICS DISCUSSED: Anandamide vs 2-AG: The two major endocannabinoids with a shared arachidonic acid backbone but distinct head groups biological roles.On-demand production: Calcium-dependent enzymes release cannabinoids from membranes in response to neuronal activity patterns.Trafficking: Fatty acid binding proteins and extracellular microvesicles traffic endocannabinoids within and between...