Me, Myself & My Microbiome

On average, five pounds of our body weight is made up of bacteria. But what are they doing there? Do they keep us healthy, make us sick, or are they just along for the ride? In this two-part episode, we will explore the mysterious and complex function of these microscopic critters that collectively make up our micro biome.

In part 1, we talk with Katie Pollard, a UCSF professor who studies the microbiome. Katie explains the current state of microbiome research and how critical her work is to forming appropriate conclusions about 
the relationship between our microbial ecosystem and disease.

In part 2, we take a plunge into a man's toilet bowl! (Not-so-average) Joe Hiatt shares an audio diary of his experiences with two extreme diets and the changes he sees in his microbiome. Join him as he chronicles both his bathroom habits along with his microbial diversity.

Click here for more information about the Pollard lab.

Click here to visit uBiome's company website.

Produced by Lynn Wang, Lay Kodama, Ryan Jones, Kathleen Molnar

With Editing help from Meryl Horn, and Nick Weiler. 

Cover art from the Genetic Science Learning Center, University of Utah, http://learn.genetics.utah.edu

Our protective microbiome: Susan Lynch

Believe it or not, we are made up of more microbes than human cells. In fact, for every human cell that makes up our body, there are nine times more bacteria, viruses, or fungi living on our skin, gut, or lungs. However, most of these microbes are not the kind that will make us sick. Most are harmless and, in some cases, even protective against diseases like Crohn’s disease and chronic sinusitis.
The function of many of these microbes is beginning to be understood by scientists like Dr. Susan Lynch, an associate professor of medicine at the University of California - San Francisco and our guest this month on Carry the One Radio. Listen as Dr. Lynch describes her work on the microbiome, how it develops, and its role in health and disease.

This episode is also part of our ongoing collaboration with our friends over at Youreka Science. They make science make sense, and they have covered one of Dr. Lynch's recent publications on the microbiome.

More on the Lynch Lab's research

An animated guide to some of Susan Lynch's work at Youreka Science

Hosted by Sama Ahmed