Dapper in the brain: Benjamin Cheyette

Dr. Ben Cheyette is an assistant professor in the department of psychiatry at UCSF. Ben and his lab focuses on signaling proteins that help neurons develop and communicate with each other.

In this week’s episode Dr. Cheyette explains how these signaling pathways originally discovered in the fruit fly relate to psychiatric disorders in humans. He discusses how he became interested in this family of proteins and the research his lab is currently conducting. Using the power of mouse genetics, his lab studies how a protein called Dapper can shape the way neurons form and function in the brain. He is also interested in how mutations in the Dapper gene relate to autism. Finally, at the end of our talk Ben provides some helpful advice to young listeners interested in pursuing a career in science.

More on the Cheyette Lab's research

Hosted by Osama Ahmed

Repression of olfactory receptor genes: Stavros Lomvardas

Dr. Stavros Lomvardas, assistant professor in the department of anatomy at UCSF, is interested in olfactory receptor choice.

About 900 genes encode the receptor proteins in your nose that help you smell. However, each neuron in the olfactory epithelium expresses only one of those genes. Dr. Lomvardas is interested in how the nervous system “chooses” which receptor protein is expressed. In this episode, Stavros explores the cellular machinery that selectively enhances or silences the expression of genes and how these discoveries were made.

More on the Lomvardas Lab's research

Hosted and produced by Sama Ahmed

Memory of a relapse: Patricia Janak

In conjunction with being a professor at UCSF, Dr. Patricia Janak heads a lab at the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center. There, Patricia and her fellow scientists tackle questions related to drug and alcohol abuse.

In this week’s episode, she shares with us some of her work on alcohol and drug addiction. Learn why some addicts have sudden cravings for drugs or alcohol and about the brain regions that are necessary for a relapse to happen.

More on the Janak Lab's research

Hosted by Sama Ahmed

Local neural networks associated with flexible behaviors: Takaki Komiyama

Our guest this weeks has been wondering the same thing. Dr. Takaki Komiyama is a postdoctoral fellow at Janelia Farms, currently working in the Svoboda Lab. He is interested in how the brain codes for flexible behaviors, such as learning to play tennis. With practice, you generally see an improvement in your game. Sooner or later, your swings become smoother and you become better at predicting where the ball will land. But how does your brain code for it all? Listen in to this week’s episode and find out.

More on the Komiyama Lab's research

Producer: Osama Ahmed

The genetics of morning larks: Louis Ptacek

In this week’s episode, Dr. Louis Ptacek, an investigator for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and a professor at the University of California - San Francisco, discusses how alterations in our genes (called “mutations”) are responsible for why "morning larks" have to wake up in the middle of the night.

Louis is interested in understanding certain aspects of normal brain function, such as sleep. In my chat with him, he talks about our body’s natural circadian rhythm and how it is controlled by a “feedback loop” that controls gene expression and protein construction.

More on the Ptacek Lab's research

Hosted by Osama Ahmed

The meninges help the brain develop: Sam Pleasure

In this week’s session, we learn about the meninges. These are the membranes that cover and protect our central nervous system (our brains and spinal cords). More specifically, we learn from Dr. Sam Pleasure that the meninges may also help our brains develop. He also describes the role of two brain regions that his work focuses on: the hippocampus and the neocortex.

More on the Pleasure Lab's research

Ignoring distractions helps you remember better: Adam Gazzaley

Dr. Adam Gazzaley is interested in the interface between attention and memory. In this installment, he tells us about the tools he’s using to study how distractions affect our ability to remember. He’s recently discovered that older adults have a hard time ignoring irrelevant information, and that this may have a huge negative effect on their memory. Find out how he’s building a video game to help people ignore distractions, and hopefully remember better.


More on the Gazzaley Lab's research

Hosted by Osama Ahmed    

The Link Between Muscle Degeneration and Mechanosensitive Ion Channels: Jeff Lansman

Dr. Jeff Lansman explains what mechanosensitive ion channels are and their role in helping a cell sense forces such as touch. He’s using a genetic approach to understand how a mutation that causes cytoskeletal protein loss can lead to muscle death. Near the end, he shares with us how his interest in marine biology inspired him to study ion channels.

More on the Lansman Lab's research.


Hosted by Sama Ahmed. 

How does the mutation in Huntington's Disease cause neurodegeneration?: Steve Finkbeiner

Dr. Steven Finkbeiner is a Professor in the Departments of Neurology and Physiology at the University of California – San Francisco and is also the Associate Director of the Gladstone Institute for Neurologic Diseases.

Here he explains some of his state-of-the-art techniques that he uses to understand the link between the mutation that causes Huntington’s disease and the deterioration of brain cells (called “neurodegeneration”). This is another example of the in-between steps on the road from scientific bench top research to a hopeful cure.

More on the Finkbeiner Lab's research

Hosted and produced by Osama Ahmed

Anti-inflammatory properties of extra virgin olive oil: Paul Breslin

Monell Chemical Senses Center
Rutgers University


Dec. 9, 2009 (Hosted by Osama Ahmed)



Dr. Paul Breslin is a Member of the Monell Chemical Senses Center and a Professor of Nutritional Sciences at Rutger’s University. He is also a good friend of mine and has been my mentor for more than seven years during my time at Monell.


Here he shares with us a story about how extra virgin olive oil stings the back of the throat, and how that is connected with inflammation, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease.



More on the Breslin Lab's research

How do hormones control sex-specific behaviors?: Nirao Shah

Dr. Nirao Shah is an assistant professor at the University of California – San Francisco.

Nirao is interested in how the brains of males and females can be so similar and yet make males and females act so differently. Here, he sits down with me to talk about his work in understanding how hormones control sex-specific behaviors. He discusses some of his recent discoveries which seem counterintuitive at first.

More on the Shah Lab's research

Hosted by Sama Ahmed

Figuring out the role of neurons in zebrafish swimming: Herwig Baier

He wants to know how brain cells (neurons) give rise to behavior. He explains to us how he is using light to turn on neurons in the zebrafish brain to understand how these cells affect the fish’s swimming.

More on the Baier Lab's research

Producer: Sama Ahmed

Finding new ways to diagnose and treat pain: Beth Winkelstein

Dr. Beth Winkelstein is a bioengineering professor at the University of Pennsylvania. I was lucky enough to work with her on a computational pain model during my last year in college.

As evident from talking to her, she is committed to understanding and treating chronic pain. In the show’s very first episode, she discusses her search for a better way to diagnose and treat pain.

More on the Winkelstein Lab's research

Hosted by Osama Ahmed

Launch Episode: What is Carry the One Radio?

Welcome to Carry the One Radio – a series of 10-minute chats with scientists about one question that they are working on. Your host for the program is Sama (Osama Ahmed), a neuroscience graduate student at the University of California – San Francisco. Spread the word about the show. Download the episodes – there will be one new episode every other Wednesday.


If you have any questions, or comments, or you want to support the show: please email CarryTheOneRadio@gmail.com