Video: An overview of the monkeypox virus

Video: An overview of the monkeypox virus

Kalpana Pot walks us through the latest information on the monkeypox outbreak.

Leaps.org

Click below for an overview of everything you need to know about the latest status of monkeypox - in 58 seconds.



An Overview of Monkeypox with Kalpana Pot

An Overview of the Monkeypox Virus youtube.com

Kalpana Pot
Kalpana Pot is the youngest of three girls in a family full of doctors. Science and education were always of great value in her home. But performing arts was another passion for her, which is why she moved to LA to pursue acting after decades of dancing and singing. She’s appeared on numerous TV shows and national commercials, and will soon be co-hosting Wheel of Fortune Live. At the same time, Kalpana got to express her nerd love of astronomy by working weekends at Griffith Observatory. It was there that she found her love and skill in communicating science to people from all over the world, and has since continued to host space/science series. She has translated that onto digital platforms as well- running an outspoken space-page on TikTok, called TokNerdyToMe, and style and science page on Instagram. Unfortunately, much of her science communication these days is about debunking anti-science conspiracies. But she’s confident that the rise of educational content on social media will help this unfortunate problem in society. Outside of work, Kalpana loves her dogs and volunteers for animal organizations.
Regenerative medicine has come a long way, baby

After a cloned baby sheep, what started as one of the most controversial areas in medicine is now promising to transform it.

Adobe Stock

The field of regenerative medicine had a shaky start. In 2002, when news spread about the first cloned animal, Dolly the sheep, a raucous debate ensued. Scary headlines and organized opposition groups put pressure on government leaders, who responded by tightening restrictions on this type of research.

Fast forward to today, and regenerative medicine, which focuses on making unhealthy tissues and organs healthy again, is rewriting the code to healing many disorders, though it’s still young enough to be considered nascent. What started as one of the most controversial areas in medicine is now promising to transform it.

Progress in the lab has addressed previous concerns. Back in the early 2000s, some of the most fervent controversy centered around somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), the process used by scientists to produce Dolly. There was fear that this technique could be used in humans, with possibly adverse effects, considering the many medical problems of the animals who had been cloned.

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Eve Herold
Eve Herold is an award-winning science writer and consultant in the scientific and medical nonprofit space. A longtime communications and policy executive for scientific organizations, she currently serves as Director of Policy Research and Education for the Healthspan Action Coalition. She has written extensively about issues at the crossroads of science and society, including regenerative medicine, aging and longevity, medical implants, transhumanism, robotics and AI, and bioethical issues in leading-edge medicine. Her books include Stem Cell Wars and Beyond Human, and her latest book, Robots and the People Who Love Them, will be released in January 2024. Her work has appeared in Vice, Medium, The Washington Post and the Boston Globe, among others. She’s a frequent contributor to Leaps.org and is the recipient of the 2019 Arlene Eisenberg Award from the American Society of Journalists and Authors.
Her Incredible Sense of Smell Helped Scientists Develop the First Parkinson's Test

Joy Milne's unusual sense of smell led Dr. Tilo Kunath, a neurobiologist at the Centre for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, and a host of other scientists, to develop a new diagnostic test for Parkinson's.

Forty years ago, Joy Milne, a nurse from Perth, Scotland, noticed a musky odor coming from her husband, Les. At first, Milne thought the smell was a result of bad hygiene and badgered her husband to take longer showers. But when the smell persisted, Milne learned to live with it, not wanting to hurt her husband's feelings.

Twelve years after she first noticed the "woodsy" smell, Les was diagnosed at the age of 44 with Parkinson's Disease, a neurodegenerative condition characterized by lack of dopamine production and loss of movement. Parkinson's Disease currently affects more than 10 million people worldwide.

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Sarah Watts

Sarah Watts is a health and science writer based in Chicago.