Podcasts about genetics research

 Robert Green is a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School. He's the director of Genetics Research at Brigham and Women's hospital and the co-founder of Nurture Genomics, where they're doing genomic screening for infants to detect and mitigate actionable genetic conditions. If you don't understand what that means, you're in the right place because we have a long conversation, digging into that topic and picking it apart for your understanding. This is a super exciting frontier for medicine. We are at a point where we know the science, and we know how to sequence a genome. We know how to correlate some of those things that we see in the genetic code to actual health problems that are predictive. Some of this is just a bug in the code that causes you to get some kind of cancer or other degenerative disease. We know it's there and in a lot of cases, we actually know what to do about it. There is no systematic screening for people, much less for infants. That's what Robert's trying to solve. This is very important, very exciting stuff and It will change the future of how we take care of people and prevent genetic diseases from disrupting their lives and taking their lives. You want to know about this. This is a great conversation. He's very good at explaining what's been found in the science and how they're implementing it. Enjoy! Important Links: G2P Nurture Genomics Harvard Medical School Brigham and Women's Hospital About Robert Green Robert C. Green, MD, MPH is a medical geneticist and physician-scientist who directs the G2P Research Program in translational genomics and health outcomes in the Division of Genetics at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Dr. Green is currently Associate Director for Research of the Partners Center for Personalized Genetic Medicine, a Board Member of the Council for Responsible Genetics and a member of the Informed Cohort Oversight Boards for both the Children's Hospital Boston Gene Partnership Program and the Coriell Personalized Medicine Collaborative. He was the lead author of the recently published recommendations from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics for management of incidental findings in clinical sequencing.

In this episode, host Eli Roberson, PhD, has a conversation with Wylie Burke, MD, PhD, a professor at the Department of Bioethics and Humanities at the University of Washington. Dr. Burke, with a background in genetics and medicine, shares insights into her career journey, emphasizing the intersection of genetics, medicine, and bioethics. The episode explores her interests in the equitable use of genetic information, the impact of social determinants on health, and how inclusivity informs and changes genetics and research for the better.

Kate engages Dr. Thomas Bourgeron, genetics expert, PMSF Scientific Advisory Committee member, and longstanding researcher in Phelan-McDermid syndrome. They discuss the importance of studying genetics to better understand disorders like Phelan-McDermid and autism. Dr. Bourgeron explains that in the early 2000's, his lab and others identified a link between the SHANK3 gene and the occurrence of autism. He then explains the scientific journey - from identifying a gene of interest, to testing therapeutics in lab models, and describes a current clinical trial for lithium ongoing in France. He also summarizes his top goals for future research in Phelan-McDermid syndrome. A PMSF blog post on SHANK3 genetics: https://pmsf.org/shank3-in-phelan-mcdermid-syndrome/ A PMSF blog post on Phelan-McDermid syndrome versus autism: https://pmsf.org/phelan-mcdermid-syndrome-and-autism/

On today's episode we have Dr. Phillip Lavretsky who is a wildlife geneticist with the University of Texas at El Paso. Dr. Lavretsky has been involved in wildlife genetics research that has involved a wide variety of different species, however his specialty lies with waterfowl. I came across Dr. Lavretsky's work when I read some of his published research papers concerning the genetic introgression of mallard like game farm ducks into the north American wild populations. His research sheds light on an issue that I am quite sure most waterfowl hunters are not aware of, and one that needs to be discussed around the communities at a higher level than what we are seeing.   CONTACT DR. LAVRETSKY If you would like to learn more on what Dr. Lavretsky and his team are doing, please visit the following. Lavretsky's Lab Website:       https://www.utep.edu/science/lavretskylab/   FOLLOW US HERE: Facebook:       https://www.facebook.com/HuntSciencePodcast YouTube:        https://www.facebook.com/HuntSciencePodcast Instagram:      https://www.instagram.com/huntscience_podcast/ Twitter:           https://twitter.com/HuntSciencePod Website:         http://www.huntsciencepodcast.com Email:             elance@huntsciencepodcast.com   If you would like to learn more about the podcast, head on over to our website at www.HuntSciencePodcast.com. Interested in wildlife management services? If so, please head on over to www.LansourceConsulting.com to see our service capabilities for your project needs! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you have genetic factors that would make you at higher risk of certain diseases? And if so, how can providers use that information to inform treatment options? Learn all about that, the important genetic research taking place at Michigan Medicine, and a new tool that will help providers implement better patient care, on the latest episode of The Wrap employee podcast. Check it out today! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of The Good Time Show, Aarthi and Sriram interviewed Laura Deming. Laura Deming is a partner at and founder of The Longevity Fund, a venture capital firm focused on aging and life extension. At age 8, Deming became interested in the biology of aging, and at age 12 she joined the lab of Cynthia Kenyon at the University of California, San Francisco. Deming was accepted to MIT at age 14 and later dropped out to accept the Thiel Fellowship and start a venture capital firm. We covered topics on aging, longevity research, the philosophical implications of living 'forever', contrarian thinking, beauty of mathematics (and the number 28), homeschooling and why research funding is a popularity contest now.

Learn how scientists and cancer survivors are working together to decipher our DNA and building the foundation for future cancer therapies. Dr. Roy Jensen, vice chancellor and director of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, will talk with Dr. Jennifer Gerton, an investigator at Stowers Institute for Medical Research and Mary Frances Haake, a member of PIVOT - KU Cancer Center's patient research advocacy group, about how understanding our genetic makeup may help us develop new cancer treatments.

We're meeting some of the researchers who are working to make sure that everyone gets the benefits of genetic research - from underserved, indigenous and tribal communities to entire continents.Full show notes, transcript, music credits and references online at GeneticsUnzipped.com Follow us on Twitter @GeneticsUnzipGenetics Unzipped is written and presented by Kat Arney with audio production by Hannah Varrall. This podcast is produced by First Create the Media for the Genetics Society - one of the oldest learned societies in the world dedicated to supporting and promoting the research, teaching and application of genetics.

For more information, contact us at 859-721-1414 or myhealth@prevmedheartrisk.com. Also, check out the following resources:  ·PrevMed's website·PrevMed's YouTube channel·PrevMed's Facebook page

Support us on patreon! patreon.com/Globalhempassociation Tune in as Felipe Varas Lopez from Cannabinoid Industry Association talks and share about his experience in the hemp industry in Chile. Felipe is an Entrepreneur, a father, and a Founder. He is grateful to have known the failure as he is a re-entrepreneur. Felipe believes that focusing on teamwork, looking for strengths in each individual will empower them in becoming leaders within the organization. Through a passion for work and good training of teams, it has been achieved the development, growth, and positioning of these companies in the market. The main goal is to be a contribution to every new challenge presented. Diamond Hemp's purpose is to reinsert Chile into the world scenario of Industrial Hemp production, incorporating the hemp culture in the Chilean productive matrix and in all relevant industrial aspects: Genetics Research and Patenting, Sale of seedlings, Sale of seeds, cosmetic, textile and paper production. In this podcast, they talk about the importance of 1. Market info 2. Product Development 3. Hemp Foods

Support us on patreon! patreon.com/Globalhempassociation Tune in as Felipe Varas Lopez from Cannabinoid Industry Association talks and share about his experience in the hemp industry in Chile. Felipe is an Entrepreneur, a father, and a Founder. He is grateful to have known the failure as he is a re-entrepreneur. Felipe believes that focusing on teamwork, looking for strengths in each individual will empower them in becoming leaders within the organization. Through a passion for work and good training of teams, it has been achieved the development, growth, and positioning of these companies in the market. The main goal is to be a contribution to every new challenge presented. Diamond Hemp's purpose is to reinsert Chile into the world scenario of Industrial Hemp production, incorporating the hemp culture in the Chilean productive matrix and in all relevant industrial aspects: Genetics Research and Patenting, Sale of seedlings, Sale of seeds, cosmetic, textile and paper production. In this podcast, they talk about the importance of 1. Market info 2. Product Development 3. Hemp Foods

Are customized cancer treatments a real possibility? Benjamin D. Hopkins, Ph.D. is Assistant Professor of Genomics and Genetic Sciences, Oncological Sciences, and the co-leader of the Functional Genomics Pipeline at The Tisch Cancer Institute. His cancer genetics research has developed an automated screening platform that can be used to identify tumor-specific drug sensitivities used for highly specialized cancer treatment. Tune in to learn more about: Cancer genetics and genomes What the ability to identify a drug resistance mechanism means for cancer treatment The importance of the cancer research impact factor when searching for the most accurate information Dr. Hopkins focuses particularly on lung, breast, and pancreatic cancer, which is one of the 20% of cancers with no specific standard treatment plan. The Functional Genomics Pipeline as a whole screens cancer therapies to identify which types of patients with which types of tumors may be able to benefit from those therapies. Using cancer genome sequencing, it has become possible to identify tumor-specific vulnerabilities, which can then be exploited for cancer treatment purposes. This includes using one medication to sensitize tumor cells to another medication, as a way to reduce the collateral damage done to healthy cells during cancer treatment. Knowing exactly which mutational events are driving each specific tumor allows Dr. Hopkins and his team to target the specific mechanisms that tumor relies upon to thrive and multiply. This highly individualized approach in combination with public campaigns such as Breast Cancer Awareness month could lead to a future where cancer is considered a treatable disease across the board. For more information visit https://labs.icahn.mssm.edu/hopkinslab/ Available on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2Os0myK

To learn more, visit us at treatingscoliosis.comJoin our Facebook group "Scoliosis Warriors"

A gene that helps to control inflammation increases the risk of obesity and could be turned off in mice to stop weight gain, a study by The University of Queensland Institute for Molecular Bioscience researcher Dr Denuja Karunakaran has found. - வீக்கத்தைக் கட்டுப்படுத்த உதவும் ஒரு மரபணு, நம் உடல் பருமனாகும் அபாயத்தை அதிகரிக்கிறது என்றும் அந்த மரபணு அணைக்கப்பட்டால் எலிகளின் உடல் எடை அதிகரிப்பதைத் தடுக்க முடியும் என்றும் குயின்ஸ்லாந்து பல்கலைக்கழகத்தின் மூலக்கூறு உயிரறிவியல் (Molecular Bioscience) ஆய்வாளர் டாக்டர் தேனுஜா கருணாகரன் கண்டறிந்துள்ளார்.

#022 - I'm going to talk with Sofia Axelrod, PhD. Dr. Axelrod is a world-leading sleep expert, working at Rockefeller University (in New York) with Nobel Prize-winner Michael Young on the fundamentals of why and how we sleep. Inspired by her expertise in sleep and chronobiology and her experiences as a mother, Dr. Axelrod wrote a book on baby sleep, How Babies Sleep, this summer. In her quest for broader societal impact, Dr. Axelrod stared Solaria Systems, a company developing sleep science-based digital and lighting technologies. Her baby sleep app, Kulala, has over 2000 downloads and launched this summer as well.Check out any of these links to learn the latest from Dr. Axelrod:www.kulalaland.comIG: @kulalalandBook: How Babies Sleep

How can we use genetic engineering to combat plant disease? Dr. Jim Thomson, a research geneticist at the USDA, explains his research on using genetic engineering to improve citrus greening disease tolerance and the perks of working as a government scientist for the USDA. Learn more about the tools used in the battle against huanglongbing, and view research snapshots by Jim and other Citrus Series guests, by visiting the Science for Citrus Health website and following along on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook @sci4citrus. Learn more about the students producing this podcast and their science communication efforts by following us on Twitter @SciCommUCR and visiting our website.

Meet Roger Waak, MA with NAMI for the 2nd part of his interview. He explains what mental health is and how to manage it in times of stress from the point of view of the largest grassroots organization for mental health in the U.S.Roger has been a NAMI volunteer since 2014. He teaches a free 10-week course for families, partners, and friends of individuals living with mental illness called family-to-family. He is a retired technology director with a master's degree in history.Subscribe to YOUR TRUTH REVEALED weekly videos on YouTube - https://bit.ly/2MjsfdK➤RESOURCESFree Therapy Consultation: https://bit.ly/3c2ukTZFree Worksheet: https://www.YourTruthRevealed.comNational Alliance on Mental Illness: https://www.nami.orgStore: https://bit.ly/2H99Iwl➤ SUMMARYNAMI is an education program with a specific belief system. What are their 6 principles?1. One principle is to trust your own instincts, "You are the expert."2. Another principle is "You don't need to know everything."3. "You can't know what no one has told you."4. "Mental health conditions are no one's fault."5. "Mental health conditions share universal characteristics."6. "Mental health conditions are biological." It is extremely important that we understand the biology of mental illness. Scientists are learning a lot about neurotransmitters and there are now ways to test your levels.How do neurotransmitters effect mental health?* Dopamine – focus, joy* GABA – inhibitory, calm, nature's valium* Norepinephrine – excitatory, adrenaline* Serotonin – sleep cycleAnxiety disorders are the most common mental health concern in the United States. What are some contributions to this?* An estimated 40 million adults in the U.S., or 18%, have an anxiety disorder.* Scientists believe that many factors combine to cause anxiety disorders.* Genetics - Research shows that anxiety disorders run in families. This can be a factor.* Stress - A stressful or traumatic situation such as abuse, death of a loved one, or prolonged illness.* The most effective treatment usually involves a combination of: Psychotherapy and MedicationWhy is it important to get a complete physical when experiencing symptoms?* It will take time to get a complete diagnosis.* Finding the right medication takes time. It's the law of the land.* Taking medication often times is the way the diagnosis is made.What are 5 common mental health myths?1.Mental health issues are not common.The truth is 1 in 5 people are impacted by mental health issues every single day. It's a lot more common than we realize. The reason we don't realize how common it is is because we don't talk about it enough.2. Mental health issues are caused by character flaws or personality weakness. The truth is that mental health is a physical health issue. The World Health Organization says there is not health without mental health. These are brain health issues that impact lots of people, and treatment does work and recovery is possible.3. Kids don't get mental illness. The truth is that mental health issues are as common among children as they are adults. The numbers are the same, 1 in 5. In fact, lifetime mental health issues show their signs by age 14.4. People don't get better. The truth is that mental health treatment does work and recovery is possible. The success rates are very similar to physical health issues. The right treatment, access to medication, therapy, a great support system, people can and do get better.5. Mental health issues are not life threatening. In fact, about 90% of suicides in our community are caused by either untreated, under-treated, or undiagnosed mental health issues.

Episode 16 is the second part of an interview with Roger Waak, a teacher with NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. He explains what mental health is and how to manage it in times of stress from the point of view of the largest grassroots organization for mental health in the U.S. Roger Waak, MA has been a NAMI volunteer since 2014. He teaches a free 10-week course for families, partners, and friends of individuals living with mental illness called family-to-family. He is a retired technology director with a master’s degree in history. Subscribe to YOUR TRUTH REVEALED weekly videos on YouTube - https://bit.ly/2MjsfdK ➤RESOURCES Free Therapy Consultation: https://bit.ly/3c2ukTZ Free Worksheet: https://www.YourTruthRevealed.com National Alliance on Mental Illness: https://www.nami.org Store: https://bit.ly/2H99Iwl ➤ SUMMARY NAMI is an education program with a specific belief system. What are their 6 principles? 1. One principle is to trust your own instincts, "You are the expert." 2. Another principle is "You don't need to know everything." 3. "You can't know what no one has told you." 4. "Mental health conditions are no one's fault." 5. "Mental health conditions share universal characteristics." 6. "Mental health conditions are biological." It is extremely important that we understand the biology of mental illness. Scientists are learning a lot about neurotransmitters and there are now ways to test your levels. How do neurotransmitters effect mental health? * Dopamine – focus, joy * GABA – inhibitory, calm, nature’s valium * Norepinephrine – excitatory, adrenaline * Serotonin – sleep cycle Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health concern in the United States. What are some contributions to this? * An estimated 40 million adults in the U.S., or 18%, have an anxiety disorder. * Scientists believe that many factors combine to cause anxiety disorders. * Genetics - Research shows that anxiety disorders run in families. This can be a factor. * Stress - A stressful or traumatic situation such as abuse, death of a loved one, or prolonged illness. * The most effective treatment usually involves a combination of: Psychotherapy and Medication Why is it important to get a complete physical when experiencing symptoms? * It will take time to get a complete diagnosis. * Finding the right medication takes time. It’s the law of the land. * Taking medication often times is the way the diagnosis is made. What are 5 common mental health myths? 1.Mental health issues are not common.The truth is 1 in 5 people are impacted by mental health issues every single day. It's a lot more common than we realize. The reason we don't realize how common it is is because we don't talk about it enough. 2. Mental health issues are caused by character flaws or personality weakness. The truth is that mental health is a physical health issue. The World Health Organization says there is not health without mental health. These are brain health issues that impact lots of people, and treatment does work and recovery is possible. 3. Kids don't get mental illness. The truth is that mental health issues are as common among children as they are adults. The numbers are the same, 1 in 5. In fact, lifetime mental health issues show their signs by age 14. 4. People don't get better. The truth is that mental health treatment does work and recovery is possible. The success rates are very similar to physical health issues. The right treatment, access to medication, therapy, a great support system, people can and do get better. 5. Mental health issues are not life threatening. In fact, about 90% of suicides in our community are caused by either untreated, under-treated, or undiagnosed mental health issues. Paying attention can help us save lives.

Meet Roger Waak, MA with NAMI for the 1st part of his interview. He explains what mental health is and how to manage it in times of stress from the point of view of the largest grassroots organization for mental health in the U.S.Roger has been a NAMI volunteer since 2014. He teaches a free 10-week course for families, partners, and friends of individuals living with mental illness called family-to-family. He is a retired technology director with a master's degree in history.Subscribe to YOUR TRUTH REVEALED weekly videos on YouTube - https://bit.ly/2MjsfdK➤RESOURCESFree Therapy Consultation: https://bit.ly/3c2ukTZFree Worksheet: https://www.YourTruthRevealed.comNational Alliance on Mental Illness: https://www.nami.orgStore: https://bit.ly/2H99Iwl➤ SUMMARYNAMI is an education program with a specific belief system. What are their 6 principles?1. One principle is to trust your own instincts, "You are the expert."2. Another principle is "You don't need to know everything."3. "You can't know what no one has told you."4. "Mental health conditions are no one's fault."5. "Mental health conditions share universal characteristics."6. "Mental health conditions are biological." It is extremely important that we understand the biology of mental illness. Scientists are learning a lot about neurotransmitters and there are now ways to test your levels.How do neurotransmitters effect mental health?* Dopamine – focus, joy* GABA – inhibitory, calm, nature's valium* Norepinephrine – excitatory, adrenaline* Serotonin – sleep cycleAnxiety disorders are the most common mental health concern in the United States. What are some contributions to this?* An estimated 40 million adults in the U.S., or 18%, have an anxiety disorder.* Scientists believe that many factors combine to cause anxiety disorders.* Genetics - Research shows that anxiety disorders run in families. This can be a factor.* Stress - A stressful or traumatic situation such as abuse, death of a loved one, or prolonged illness.* The most effective treatment usually involves a combination of: Psychotherapy and MedicationWhy is it important to get a complete physical when experiencing symptoms?* It will take time to get a complete diagnosis.* Finding the right medication takes time. It's the law of the land.* Taking medication often times is the way the diagnosis is made.What are 5 common mental health myths?1.Mental health issues are not common.The truth is 1 in 5 people are impacted by mental health issues every single day. It's a lot more common than we realize. The reason we don't realize how common it is is because we don't talk about it enough.2. Mental health issues are caused by character flaws or personality weakness. The truth is that mental health is a physical health issue. The World Health Organization says there is not health without mental health. These are brain health issues that impact lots of people, and treatment does work and recovery is possible.3. Kids don't get mental illness. The truth is that mental health issues are as common among children as they are adults. The numbers are the same, 1 in 5. In fact, lifetime mental health issues show their signs by age 14.4. People don't get better. The truth is that mental health treatment does work and recovery is possible. The success rates are very similar to physical health issues. The right treatment, access to medication, therapy, a great support system, people can and do get better.5. Mental health issues are not life threatening. In fact, about 90% of suicides in our community are caused by either untreated, under-treated, or undiagnosed mental health issues.

Episode 15 is the first part of an interview with Roger Waak, a teacher with NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. He explains what mental health is and how to manage it in times of stress from the point of view of the largest grassroots organization for mental health in the U.S. Roger Waak, MA has been a NAMI volunteer since 2014. He teaches a free 10-week course for families, partners, and friends of individuals living with mental illness called family-to-family. He is a retired technology director with a master’s degree in history. Subscribe to YOUR TRUTH REVEALED weekly videos on YouTube - https://bit.ly/2MjsfdK ➤RESOURCES Free Therapy Consultation: https://bit.ly/3c2ukTZ Free Worksheet: https://www.YourTruthRevealed.com National Alliance on Mental Illness: https://www.nami.org Store: https://bit.ly/2H99Iwl ➤ SUMMARY NAMI is an education program with a specific belief system. What are their 6 principles? 1. One principle is to trust your own instincts, "You are the expert." 2. Another principle is "You don't need to know everything." 3. "You can't know what no one has told you." 4. "Mental health conditions are no one's fault." 5. "Mental health conditions share universal characteristics." 6. "Mental health conditions are biological." It is extremely important that we understand the biology of mental illness. Scientists are learning a lot about neurotransmitters and there are now ways to test your levels. How do neurotransmitters effect mental health? * Dopamine – focus, joy * GABA – inhibitory, calm, nature’s valium * Norepinephrine – excitatory, adrenaline * Serotonin – sleep cycle Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health concern in the United States. What are some contributions to this? * An estimated 40 million adults in the U.S., or 18%, have an anxiety disorder. * Scientists believe that many factors combine to cause anxiety disorders. * Genetics - Research shows that anxiety disorders run in families. This can be a factor. * Stress - A stressful or traumatic situation such as abuse, death of a loved one, or prolonged illness. * The most effective treatment usually involves a combination of: Psychotherapy and Medication Why is it important to get a complete physical when experiencing symptoms? * It will take time to get a complete diagnosis. * Finding the right medication takes time. It’s the law of the land. * Taking medication often times is the way the diagnosis is made. What are 5 common mental health myths? 1.Mental health issues are not common.The truth is 1 in 5 people are impacted by mental health issues every single day. It's a lot more common than we realize. The reason we don't realize how common it is is because we don't talk about it enough. 2. Mental health issues are caused by character flaws or personality weakness. The truth is that mental health is a physical health issue. The World Health Organization says there is not health without mental health. These are brain health issues that impact lots of people, and treatment does work and recovery is possible. 3. Kids don't get mental illness. The truth is that mental health issues are as common among children as they are adults. The numbers are the same, 1 in 5. In fact, lifetime mental health issues show their signs by age 14. 4. People don't get better. The truth is that mental health treatment does work and recovery is possible. The success rates are very similar to physical health issues. The right treatment, access to medication, therapy, a great support system, people can and do get better. 5. Mental health issues are not life threatening. In fact, about 90% of suicides in our community are caused by either untreated, under-treated, or undiagnosed mental health issues. Paying attention can help us save lives.

Dr. Dennis Drayna joins Sara MacIntyre, M.A., CCC-SLP to discuss recent findings in genetics research specific to stuttering. Dr. Drayna begins by giving viewers an overview, then moves on to share an exciting new finding from his lab related to potential astrocyte cell involvement in stuttering.

Dr Myint Tun explained about the eating disorder anorexia nervosa and the Australian scientists who have helped unlock the genetics behind it. - ေဒါက္တာျမင့္ထြန္းက anorexia nervosa လို႔ေခၚတဲ့ အစာစားတာ မူမမွန္တာကို ၾသစေၾတလ်ံ သိပၸံပညာရွင္ေတြက မ်ဳိးဗီဇက ေနာက္ကေနပါ၀င္ေနတယ္ဆိုတာကို ကူညီရွာေဖြေတြ႔ခဲ့တာကို ရွင္းျပထားပါတယ္။[[{"fid":"1796154","view_mode":"body_content","uuid":"2ac7cf2c-1061-48f4-9e73-4bb61b6d8fa6","type":"media","attributes":{"height":"700","width":"700","alt":"Dr. Myint Tun","title":"Dr. Myint Tun","class":"media-element file-body-content"}}]]

We discuss the future of genetics and how our DNA may be used to make life better for humanity. Dr Kyle Yau is a genetic researcher specialising in human inherited diseases.

Nandadevi Cortes Rodriguez, Ithaca College postdoctoral teaching fellow in the Department of Biology, has dedicated much of her research to studying genetics and evolution. Recently, Rodriguez won the award for Best Paper of Year in the Wilson Journal of Ornithology for her work researching speciation in birds. Opinion Editor Celisa Calacal spoke to Rodriguez about her research, the findings of her paper and the importance of studying evolution.