Ep 76 Chickenpox: There's always a 'but'

Ep 76 Chickenpox: There's always a 'but'

Ah, chickenpox, that pesky old childhood illness. And that’s all it is, right? Just a mild, routine infection that we all used to catch until the vaccine came around? Not quite. In this episode, we learn that, when it comes to the varicella-zoster virus, not everything is as it seems. We explore the complex nature of this virus, how it can make you kinda sick and then how it can make you really, really sick. After that, we dive into the evolutionary origins of this virus and the different infections it causes (spoiler alert: shingles as a viral survival strategy?!). And finally we trace its human history from discovery to vaccine to where we stand with chickenpox and shingles today.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jaksot(280)

Ep 134 Tonsils: Underestimated and underappreciated

Ep 134 Tonsils: Underestimated and underappreciated

Raise your hand if you or someone you know has had their tonsils removed. If your hand is sky-high, there’s a pretty good chance that you (or that person you know) are from the US and were born before...

30 Tammi 20241h 28min

Ep 133 Parvoviruses: Who let the dogs (and their viruses) out?

Ep 133 Parvoviruses: Who let the dogs (and their viruses) out?

This one’s not just for the dogs. It’s also for the cats, the raccoons, the wax moths, the birds, the mice, and so many other critters. Oh, and of course the humans. Even though most of us may be fami...

16 Tammi 20241h 48min

Ep 132 Osteogenesis Imperfecta: All bones about it

Ep 132 Osteogenesis Imperfecta: All bones about it

Often, the more we learn about a disease, the more we learn about ourselves and the world around us. The story of the genetic disorder osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), colloquially known as brittle bone ...

2 Tammi 20241h 25min

Ep 131 Parkinson’s Disease: Dopamine & discoveries

Ep 131 Parkinson’s Disease: Dopamine & discoveries

Parkinson’s is a disease of many dimensions. On the shelves of any bookstore or library you’ll find at least a handful of titles exploring the topic from a myriad of perspectives, and extending that s...

12 Joulu 20231h 42min

Ep 130 Cocoliztli: We do love a salty dish

Ep 130 Cocoliztli: We do love a salty dish

In the 16th century, a series of deadly epidemics swept through much of the region of Mesoamerica known as the Aztec Empire, killing untold millions. By the start of the first of these epidemics, the ...

28 Marras 20231h 52min

Ep 129 Lymphatic Filariasis: Hiding in plain sight

Ep 129 Lymphatic Filariasis: Hiding in plain sight

With a history extending back millennia, with a biology that leads to permanent disability for tens of millions of people globally, and with a bacterial endosymbiont that may prove to be its Achilles ...

14 Marras 20231h 20min

Ep 128 Skin Cancer: We love and fear the sun

Ep 128 Skin Cancer: We love and fear the sun

For every article about the risks of sun exposure or a guide to sunscreens, you don’t have to look far to find one about the health benefits of sunshine or a how-to for achieving the best tan. Messagi...

31 Loka 20231h 37min

Ep 127 Bhopal: The 1984 Union Carbide Disaster

Ep 127 Bhopal: The 1984 Union Carbide Disaster

On the night of December 2, 1984, a deadly gas leak at the Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India led to what has been described as the world’s worst industrial disaster. In the immediate afte...

17 Loka 20231h 25min

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