Ep 87 C. diff: Fighting poop with poop

Ep 87 C. diff: Fighting poop with poop

In this week’s episode, we cover a bacterium whose recent emergence and rapid spread has been largely an epidemic of our own making. Clostridium difficile isn’t your typical pathogen - in many cases it’s not even considered a pathogen, just a normal member of our gut microbiota. But when something disrupts our gut microbiota, like antibiotics, C. difficile is given the freedom to spread its wings, wreaking deadly havoc on our bodies especially when it refuses to leave. We explore the characteristics of this bacterium that make it such a terrifying public health threat, delve into its recent-but-not-as-recent-as-you-might-think history, and chat about the current status of C. diff before asking the question, “what can poo do for you?” That’s right, we’re taking this opportunity to talk about one of our all-time favorite medical interventions, fecal microbiota transplantation. Helping us navigate the ins and outs of fecal transplants is Dr. Majdi Osman, Chief Medical Officer at OpenBiome, a nonprofit stool bank that aims to expand access to safe fecal microbiota transplantation and fund research into the human microbiome. By the end of this episode, we think you’ll find yourself in awe at the healing powers of poop.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Avsnitt(282)

Ep 9 Tuberculosis: A Slow Burn

Ep 9 Tuberculosis: A Slow Burn

Today, we’re taking a page straight out of Dickens and talking about tuberculosis- a disease as rich in history as it is in bloody sputum. We'll travel the path of an individual Mycobacterium tubercul...

2 Jan 201859min

Ep 8 ABRACADABRA - Go Away Malaria!

Ep 8 ABRACADABRA - Go Away Malaria!

It's both a disease of dinosaurs and a plague of people. A gin and tonic might make you forget how much those bites itch, but it won't protect you much from this mosquito-borne monster. That's right p...

19 Dec 201759min

Ep 7 Hit Me With Your Best (Polio) Shot

Ep 7 Hit Me With Your Best (Polio) Shot

A scientific rivalry for the ages, a president with a closely kept secret, and a summertime with no pool time. What do all these things have in common? Well step right up and take a listen- today we'r...

12 Dec 20171h 1min

Ep 6 Plague Part 2: TGFA

Ep 6 Plague Part 2: TGFA

We're back with another episode all about plague-TGFA: Thank Goodness For Antibiotics! Today we'll focus on the status of plague in the modern world: where it is, where it isn't, and what we can do ab...

5 Dec 201740min

Ep 5 Plague Part 1: The GMOAT

Ep 5 Plague Part 1: The GMOAT

That's right y'all... Today we're talking the GMOAT: The GREATEST MORTALITY OF ALL TIME: BLACK DEATH. This episode we'll cover the biology and history of one of the most epic diseases of all time- Yer...

28 Nov 201759min

Ep 4 The Poop Show

Ep 4 The Poop Show

That's right.. this is the poop show! Today we talk cholera- the bacterial disease that makes you liquid-poop your pants (and then some). Travel back in time with us to when London was a sewage-filled...

21 Nov 201749min

Ep 3 Gnarlypox

Ep 3 Gnarlypox

This week we pay tribute to one of the gnarliest diseases of all time, and the only human disease that's ever been eradicated (thus far). That's right, people- we're talking smallpox! It's gonna get g...

14 Nov 201757min

Ep 2 Skin in the Game, Horse in the Race

Ep 2 Skin in the Game, Horse in the Race

This week we tackle leprosy. That biblical (or is it?) infection that, believe it or not, is still with us today. Leprosy has an ancient history that exemplifies some of the worst of human behavior, a...

7 Nov 201754min

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