Shows
Pitt MedcastMr. YukMr. Yuk, the poster child for poisoning prevention, debuted in 1971. On the occasion of his 50th birthday, we caught up with Mr. Yuk’s creator, Dr. Richard Moriarty (MD ’66), a Pitt School of Medicine alumnus and longtime associate professor of pediatrics.
This episode was based on a 2003 Pitt Med magazine story, “It’s Not Easy Being Green,” written by Sally Ann Flecker, and adapted and produced by Elaine Vitone. Our executive producer is Erica Lloyd. Music by Blue Dot Sessions. Pitt Med magazine is published by the University of Pittsburgh Office of University Communications and Marketing and the School of Medicine2021-03-2116 minPitt MedcastLike Daughter, Like MotherLike Daughter, Like Mother
Mothers harbor cells from their children decades after pregnancy—and throughout their bodies. These shared cells from pregnancy, do they help or harm women? In February 2020, we sat down with Dr. R. Swati Shree (Res ’14), a Pitt alum who is an expert in this fascinating yet little-known quirk of our biology, known as microchimerism. Our interview was recorded live from the Sci-Mic Podcast Stage at the annual meeting of the world's largest general scientific society, AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science).
The print version of this interview appears in Pitt...2021-02-0714 minPitt MedcastEvolving SituationEpisode Notes
Evolutionary biology is at the center of some of the most vexing public health challenges of our time: cancer, antibiotic resistance and disease outbreaks. Pitt's Vaughn Cooper has been studying evolution in action for more than a decade. To his amazement, he’s beginning to think it may be possible to predict evolution.
In Dec. 2020, we sat down with Cooper to discuss how the emerging field of evolutionary medicine is helping to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.
This episode was inspired by these stories in our magazine, Pitt Med:
“What Bug’s in Y...2021-01-1132 min
Pitt MedcastRelationship AbuseTOUGH QUESTION | How can the medical community help women who are experiencing intimate partner violence?
There’s a common assumption that domestic violence must involve broken bones or bruises. But much of intimate partner violence is in the emotionally controlling behaviors and psychological abuse. In this episode, women’s health experts discuss other ways they’re learning that abuse happens. For instance, a partner might trash his girlfriend’s medications, sabotage the car before a doctor’s appointment or use substances to control her. Our guest physicians discuss new strategies that are helping to prevent women from falling th...2020-04-0141 min
Pitt MedcastPolio PioneersWhat was life like before childhood vaccines? In this episode, hear from people who grew up in the shadow of a crippling disease—among them, “polio pioneers,” schoolkids from the clinical trials of Jonas Salk’s killed-virus vaccine. Their accounts tell the story of how ordinary people helped win the struggle against one of the most crippling diseases in history.
This Pitt Medcast was inspired by “Among My Souvenirs,” a story from the August 2005 issue of Pitt Med magazine. Written by Elaine Vitone. Production by Janine Faust, Margaret Palko, and Elaine Vitone with additional research by Elaina Zachos and L...2019-12-1317 minPitt MedcastAutism and Emotional RegulationPopular accounts of autism often portray people with the condition as emotionless automatons. Yet more than a decade of work has convinced Pitt psychologist Carla Mazefsky that emotional dysregulation—which is the inability to control emotional responses—plays a key role in autism. Mazefsky specializes in kids on the far end of the autism spectrum who are prone to aggression. This Pitt Medcast was inspired by Carrie Arnold’s story from the Fall 2018 issue of Pitt Med magazine, which was a finalist for a 2019 Golden Quill Award from the Press Club Of Western Pennsylvania. Read by Elaine Vitone and Luisa Garbow...2019-06-2800 minPitt MedcastImperfect PitchHow useful is a genetics report from a company like 23andMe to my health? How do we separate hype from reality as these companies ramp up direct-to-consumer ads, social media, and celebrity influence campaigns? Our guests, Jeremy Berg and Mylynda Massart, discuss how the heavy consumer pitch can cloud medical practice, science, and understanding and the road ahead for medical education as personal genomics becomes increasingly relevant in the clinic. You don’t want to miss Pitt Medcast’s first-ever live taping—from the 2019 meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C. Our guests: Pitt’s...2019-03-1300 minPitt MedcastLabors and LossesWhy are new mothers dying at an alarming rate in this country? We sat down with Jada Shirriel, the CEO of Healthy Start, which is charged with improving maternal and child health in Allegheny County, and three Pitt professors who’ve been appointed to Pennsylvania’s Maternal Mortality Review Committee. We wanted their perspectives on why the incidence of maternal deaths and morbidity is so bleak in this country compared to other industrialized nations and what can be done to spare families from these tragedies. The print version of this story (bit.ly/2w4SfQj) appeared in the Winter 2018/19 issue of P...2019-02-1100 minPitt MedcastThe High Resolution LifeIn this episode, we revisited our Summer 2015 magazine story(bit.ly/sternglass_pittmedmag), featuring the University of Pittsburgh’s late, great Ernest Sternglass. His work made possible the first videos from the moon, and he pioneered digital radiology. His activism helped stop atomic bomb testing. His correspondence with Albert Einstein has been called one of the 20th century’s most important disregarded pieces of science. Sternglass led an extraordinary life. Written by Michael Fitzgerald. Produced by Elizabeth Martinson with Elaine Vitone. Our executive producer is Erica Lloyd. Sound effects courtesy of NASA and freesound.org. And special thanks to Pittsburgh’s own...2018-11-0100 minPitt MedcastWhen Fred Met MargaretIn this episode, we revisited and remixed our Winter 2014 magazine story (http://bit.ly/Wnzy6c) featuring the University of Pittsburgh’s Margaret McFarland, Fred Rogers’s little known mentor who played a big role in shaping him and his show behind the scenes. Written by Sally Ann Flecker. Produced by Elaine Vitone. Our interns for the episode were Jessica Boddy and Ali Greenholt. Our executive producer is Erica Lloyd. Sound effects courtesy of freesound.org. Special thanks to the Fred Rogers Company and also to the Beagle Brothers(http://bit.ly/2pr8gf8), Pittsburgh’s own country and eastern band...2018-03-2000 minPitt MedcastInside the World of OCDEvery day, Hilary Zurbuch grappled with a nagging fear that if she didn’t look just right, something bad would happen. Zurbuch lives with obsessive compulsive disorder, a tug-of-war between intrusive, often fearful thoughts and repetitive rituals she’s devised to control them. Although the reasons for OCD are unknown, psychiatrist and researcher Susanne Ahmari at the University of Pittsburgh is using clinical observations and new neuroscience tools to extricate a deeper understanding of the disorder. This Pitt Medcast was inspired by Cara Masset’s award-winning cover story from the Fall 2015 issue of Pitt Med magazine (http://www.pittmed.health.pitt.e...2017-04-0600 minPitt MedcastHow the Nose KnowsWith funding from the National Science Foundation, a multi-institutional team uses blind scent-tracing tests and other experiments to better understand how animals are able to localize odors. Pitt’s Nathan Urban and Bard Ermentrout are part of this olfaction faction. They’re hoping the investigation will inform new technologies; it may even provide insight into neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s, autism, and Parkinson’s. This Pitt Medcast was inspired by a story (bit.ly/pittmed_smell) from the Summer 2016 issue of Pitt Med magazine (bit.ly/pittmedmag). Written and read by Elaine Vitone. Produced by Elaina Zachos with Elaine Vitone. Our exec...2017-02-1900 minPitt MedcastLet's Talk About Sex“My doctors all knew about it. ... Strangers, like people who just happened to be in the office when I was there, knew more about me than I did.” In this episode, the first in our new Read Aloud series, we delve into biology that isn’t binary, and the challenges it brings. This Pitt Medcast was adapted from our Spring 2015 issue story about the family of Pitt med alumni Arlene and Mark Baratz, who went to medical school and trained at Pitt in the 1980s. Written by Micaela Corn with Erica Lloyd. Read by Micaela Corn. Produced by Elaine Vitone and Mi...2016-03-2900 min