Because of ethical and medical challenges, early human embryo development remains “a black box” to us, as Prof. Jacob Hanna himself puts it.
Despite all the progress made in medicine over the past decades, there is still a whole lot to learn about the causes of miscarriages, infertility, or early developmental defects.
In 2023, Jacob’s group from the Weizmann Institute of Science published a pivotal paper in Nature that redefines how we study developmental biology, with the potential to accelerate our understanding of early human life.
Their achievement?
The creation of the first synthetic embryo model closely resembling a day-14 fetus, obtained “ex utero” without gametes and outside a womb.
A human embryo model derived from “naive” stem cells in the lab, which can be obtained from “adult” cells that make up our body (like skin cells for instance). A technology that could generate embryo models of ourselves based on a simple cell sample.
This work had an unprecedented impact on the scientific community and the general public, being named by TIME Magazine as one of the 100 best inventions of 2023.
A breakthrough that raises important ethical, technical, and legal questions.
I had the honor of meeting Jacob for this episode of Impulse, with whom we discuss the functioning of this fascinating technology, its potential medical applications in the future, and the key societal questions it raises.
A conversation where we dive into the magic of human development, with a stellar scientist and advocate for responsible scientific research!
Timeline:
(00:02:58) - Jacob’s journey from his medical practice to studying developmental biology
(00:06:09) - Why we know so little about early human development
(00:08:45) - Jacob’s lab breakthrough in modeling human embryos
(00:16:20) - Reprogramming cells to their “naïve” state
(00:18:09) - Dealing with your research being put under the spotlight
(00:20:02) - The “recipe” to create human embryo models without gametes and outside a womb
(00:27:22) - Ethical considerations and how far we can go with this technology
(00:35:15) - Potential medical applications for the future
(00:38:05) - Jacob’s role as an adviser to the startup Renewal Bio
What we also talked about with Jacob:
Prof. Shinya Yamanaka (2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Prof. John Gurdon)
Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)
Embryonic stem cells
International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR)
Taledomide
We cited with Jacob some of the past episodes of the series::
#23 - Disrupting the smart wearables industry - Leo Grünstein - Spiden
As mentioned by Jacob during the episode, we recommend the book “The Master Builder” by Prof. Alfonso Martinez Arias, challenging the traditional thinking where cells (and not DNA) may hold the key to understanding life’s past and present.
Feel free to follow the Weizmann Institute of Science on LinkedIn.
You can contact Jacob via email and follow his activities on LinkedIn, X, and Facebook!
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, contact me over LinkedIn or via email!
And if you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms! 🙏
There’s now a bi-monthly newsletter around the podcast where you will be informed of the latest episodes and kept posted on the latest medical tech progress, subscribe here!
Lastly, don’t forget to follow our activities on LinkedIn and our website!
May 7, 2024
To discover the whole episode type "#28 - Modeling embryos to understand early life - Jacob Hanna - Weizmann Institute of Science" on your streaming platform.
May 7, 2024
We are at a turning point for brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) and neurotechnology.
We have all witnessed phenomenal progress in this field recently via images shared by Neuralink, showing paralyzed patients who can communicate with a computer through their own thoughts. Other fascinating applications, such as those being worked on by Gregoire Courtine and Jocelyne Bloch, enable paraplegics to regain an unprecedented degree of walking mobility.
These advancements are mind-blowing and illustrate the potential of these technologies to address conditions that have a major impact on quality of life.
What if we were to enhance the physical properties of these implants while making them more accessible in terms of costs to health systems? Where could this paradigm shift take us, and what prospects could it open up for treating complex neurological disorders?
This is what we explore in this episode with Carolina Aguilar, CEO of Inbrain Neuroelectronics, a company developing a cutting-edge neural platform based on graphene, promising to change the way we decode, modulate, and stimulate neuronal activity.
We talk with Carolina about:
How Inbrain Neuroelectronics' technology enhances the resolution of BCIs and their therapeutic potential
The stakes around BCIs and their promise in treating serious neurological disorders
The importance of focusing their development around therapeutic indications vs. aiming for human augmentation
The commercialization of these solutions through a value-based care approach and key success factors
Empowering women in science and business
An outlook on the future of brain therapies that bridges the gap between reality and science fiction!
Timeline:
(00:03:22) - Explaining Inbrain Neuroelectronics’ neural platform
(00:07:32) - The medical need for BCIs and the first indications targeted by Inbrain Neuroelectronics
(00:18:46) - Risks around BCIs and ethical considerations for the field to head in the right direction
(00:26:17) - Toward value-based commercial models for BCIs
(00:29:40) - Transitioning from Medtronic to an early-stage Medtech startup
(00:33:29) - Empowering women in science and business
What we also talked about with Carolina:
Neuralink
Elon Musk
Sapiens Steering Brain Stimulation
Medtronic
ONWARD Medical
Precision Neuroscience
Paradromics
Synchron
Neurosoft Bioelectronics
We cited with Carolina some of the past episodes from the series:
#6 - Bringing back walking to paraplegics - Jocelyne Bloch - .NeuroRestore
As mentioned by Carolina during the episode, you can access Inbrain Neuroelectronics’ publications here and learn more about their ongoing research and therapy development efforts. You can listen to the Neurotech Pub podcast hosted by Matt Angle here.
Feel free to follow Inbrain Neuroelectronics activities on LinkedIn.
If you want to contact Carolina, you can reach out to her over LinkedIn.
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, contact me over LinkedIn or via email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms! 🙏
There’s now a monthly newsletter around the podcast where you will be informed of the latest episodes and updated on the latest medical tech progress, subscribe here!
Lastly, don’t forget to follow our activities on LinkedIn and our website!
April 7, 2024
To discover the whole episode type "#27 - Reinventing neuroelectronic therapies - Carolina Aguilar - Inbrain Neuroelectronics" on your streaming platform.
April 7, 2024
Many of us struggle with allergies, usually something we’ve been dealing with our whole life, either continuously or episodically.
Be it related to food, pollen, dust, pets, or many others, it’s quite a pain and it can take us away from many things we appreciate in life. And I deliberately include myself in this group.
Somehow it was engraved in my brain as a condition one needs to cope with, without much opportunity for improvement.
It turns out companies like Nectar Life Sciences are redefining the way we detect and treat allergies from the comfort of our homes.
Based on the latest science in this field, and backed by his extensive experience in consumer healthcare, Kenneth Chahine and his team are transforming the experience of allergy care for patients, offering a convenient and personalized approach to it.
In this revealing episode, we talk with Kenneth about:
The inconvenience of past approaches to allergy detection and treatment
How allergy immunotherapy works and can be delivered through a few drops delivered to the tongue
How Nectar Life Sciences enables personalized allergy immunotherapy for patients
The transformative power of preventing acute allergic shocks
Lessons learned from a serial healthcare entrepreneur at the interface of genetics, biochemistry, and intellectual property
A conversation with a tireless figure in healthcare entrepreneurship, shedding light on one of the largest chronic conditions globally and how it can be tackled in a modern way!
Timeline:
02:28 - Kenneth’s background at the interface of genetics, biochemistry and intellectual property
04:14 - The global burden of allergies as a chronic condition
05:53 - Origins of allergies
07:49 - Immunotherapy or how to train your immune system to be desensitized to allergens
09:43 - Detecting which allergens you are sensitive to
11:17 - How Nectar Life Sciences approaches allergy treatment
22:11 - Kenneth’s mindset toward solving complex healthcare challenges in new ways
26:01 - Opportunities beyond allergy care
32:16 - Kenneth’s advice to fellow healthcare entrepreneurs
What we also talked about with Kenneth:
Avigen
Ancestry
Anaphylaxis
Neurimmune
University of Utah
We cited with Kenneth some of the past episodes from the series:
15 - Propelling diagnostics through miniaturization - Nicolas Durand - Abionic
As mentioned by Kenneth during the episode, you can access Nectar Life Sciences’ Learning Hub here and learn more about Prof. Edwin H. Kim’s research there.
Feel free to follow Nectar Life Sciences activities on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok!
If you want to contact Kenneth, you can reach out to him over LinkedIn.
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, contact me over LinkedIn or via email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms! 🙏
There’s now a monthly newsletter around the podcast where you will be informed of the latest episodes and updated on the latest medical tech progress, subscribe here!
Lastly, don’t forget to follow our activities on LinkedIn and our website!
February 4, 2024
To discover the whole episode type "#26 - Redefining allergy care - Kenneth Chahine - Nectar Life Sciences" on your streaming platform.
February 4, 2024
We don’t need to look far in the daily news to understand the stakes and the importance of having efficient solutions to control and stop bleeding.
In the times we live in, where the world is crippled by a series of humanitarian catastrophes (some of natural origin, some of human origin), technological wonders from the medical field make me truly hopeful about the future, and about what we can achieve as humans.
One of them is the hemostatic gel - a gel that can stop bleeding - that Joe Landolina and his team at Cresilon created.
And its astonishing performance is easy to grasp: any bleed can be stopped within three seconds.
Compared to traditional methods that require several minutes, it can mean the difference between life and death.
There’s so much that impresses in Joe’s journey since the foundation of Cresilon: the fact that he developed the gel formulation himself, that he founded the company at 17 years old in his first year at University, or that Cresilon now represents the largest biotech manufacturing site in New York, and so much more!
Beyond these successes, this episode is an ode to biomimicry and the science of biomaterials. Joe reveals everything about the functioning of this revolutionary medical product, its ability to stop bleeding almost instantly, and what it changes in medicine for the treatment of superficial injuries, but especially for the most severe traumatic cases.
A surprising encounter with a prodigious entrepreneur, building his path on resilience and adaptability, with the long-term vision to transform bleeding control in humans!
Timeline:
02:23 - Joe’s background and founding Cresilon in his first year in college
06:15 - Cresilon’s mission and the technology at its core
08:42 - How the hemostatic gel from Cresilon compares to traditional bleeding control methods
10:40 - The explanation behind Cresilon’s hemostatic gel unique performance
16:06 - How the gel is applied and removed
21:44 - Marketing first the product for veterinary application before moving to human use
25:27 - Being the only biotech company with manufacturing capabilities in New York
34:15 - Setting up the company to become a large medtech player in the long term
What we also talked about with Joe:
New York University
Columbia University
Scar tissue formation
Fibrin
Extracellular matrix
Hurricane Sandy
American Veterinary Medical Association
Roche
Pfizer
Cutiss
We cited with Joe some of the past episodes from the series:
18 - The dark genome as the next revolution in drug discovery - Samir Ounzain - HAYA Therapeutics
Feel free to follow Cresilon’s activities on LinkedIn!
You will find here the TED Talk that Joe held in 2015, and here the Medsider podcast episode between Joe and Scott Nelson that we mention in this episode of Impulse.
If you want to contact Joe, you can reach out to him over LinkedIn.
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, contact me over LinkedIn or via email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms! 🙏
There’s now a bi-monthly newsletter around the podcast where you will be informed of the latest episodes and updated on the latest medical tech progress, subscribe here!
Lastly, don’t forget to follow our activities on LinkedIn and our website!
November 12, 2023
To discover the whole episode type "#25 - Stopping a bleed in three seconds - Joe Landolina - Cresilon" on your streaming platform.
November 12, 2023
In the first episode of the The First Line of Defense podcast, we discuss early detection of pancreatic cancer in primary care. While the initial presentation of pancreatic cancer can be vague and non-specific, if you’re suspicious, Primary Care Clinicians should consider imaging, such as an abdominal and pelvic CT scan for further evaluation.
October 29, 2023
In the second episode of the The First Line of Defense podcast, we discuss genetic insights and understanding pancreatic cancer risk in primary care. While there are many considerations a Primary Care Clinician has to make when diagnosing pancreatic cancer, family histories are an important piece of this complex puzzle.
October 29, 2023
Primary Care Clinicians have an important role to play, and it’s not easy. There is hope for the future of early detection with biomarkers and A-I. Not only is early detection increasingly more feasible, it makes a significant difference in survival.
October 29, 2023
In this special bonus episode of The First Line of Defense podcast, Chris Sander, a computational biologist based at the Dana-Farber Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School, explains how his research on A-I and machine learning are being used to help with early cancer detection. Even with the multiple challenges inherent in AI, this study represents a much needed and valuable step in earlier cancer detection efforts.
October 29, 2023
How would the world look like if men had the most efficient and reversible means of birth control?
The outstanding work that L.R. Fox and his team at NEXT Life Sciences are leading might bring a very tangible answer to this question.
Based on the pioneering work from Prof. Sujoy K. Guha and The Parsemus Foundation, they are developing one of the most promising male birth control methods medicine has ever known, under the name of Plan A.
As an American citizen who has grown under the Foster Care program, Fox (as he likes to be called) has witnessed firsthand the dramatic consequences that unplanned pregnancies can have on individuals and their relatives in the long term.
According to him, we have gone quite far already in terms of available options for women and men when it comes to birth control methods. But Plan A could be a revolution in the space, as it is completely hormone-free, painless to deliver and revert, and has an efficacy duration that is way beyond current standards.
And most importantly, it can redistribute the heavy responsibility of family planning from women to men.
In this episode, we talk about the science behind Plan A, where the technology comes from, how far is it from being available worldwide, and what it would change for society as a whole!
A fascinating conversation with a visionary founder, deeply led by the purpose of fostering a positive impact in the world, and with a strong social approach to entrepreneurship!
Timeline:
02:35 - Fox’s background and how he landed in the field of male contraception
06:16 - Experiencing firsthand the consequences of unplanned pregnancies
09:34 - The mission of NEXT Life Sciences
11:50 - The need, the science, and the functioning of Plan A
16:02 - How the Plan A procedure works and gets reverted
25:02 - Guaranteeing a 10-year efficacy claim
26:56 - Launching the first human clinical trials
33:55 - Making it accessible to the broadest population
38:17 - The philosophy of Fox and NEXT Life Sciences
What we also talked about with Fox:
Sexually transmissible diseases (STDs)
Condoms
Vasectomy
Reversible inhibition of sperm under guidance (RISUG)
Plan B
Public benefit corporation
We cited with Fox some of the past episodes from the series:
#6 - Bringing back walking to paraplegics - Jocelyne Bloch - .NeuroRestore
You can learn more about NEXT Life Sciences through their website, and feel free to follow their activities on LinkedIn!
As mentioned by Fox during the episode, you can learn more about Plan A on the dedicated website as well as on Instagram, X, Facebook, and TikTok.
If you want to contact Fox, you can reach out to him over LinkedIn.
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, contact me over LinkedIn or via email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms! 🙏
There’s now a bi-monthly newsletter around the podcast where you will be informed of the latest episodes and updated on the latest medical tech progress, subscribe here!
Lastly, don’t forget to follow our activities on LinkedIn and our website!
October 18, 2023
To discover the whole episode type "#24 - Reimagining male contraception - L.R. Fox - NEXT Life Sciences" on your streaming platform.
October 18, 2023
Wearables are a form of technology that has rapidly become a part of our lives over the past 15 years, with the introduction of devices from Fitbit, Apple, Samsung, and others to the market.
Initially informing us about our heart rate and daily step count, they have evolved to incorporate increasingly sophisticated features, allowing us to track our sleep relatively accurately, monitor our overall physical activity, and sometimes even include recognized medical functions (such as the FDA-approved atrial fibrillation detection of the Apple Watch).
However, no device of this type allows for real-time quantification of molecules circulating in our blood or other bodily fluids, through optical methods.
And that's exactly the challenge that Leo and his team at Spiden have set for themselves: to create the most advanced wearable, capable of continuously and non-invasively measuring multiple biomarkers circulating in our bodies.
This could redefine our understanding of our own physiology and change our approach to medicine, by providing insights for the prevention, diagnosis, and monitoring of several conditions, that were previously inaccessible.
Since its creation in 2017, Spiden has been operating away from the spotlight, but Leo does us the honor in this exclusive episode to reveal the first secrets behind Spiden’s technology.
We discuss its functioning, its initial applications, who the future users will be, and also the incredible team of world-renowned scientists Leo has managed to bring together in the fields of optics, electronic engineering, and machine learning (three fields that were originally completely foreign to him) to achieve his vision.
A fascinating conversation about the future of personalized medicine with a bold and successful entrepreneur!
Timeline:
03:43 - Leo’s background as a serial entrepreneur from fintech to deep tech
04:56 - Why Leo found Spiden and works towards improving our health
07:14 - The mission of Spiden
11:00 - The technology behind Spiden
14:47 - The biomarkers that Spiden can track
19:02 - Target users of Spiden’s future wearable
22:28 - Designing a health-dedicated device
24:10 - Attracting world talents in fields you are not initially from
34:01 - The importance of in-person interactions in a scientific and multidisciplinary team
What we also talked about with Leo:
Continuous glucose monitoring (Abbott Freestyle Libre)
Bits & Pretzels HealthTech
Photoplethysmography (PPG)
Biohacking
Glucose Goddess
Whoop
Oura
Garmin
Huberman Lab
induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)
We cited with Leo some of the past episodes from the series:
#4 - Filtering the blood with nanoengineered beads - Lukas Langenegger - Hemotune
#11 - Turning the lab into a wearable platform - Esmeralda Megally - Xsensio
#21 - Transforming hypertension care with a bracelet - Jay Shah - Aktiia
You can learn more about Spiden through their website. Feel free to follow as well their activities on LinkedIn!
As mentioned by Leo during the episode, you can learn about the painful history of non-invasive glucose measurement through the book “The Pursuit of Noninvasive Glucose - Hunting the Deceitful Turkey” by John L. Smith.
If you want to get in touch with Leo, feel free to contact him over LinkedIn.
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, you can contact me over LinkedIn or via email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms! 🙏
There’s now a bi-monthly newsletter around the podcast where you will be informed of the latest episodes and kept up to date on the latest medical tech progress, simply subscribe here!
And don’t forget to follow our activities on LinkedIn and our website!
September 4, 2023
To discover the whole episode type "#23 - Disrupting the smart wearables industry - Leo Grünstein - Spiden" on your streaming platform.
September 4, 2023
Given the rapid progress made in this field in recent years, autonomous vehicles could soon become part of our daily lives, bringing with them all the consequences and questions they raise in terms of modern mobility.
This would benefit people with visual impairments who are unable to drive.
However, it wouldn't necessarily assist them in their pedestrian moves, which will always play a significant role in their daily lives.
Maël Fabien became aware of the lack of available solutions in this regard during a walk in town. He noticed a visually impaired person video calling a friend, who was guiding her through his voice based on the video she was sharing.
As a result, he took inspiration from the latest advances in autonomous vehicles to create a harness capable of continuously analyzing the pedestrian environment, and safely guiding its users in all their movements.
From there, Biped was born, a device that promises to improve the life of the 270 million visually impaired people worldwide, by providing them with a much more accurate and secure perception of their environment than traditional solutions.
In this surprising episode, you will learn about:
The daily life of a visually impaired person and its impact on mobility
How Biped was developed in close collaboration with its end users
Some key concepts of autonomous mobility and the sensors that constitute it
How Biped translates the user's 3D environment into audio cues for guidance
The potential applications of Biped beyond ophthalmology
An outlook on the future of mobility and what it might change for those with limited vision!
Timeline:
02:01 - Maël’s interests at the interface of economics and speech processing
04:07 - Addressing the need for 270 million visually impaired
07:50 - What Biped is about
15:32 - How Biped reads and translates the environment of the user
22:30 - How users are trained on the system
24:14 - The spectrum of visually impaired people that Biped serves
30:08 - The underlying business model
32:19 - Potential applications beyond ophthalmology
34:58 - What users say about it
39:09 - Maël’s definition of impact
What we talked also talked about with Maël:
Idiap Research Institute
Mobility training
Lidar
Bone conduction headphones
Jules Gonin Eye Hospital
Glaucoma
Retinitis Pigmentosa
Macular Degeneration
Cochlear Implants
You can learn more about Biped.ai through their website.
Feel free to follow as well their activities on LinkedIn!
As mentioned by Maël during the episode, you can find out more about the latest advances in autonomous driving and related AI through Tesla’s yearly AI Day (2022 recording here). He also recommends The Blind Life YouTube channel to understand how it feels to be in the shoes of a visually impaired person. If you want to learn more about Maël and his other endeavors besides Biped.ai, have a look at his blog!
If you want to get in touch with Maël, feel free to contact him over LinkedIn.
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, you can contact me over LinkedIn or via email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms! 🙏
And don’t forget to follow our activities on LinkedIn and through our website!
August 15, 2023
To discover the whole episode type "#22 - Harnessing self-driving technology to guide the visually impaired - Maël Fabien - Biped.ai" on your streaming platform.
August 15, 2023
Few companies can claim to be a step ahead of tech giants in the wearable race.
The Swiss company Aktiia can.
They were the first to successfully bring to market a device capable of continuously and accurately measuring blood pressure, officially approved in Europe and soon to be in the US. All in a discreet bracelet that resembles a traditional jewel.
It changes the game for how we approach hypertension, the first chronic condition worldwide affecting a staggering 1.4 billion people, and which comes with dire long-term consequences like strokes and heart attacks.
The impact such groundbreaking technology can have on the daily lives of those affected is immense, not to mention its benefits for those in charge of their medical care.
Say goodbye to the uncomfortable and cumbersome inflatable cuff (the actual “gold standard” to measure blood pressure), not to mention the major step forward in terms of design!
Aktiia has defied expectations by merging optical and machine learning expertise over nearly two decades of cutting-edge research, resulting in a significant breakthrough in the world of wearables.
In this new episode of the series, we sit with Jay Shah - the leading cardiologist and current Chief Medical Officer at Aktiia - who shares with us the story and functioning behind this stunning piece of technology.
You will learn about:
Hypertension and the public health crisis it represents
The benefits of continuous blood pressure measurement
How the Aktiia bracelet works
How a small company like Aktiia was able to stand up to the biggest tech companies
Preventive medicine and why empowering patients in their self-care matters
A fascinating episode exploring the medical potential of wearables in our lives!
Timeline:
02:30 - Jay’s background as a cardiologist and what led him to Aktiia
05:30 - The most common cause of cardiovascular diseases: hypertension
10:15 - What Aktiia is about and what it changes for blood pressure monitoring
15:50 - How Aktiia’s technology work
20:12 - The limits of the pattern-matching approach with wearable data
24:00 - Why Aktiia succeeded where big tech companies failed
27:45 - Who can get access to Aktiia’s bracelet
30:35 - How Aktiia empowers patients to take better control of their condition
What we also talked about with Jay:
Mattia Bertschi
Josep Sola
Massachusetts General Hospital
Mayo Clinic
Blood pressure cuff (sphygmomanometer)
Photoplethysmography
NextMed Health
We cited with Jay some of the past episodes from the series:
#1 - Measuring your arterial age to prevent heart diseases - Ted Baldwin - Imageens
#12 - Unleashing the power of digital health - Daniel Kraft - Digital.Health
You can learn more about Aktiia through their website.
Feel free to follow their activities on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram!
As mentioned by Jay during the episode, you can find out more about the clinical research in hypertension and all the evidence developed around the bracelet in that regard here. For a very technical deep dive into cuffless blood pressure monitoring, we invite you to consult “The Handbook of Cuffless Blood Pressure Monitoring: A Practical Guide for Clinicians, Researchers, and Engineers” by Josep Sola himself, one of the founders from Aktiia.
If you want to get in touch with Jay, feel free to contact him over LinkedIn.
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, you can contact me over LinkedIn or via email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms! 🙏
And don’t forget to follow our activities on LinkedIn and through our website!
August 1, 2023
To discover the whole episode type "#21 - Transforming hypertension care with a bracelet - Jay Shah - Aktiia" on your streaming platform.
August 1, 2023
Restoring one of our five senses, in this case, touch.
The stakes are immense (1 in 1000 people are affected yearly by a peripheral nerve injury!) and the origins are diverse: traumatic accident, cancer, amputation, and many others.
And solutions to this problem have long needed to be improved.
Karen Zaderej and her team at Axogen have set themselves the goal of changing this situation, by proposing new ways of treating nerves, taking advantage of their regenerative potential.
A chemical engineer by training, Karen began her career at Johnson & Johnson in its surgical solutions subsidiary, ETHICON.
With 17 years of experience in roles ranging from manufacturing to product development and sales, she decided to leave her corporate career behind.
In 2006 she joined a Floridian start-up in its infancy, developing a new type of medical device enabling nerves to regenerate, still at the prototype stage and not yet tested on humans.
The outcome?
A company that has become a world leader in the development of cutting-edge nerve repair solutions, listed on the stock exchange and now employs over 400 people.
In this new episode, we delve into the world of peripheral nerves, the source of our physical and motor sensations, and their formidable regenerative capacities.
You will learn about:
How our nerves work and current approaches to repairing them
Phantom pain, how to explain it, and how to treat it
How women today can regain sensation in their breasts following a mastectomy
The journey of a remarkable woman entrepreneur who has made addressing nerve damage her life mission
Prepare to be nervously amazed as we unravel the secrets of touch restoration!
Timeline:
00:03:00 - Karen’s background as a nerve evangelist
00:07:35 - Key evolutions in medical technology that Karen witnessed
00:10:42 - What Karen learned at J&J that shaped the rest of her career
00:15:43 - What attracted Karen to Axogen and the potential of their technology
00:20:40 - Scaling up a medical device company from a very early stage onwards
00:23:15 - How Axogen enables nerve repair
00:27:18 - Bringing an answer to phantom pain
00:30:47 - The main indication areas covered by Axogen
00:38:31 - What the future of nerve repair might look like
What we also talked about with Karen:
Autograft
Allograft
Mastectomy
Neuroma
Da Vinci Surgical Systems
We cited with Karen some of the past episodes from the series:
#6 - Bringing back walking to paraplegics - Jocelyne Bloch - .NeuroRestore
#2 - Treating liver cancer with surgical robotics - Lucien Blondel - Quantum Surgical
You can learn more about Axogen through their website and their portfolio here.
Feel free to follow as well their activities on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook!
As mentioned by Karen during the episode, you can find out more about clinical research in peripheral nerve repair through the complete library of published papers curated by the company.
Karen also invites you to consult resensation.com and rethinkpain.com to hear about patient stories and find resources in case you face a similar situation.
If you want to get in touch with Karen, feel free to contact her over LinkedIn.
If you want to give me feedback on the episode or suggest potential guests, feel free to do so contact me over LinkedIn or via email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast, and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms!
Follow also our activities on LinkedIn and through our website!
June 25, 2023
To discover the whole episode type "#20 - Restoring touch through nerve repair - Karen Zaderej - Axogen" on your streaming platform.
June 25, 2023
We all know that medical data is sensitive personal information, which we would not like to have falling into the wrong hands.
Along with the progress of digitalisation in healthcare, the number of cyberattacks towards this particular sector has dramatically increased over the past years.
The ultimate risk?
Slowed or even paralysed hospitals, with lives lost as a consequence.
Since all of this happens in the background, it’s hard to grasp the severity of the situation, and the majority of us are not equipped with the expertise to understand how those events actually unfold.
With decades of experience as a healthcare Chief Information Security Officer and current Chief Security Strategist at Cylera, Richard Staynings has seen firsthand the devastating consequences of such attacks on patients, providers, and organizations. But he's also a firm believer that with the right strategies, tools, and mindset, we can win the war against cyber threats in healthcare.
In this episode, we dive headfirst into the high-stakes world of healthcare cybersecurity with one of the industry's most respected voices.
You will learn about:
The risks cyberattacks carry for health systems
The most common types of cyberattacks in this sector
The entities behind those threats
What health systems can do to ensure their safety
A conversation packed with eye-opening perspectives and actionable advice for anyone working in healthcare or concerned about its future!
Timeline:
02:14 - introduction on Richard’s background and the mission of Cylera
03:26 - why cybersecurity matters in healthcare
07:58 - the example of WannaCry in the UK
10:46 - the main sources of threat for healthcare systems
29:46 - the approach Cylera takes to safeguard its clients
What we also talked about with Richard:
General Keith Alexander
Malware
Ransomware
Denial-of-service attack
Zero-day exploits
The Interview
The CIA Triad
As mentioned in the episode, you can learn more about Cylera through their website and their approach here.
You can also follow their activities on LinkedIn or Twitter!
For further information about cybersecurity in healthcare, we’d recommend the Blog section from Cylera and the website curated by Richard himself: cyberthoughts.org.
If you want to get in touch with Richard, feel free to contact him per email at
[email protected], on LinkedIn or Twitter.
In case you want to give me feedback on the episode or the podcast in general, ask questions or suggest potential guests, feel free to do so through LinkedIn or per email at
[email protected]!
If you liked the episode, please share it, subscribe to the podcast and leave a 5-star review on streaming platforms!
We also invite you to follow our activities through our website, LinkedIn and Instagram!
April 26, 2023
To discover the whole episode type "#19 - Saving lives through cybersecurity - Richard Staynings - Cylera" on your streaming platform.
April 26, 2023