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- [00:01]
Capital One Advertiser
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- [00:08]
Verizon Advertiser
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- [00:10]
Teresa Carey
Birds?
- [00:11]
Ryan Reynolds (Mint Mobile Advertiser)
What if you sent your true love.
- [00:14]
Verizon Advertiser
Two turtledoves plus a partridge and a pear tree?
- [00:16]
Capital One Advertiser
Sure, but why would anyone want that?
- [00:18]
Dr. Samira Jamie
The song was very convincing.
- [00:21]
Capital One Advertiser
Earn 1.5% cash back on all your holiday purchases with the Capital One Quicksilver Card. What's in your wallet?
- [00:27]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Terms apply. See capitalone.com for details.
- [00:32]
Workday Go Advertiser
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- [01:01]
Ryan Reynolds (Mint Mobile Advertiser)
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- [01:21]
Dr. Samantha Amin
Yeah.
- [01:22]
Ryan Reynolds (Mint Mobile Advertiser)
Give it a try@mintmobile.com Switch upfront payment.
- [01:25]
Mint Mobile Terms Announcer
Of 45 for three month plan equivalent to 15 per month required new customer offer for first three months only. Speed slow 135 gigabytes of network busy taxes and fees extra. See mintmobile.com.
- [01:35]
Dr. Samantha Amin
Hola hello and welcome to Curiosity Weekly. I'm Dr. Samantha Amin here in Toronto. I've been lucky to be surrounded by so many languages and to get to learn about different cultures and connect with new people. But a new study has found yet another benefit that being multilingual may actually slow brain aging. I'll talk about that first, and then after, senior producer Teresa Carey will chat with my pal Dr. Samira Jamie about big breakthroughs in allergy treatments alongside the everyday challenges navigating this common issue. Finally, we'll wrap with an intriguing discovery about a microbe that could help save wine from wildfires.
- [02:14]
Dr. Samira Jamie
So let's get started.
- [02:17]
Dr. Samantha Amin
It might be time to redownload Duolingo. A recent study led by researchers at Adolfo Ibanez University in Santiago, Chile, found that speaking more than one language may protect our brains from accelerated aging. Now, this might seem familiar. It's long been speculated that being multilingual is good for your brain because it takes a lot of mental effort to learn, use and maintain another language, just like keeping up with physical exercise. The idea is if you keep Your brain working, keep those neurons firing. That will keep healthy into old age, right? Well, previous research on this topic has suggested just that, that speaking multiple languages can improve cognitive functions like memory and attention, which can protect brain health as we get older. But they haven't been as robust as you might think. When it comes to looking at brain aging specifically, we know that being multilingual results in denser gray matter and more white matter integrity than people who only speak one language. And this has been studied a long time. You can even see the difference between multilingual brains and monolingual brains on an mri. When it comes to researching brain aging. On the other hand, this study ups the ante on previous research which have had smaller, more heterogeneous sample sizes and inconsistent results. This study was large scale, focusing on over 86,000 participants between the ages of 51 and 90 across 27 European countries. The researchers used a computational model to determine each person's biobehavioral age gap. This is the difference between their actual chronological age and their predicted age. Based on things like their cardiometabolic health and education level. The study showed that multilingualism was consistently associated with a lower biobehavioral age gap. It brought the predicted age and the real age closer together. This tells us that being proficient in more than one language may have some protective effects against age related cognitive decline. Not only were multilinguals roughly two times less likely to experience accelerated aging, they also found that the more languages someone spoke, the stronger and stronger the effects became likely because all languages remain active even when only one is being used. So you're still getting that extra cognitive activity just from knowing more languages. When they factored in other variables like immigration status, gender and socioeconomic inequality, and sociopolitical identity, the effect still held up. For the most part, speaking three or more foreign languages lost. That delayed aging effect after the adjustments for immigration status and gender equality seemed to play a big role in the effect of speaking one foreign language. Now, there are some caveats here. Participants were self reporting being multilingual, so they weren't necessarily looking at how fluent someone was in each language. And while they covered a lot of countries, it'd be great to see a similar study in people from other parts of the world too. So when it comes to slowing down how our brain ages, it looks like learning a new language or two or three might be a fun and easy way to do it.
- [05:23]
Verizon Advertiser
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- [05:54]
Workday Go Advertiser
Think enterprise software is too costly, too complex and takes too long to get up and running? Think again. Workday Go makes simplifying your small or mid sized business simple HR and finance together on one powerful AI platform right at your fingertips. Workday Go gets you live fast and fits the needs of your business. Find out what Workday Go can do for you. Go with Workday Go Ready to order?
- [06:24]
Dr. Samantha Amin
Yes.
- [06:25]
Dr. Samira Jamie
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- [06:29]
Teresa Carey
So let's just get one of everything. Everything.
- [06:32]
Capital One Advertiser
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- [06:38]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Yes Chef. This is so nice.
- [06:41]
Capital One Advertiser
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- [06:43]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Ooh, tiramisu.
- [06:45]
Capital One Advertiser
Earn unlimited 3% cash back on dining and entertainment with the Capital One Saver Card. Capital One what's in your wallet?
- [06:51]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Terms apply. See capitalone.com for details.
- [06:53]
Ryan Reynolds (Mint Mobile Advertiser)
Hey, Ryan Reynolds here for Mint Mobile. You know one of the perks about having four kids that you know about is actually getting a direct line to the big man up north. And this year he wants you to know the best gift that you can give someone is the gift of Mint Mobile's Unlimited Wireless for $15 a month. Now you don't even need to wrap it. Give it a try@mintmobile.com Switch upfront payment.
- [07:14]
Mint Mobile Terms Announcer
Of $45 for three month plan equivalent to $15 per month required new customer offer for first three months only. Speed slow after 35 gigabytes if network's busy, taxes and fees extra. See mintmobile.com.
- [07:30]
Dr. Samantha Amin
The odds are you likely have a few friends or family members with alle. They affect 30 to 40% of people globally and 1 in 13 children in the US suffers from food allergy. That's about two per classroom. But living with allergies isn't as simple as just avoiding certain foods or products. Allergies can impact quality of life, cause anxiety, social challenges, and even emergency medical situations. Understanding the daily realities of life with allergies can help. So in this interview, senior producer Teresa Carey will talk with Dr. Samira Jamie about the latest developments in allergy research and management. She's an allergist, associate professor, and a program director of clinical immunology and allergy at Western University. Here they are.
- [08:14]
Teresa Carey
Dr. Samara. Jamie, thanks so much for talking with me today.
- [08:17]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Thank you for having me.
- [08:19]
Teresa Carey
Have you perhaps seen the movie the Roses or heard about this movie? It's a 2025 film. It's called the Roses. It's got a great cast, but one of the main characters has a severe food allergy and it kind of becomes a joke and even weaponized against her in the film. And I just wonder if you've seen it or if you have any thoughts on that. For people living with these life threatening allergies, that kind of portrayal in pop culture must really sting. And how do you think this type of misrepresentation shapes public attitudes?
- [08:51]
Dr. Samira Jamie
I have to say, as someone who manages food allergy, I find it quite triggering to watch how food allergy is portrayed the vast majority of the time in media because not only is it kind of regarded as kind of as a joke, the treatment for it is often really misrepresented. For example, many times you and I have both seen someone really stabbing someone else with a needle and saying they're administering epi. It does not have to look like that. In fact, you can cause some severe laceration, bruising, side effects from using an EpiPen that way. So almost intentionally. I actually try to avoid watching portrayals of food allergy. A lot of the times it's not done in a very respectful fashion.
- [09:45]
Teresa Carey
I want to start with the basics. Can you just explain what happens in the body during an allergic reaction? How does the immune system respond when someone, say, with a food allergy encounters that allergen?
- [09:57]
Dr. Samira Jamie
When someone is having an allergic reaction, that means that they have a set of antibodies called IgE or immuno immunoglobulin E. Antibodies that have formed as a defensive reaction towards that trigger, whether it be a food or an environmental trigger or a drug. When the body sees that trigger, it mobilizes those IgE or immunoglobulin E antibodies which then stick onto the surface of cells called mast cells. These are allergy cells. When mast cells have these antibodies sitting on top of it, that activates the mast cells and the mast cells release histamine, amongst other things. So histamine is quickly released. There are actually other things like leukotrienes that are also released. All of these mediate the end result that we interpret as an allergic reaction, which is hives or bronchoconstriction or narrowing of the airway, leading to breathing issues or SW or even gastrointestinal problems or even passing out.
- [11:07]
Teresa Carey
Okay, it sounds like a lot. Sounds like it can be a lot.
- [11:10]
Dr. Samira Jamie
It's more complex than what we see, isn't it? I think recognition of food allergy is a testament to all of the advocacy that caregivers of patients with food allergy or patients with food allergy themselves have to do in order to be recognized as a serious health issue that does significantly impact quality of life. For a long time, I feel like food allergy has been treated as a nothing burger, to use their terminology and kind of joked about. And, you know, in order to take something seriously, to invest research dollars and education dollars into an issue, you know, now that it's recognized as a priority, I think a lot of props should be given to the patients themselves for all of their efforts.
- [12:03]
Teresa Carey
Did you say that sometimes it was called a nothing burger?
- [12:06]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Well, to me, living with a food allergy and practicing, you know, as a food allergy specialist, I see how it's not taken seriously. You know, I think the term I'm allergic to something, the fact that people kind of refer to I'm allergic to something to indicate that they don't like something, you know, is sort of reflective of how the physical consequences of an acute allergic reaction are not really taken seriously.
- [12:40]
Teresa Carey
That's so true. So sometimes we just see people using the word allergy to mean maybe this thing makes me feel uncomfortable, but it's not actually a serious life threatening issue.
- [12:50]
Dr. Samantha Amin
That's right.
- [12:51]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Or, you know, calling a non life threatening reaction like an intolerance and allergy has in a lot of cases desensitized people to not to use an allergy pun, but it's sort of desensitize people to taking it seriously. Right. You know, I have had food allergies my whole life and you know, the rolling of the eyes when you tell someone you have a food allergy, when you go to a restaurant, the, the groans when you're eating out with someone and you say, oh, I cannot have this because I have an allergy that's all too familiar with someone who lives with a food allergy. And when I see patients in clinic, that's sort of the perspective that I have into it. And I think that that definitely shapes how I practice.
- [13:35]
Teresa Carey
I want to talk about labeling, because labeling on food products, well, it can be a matter of life or death, right, for families managing food allergies. And right now it seems like labeling laws are inconsistent, sometimes confusing. What's at the heart of this debate around comprehensive labeling? And what would clearer or standardized requirements really mean for the allergy community?
- [14:01]
Dr. Samira Jamie
This is an issue that really drives me nuts. Not to use another allergy pun, but the intended intention behind food labeling is amazing in that we want to clarify that a food product might have an ingredient that is dangerous to someone's life. Unfortunately, the impact that it has had is restricting quality of life because, you know, companies will sometimes, if they lack quality control standards, they will just slap the label off. Slap the label of may contain a food allergen onto a product, and then this will sort of immediately knock out large swaths of food products that a person with allergy may not be able to eat. And it's horrible if you have a food allergy like milk or egg or sesame or soy because these ubiquitous ingredients. So, you know, from the point of view of the company, they're just medical legally protecting themselves from lawsuits. But from the point of view of the person with the food allergy, that really severely restricts their already limited repertoire of food.
- [15:20]
Teresa Carey
A recent study using Fairs patient registry, they found that over 20% of allergic reactions happen when dining out, and more than a quarter of those require epinephrine. And speaking of food labeling, just in 2026 coming up, California's new allergen disclosure for dining experiences act will require chain restaurants to list the top nine allergens on the menus. In terms of labeling, how big of a step forward is this and what impact do you think it'll have nationwide, not just in California?
- [15:51]
Dr. Samira Jamie
I will withhold my excitement until I kind of see it operationalized. So is it going to be that same phenomenon of now they're just going to slap. The label of contains all nine allergens on every menu because that is the path of least resistance for them. Or are they going to be more intentional about, you know, labeling specific things on the menu that may not be safe. So I am cautiously optimistic.
- [16:20]
Teresa Carey
Now, that may contain nuts or may contain soy labeling, I understand that that's not required for product for products to have that label that's optional in terms.
- [16:31]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Of the food allergy labels. It's how I practice in general in clinic is I actually do not have the vast majority of my patients avoiding foods that same a contain unless there's very specific circumstances. I'm aware of very severe index allergy reaction. So what is that person's clinical history and what is their threshold. So that nuance needs, I think, should be figured out in the allergy clinic so that the person can sort of live their life accordingly. Right. Like, I think if you are not exquisitely sensitive to an allergen, if you do not have significant comorbidities like uncontrolled asthma or, you know, cardiovascular disease of some sort, it really changes your risk.
- [17:31]
Teresa Carey
Calculus and that level of sensitivity to an allergen. And the example you gave was shrimp. If someone has a severe allergic reaction, they're going to consistently have severe allergic reactions, or if they have a mild reaction, they'll consistently be mild in the future.
- [17:46]
Dr. Samira Jamie
That is such an excellent question to sort of unpack. And typically your reaction is your reaction. So there's an urban legend out there that every time you see something, it gets worse and worse. The actual issue is a little bit more nuanced. So, number one, if you are younger, so the younger you are, the more immature your immune system is. So in general, the really, really young kitties cannot actually have that serious of a reaction because their immune system is simply not mature enough to generate that robust I going back to that IgE antibody repertoire. So their reactions tends tend to be hives, maybe breathing problems. Very rarely do kids have reactions that entail passing out. And if that happens, that does warrant additional investigations. So that's number one.
- [18:41]
Dr. Samantha Amin
Sec.
- [18:41]
Dr. Samira Jamie
The second thing is food allergy reactions are actually modulated by other things going on in your life at that time. So things like exercise, having alcohol. I guess this is relevant for adults. Having an illness, having a sleepless night, actually being on your menstrual cycle, having NSAID medications on board. NSAIDs as in ibuprofen, naproxen, et cetera. Those can actually change the threshold of your allergic reaction dose. And they can actually sort of even change the severity of your allergic reaction. So oftentimes when someone has has had a consistent pattern of allergic reactions, and then all of a sudden it's very different. There is a co factor involved, okay. But a person's reaction tends to be their reaction.
- [19:36]
Teresa Carey
I want to talk about peanuts for a second. Peanuts can show up in surprising places. They can be in bird seed that kids craft with. They can be in skin creams, makeups, they can be in ant traps. I recently learned that hibiscus tea is grown alongside peanut crops, which adds another layer of risks. So what do caregivers and allergic individuals need to know about these hidden sources? And maybe any alternative names or ingredients? They should keep an Eye out for on labels.
- [20:06]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Great question about peanut. Two things. One is that, you know, I think if there's a food allergy of any sort, always worth a discussion again to figure out how sensitive am I, what is my skin test result, what is my antibody result from my blood work? If it's over 100, if it's over the limit of the threshold of the assay, then I should be very, very careful. If it's something like five or ten, maybe I don't have to be as careful. What is my initial reaction. So that sort of right away kind of changes the risk tolerance that we or cross contamination. Secondly, putting peanut on the skin typically does not lead to enough excitement in the immune system to cause anaphylaxis. So you really need to ingest the protein. The protein needs to make its way into your blood in order for those mast cells to get activated. So, you know, you know, simply inhaling from the air, you know, if you're on an airplane flight or something, it's typically not enough. It's usually, you know, I touch the surface, I eat the, I accidentally eat the protein and that causes a reaction. The other, other thing I wanted to mention is that it's, it's not just peanut. It's actually structural relatives of peanut that we find can be problematic. So lupin, or some people pronounce it Lupine, is a gluten free alternative. It's, it's a flour extender that's used in desserts. Lupin is actually a relative of peanut. Chickpeas are relative of peanut. Lentils are a relative of peanut. So those are the things. If I had a peanut allergy or if I have a person, a patient with peanut allergy, those are the things that I usually caution about. So those sort of structurally related foods.
- [22:08]
Teresa Carey
Matters, and that depends on the individual too. It could matter to one person with a peanut allergy, but be no big deal to another person.
- [22:16]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Exactly, yeah. So just because you have a food allergy, even though there is a structural relationship between different foods, does not warrant cutting out that food out of your diet. Very important point. Thank you for clarifying.
- [22:30]
Teresa Carey
Oral immunotherapy has been one of the major developments in food allergy care. It gradually builds tolerance throughout miniscule exposure. But it's not a cure. And I understand the experience can be daunting. So what are the benefits and limitations of oral immunotherapy treatments and where does it fit in into the larger landscape of allergy management from the get go?
- [22:52]
Dr. Samira Jamie
I have been really interested in this mechanism of introducing a food through the gut in order to develop neutralizing antibodies that actually stick to those IGE antibodies and suck them away from the mast cells to decrease a person's reactivity to a food. The younger you are, essentially the better it works because the theory is that the more malleable the immune system is beyond preschool age, usually it's a risk benefit. Discussion. In terms of how much will the avoidance of accidental exposure to food, how much does that impact a person's life? Are you the person who is too anxious to touch a door handle because you're afraid of cross contamination? In which case oral immunotherapy, even as an adult, might be beneficial for your quality of life because it takes away that anxiety around accidental and accidental exposure. Beyond preschool age, I definitely go through a shared decision making process that takes into account what is the end goal that we are wanting to achieve, because as you said, it's not a cure.
- [24:06]
Teresa Carey
So if you have to weigh these options here to see is it really, I guess, worth it to go through the process for oral immunotherapy treatment, why is it very difficult to do or is it dangerous?
- [24:17]
Dr. Samira Jamie
The starting process needs to take place in a facility that can manage anaphylaxis. So every time you have increases in the dose of your anaphylactic trigger, you need to be in a doctor's office, you know, usually in an allergist's office. And, you know, sometimes we use an EpiPen. So logistically, families have to sort of balance all of the doctor's visits, the daily dosing of the food, as well as those, the risks that come with exercise. So they might have to change their schedule around for sports. So all of that needs to be taken into consideration.
- [24:54]
Teresa Carey
And it seems like access would come into play too, if you have to be in an allergist office. Not every town or community has that. The medication for asthma, Xolair, originally used for asthma, but now it's getting attention as a potential protection against food induced anaphylaxis. How does it work and who is it best suited for?
- [25:15]
Dr. Samira Jamie
So omalizumab, there are two brand names for it is actually a molecule that binds to that. We're going back to that immunoglobulin. It binds to the immunoglobulin in your body and sops it up again from your mast cells. So it's a neutralizing agent. If it were up to me, because omalizumab is so well tolerated and has such a favorable safety profile, I would Use it more widely. But as you mentioned, there are issues with access of all of these biologic medications that are wonderful in terms of their effectiveness, but quite cost prohibitive. We have a ways to go in terms of equity and access.
- [25:59]
Teresa Carey
There are a few new drugs coming out on the market for allergies. There's new research on a dissolvable epinephrine film that looks like a Listerine strip that you put under the tongue. Aquestive early results suggest that it's just as effective as injected epinephrine for kids and adults. How promising is this and could it change the landscape for emergency allergy treatment?
- [26:22]
Dr. Samira Jamie
So in the phase one studies, I believe they had about just over 50 participants. It was very promising in terms of how quickly it was able to exert epinephrine effects and, you know, in terms of how well tolerated it was so quite favorable in the, you know, smaller trials that have come forth to date. So not only is there a sublingual option for epinephrine coming, there's a nasal option. So in, in the States, it's called Nephi. We don't know what it's going to be called in Canada yet. But the nasal epinephrine is also promising. I'm very excited to these options available because despite all the education we do, there is lots of hesitance to use the needle autoinjector. And we know that delays in using the epinephrine in case of anaphylaxis leads to a lot of the serious outcomes that we hear about, like morbidity, like mortality.
- [27:24]
Teresa Carey
And do you think that these nasal sprays or the. Under the tongue strip, because it's not a needle, maybe people more readily say, let's just do that. Are there any risks with using the epinephrine prematurely or these other forms of epinephrine?
- [27:40]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Many people just don't like using needles on themselves. And there's a scary. Yeah, and why would you.
- [27:48]
Dr. Samantha Amin
Right.
- [27:48]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Why would you. So, you know, decreasing that barrier is very exciting, but in terms of the, you know, there's the needle phobia, there's the plastic waste that is generated that is exciting to get rid of, and then there's the, you know, the temperature stability, the cost, like all of those sort of need to be considered as well.
- [28:12]
Teresa Carey
And also these other, these newer ones could fit in your pocket. And epinephrine.
- [28:16]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Yes.
- [28:17]
Teresa Carey
Doesn't necessarily fit in the pocket.
- [28:19]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Yeah. So as you and I both know, there's a certain demographic of patients who, who don't like being Uncool and carrying their EpiPen fanny pack or carrying their, you know, asthma inhaler around. So the more discreet we can make an EpiPen, the better. So you asked me a bit ago, what are the risks of using EPI and anaphylaxis? You should, if you have anaphylaxis, that is the thing to use. Yes. If used incorrectly, sometimes it causes arrhythmia. And you know, in patients with underlying elevated blood pressure, sometimes you worry about what, you know, that flight or fight hormone will do to the blood pressure. But the, you know, if there's anaphylaxis, there is no better drug than using an epinephrine. Using epinephrine.
- [29:09]
Teresa Carey
And when a reaction happens, sometimes people immediately reach for Benadryl or Zyrtec and there's a lot of confusion about which one is really best. How do you advise patients to think about these antihistamines, when to rely on them, which one to use versus jumping straight to epinephrine.
- [29:27]
Dr. Samira Jamie
I really tried to hammer this in, in that if there is anaphylaxis, epinephrine first and epinephrine fast, because we have convincing data showing that the delay in administration of epinephrine is what that causes a lot of morbidity and mortality. A lot of people will go to Benadryl thinking that it is the stronger antihistamine. So diphenhydramine. But diphenhydramine and its relatives are very old and they have lots of side effects that are unwanted. I would always use a second generation non sedating antihistamine. And again, as a supportive measure, not first line.
- [30:09]
Teresa Carey
I think air travel is tricky for passengers with allergies, especially long haul flights. And now Southwest Airlines announced that it's going to start serving pistachios in some sections next year. So given how confined airplanes are, does this raise new concerns about airborne exposure or accidental contact?
- [30:29]
Dr. Samira Jamie
You know what's interesting, a lot of allergists, if you interview us, we will be concerned about our patients with asthma who have environmental allergies, say to cat or dog, because those can be brutal in the closed setting. With the food allergies, typically you simply just don't get enough of the food into your bloodstream from airborne exposure. But cleaning of the surfaces will matter. And in this case, again, the onus seems to fall back on the person with the diagnosis to ensure that their environment is safe. And we talk about that a lot in terms of school policies. So, you know, there was a systematic review released that showed that banning of foods from schools doesn't necessarily make the environment safer for the child. Education of, you know, what is anaphylaxis, how to treat anaphylaxis for the child and everyone who's involved in their environment is more important. And in the same way, I would hope if an airline is, you know, taking away their a level of protection for individuals with food allergy, I hope they are complementing that with enhanced training of their flight crew on how to recognize and manage anaphylaxis. You would hope that EpiPens would be available on airplanes, but that would take me one hour ran to go through.
- [32:00]
Teresa Carey
I have experienced that you can pre board on airplanes and clean off your aisle, your seat. They'll usually let you do that too. How is managing severe food allergies? Is it a source of stress for patients and caregivers? How does mental health come into play with allergy care?
- [32:18]
Dr. Samira Jamie
There's excellent data and it's sort of been replicated worldwide showing that having a diagnosis of food allergy detrimentally impacts your quality of life. There is social anxiety, there's social pariasm where the, you know, the person with food allergy could be excluded. Food allergy doesn't just impact the person, it actually impacts the entire family and really the community in terms of the mental health repercussions. They are underappreciated for sure.
- [32:48]
Teresa Carey
And what motivates you to do this work?
- [32:51]
Dr. Samira Jamie
What motivates me to be an allergist? Oh my gosh, that's a big question. I really like the link between the, you know, the mechanism of a part of the body that I've always loved, the immune system. I think, I think, think it's beautiful and complicated. A lot of our treatments are life changing. A lot of our tests are instantaneous. Skin testing is instantaneous and quite gratifying. And to be able to make a big difference in not just the, the quantity of life but the quality of life, it really matters to me.
- [33:24]
Teresa Carey
Well, thank you so much for talking with me. I learned a lot from this.
- [33:27]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Oh, thank you.
- [33:34]
Verizon Advertiser
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- [34:04]
Teresa Carey
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- [34:30]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Terms apply. Lounge access is subject to change. See capital1.com for details.
- [34:34]
Sarah (Olive and June Founder)
Hi, it's Sarah. I'm the founder of Olive and June and can I tell you the one thing that always makes my day better? A fresh manicure. But who has the time or the money to go to the salon every week? That's why we created the Olive and June Gel Mani System. It gives you that same mani that you get at a salon for so much less. It comes with everything you need. A pro level lamp, salon grade tools. Our damage free gel polish that lasts up to 21 days. All you do is prep, paint, cure and you're good to go. And the best part? It's super easy and so affordable. Each mani breaks down to $2. So let's skip that $80 salon appointment and get the salon quality look at home for so much less. And on your schedule, head to oliveandjeune.com DIYgel20 and use code DIYgel20 for 20% off your first gel man system. That's oliveanjune.com DIYgel20 code DIY gel20 for 20 off your first gel mani system.
- [35:31]
Ryan Reynolds (Mint Mobile Advertiser)
Hey, Ryan Reynolds here wishing you a very happy half off holiday because right now Mint Mobile is offering you the gift of 50% off unlimited. To be clear, that's half price, not half the service. Mint is still premium unlimited wireless for a great price. So that means a half day. Yeah. Give it a try@mintmobile.com Switch upfront payment.
- [35:55]
Mint Mobile Terms Announcer
Of $45 for three month plan equivalent to $15 per month required new customer offer for first three months only. Speed slow 135 gigabytes of network busy taxes and fees extra. See mint mobile.com.
- [36:06]
Dr. Samantha Amin
Smoke taint. You may have smelt it in your hair or on your clothes after sitting around a campfire all evening, but it's now becoming an issue for winemakers. There are compounds from Wildfire smoke that can settle on grapevines and give Wine an unpleasant flavor much like licking an ashtray. This smoky taste is becoming a real issue for winemakers in regions that are increasingly affected by wildfires, like Australia and the west coast of North America, including California and bc. But researchers have potentially uncovered a solution. They've identified a microbe that lives on grape leaves and can break down harsh tasting compounds from wildfire smoke. Sea burning vegetation releases different chemicals known as phenols. These compounds travel through the air with wildfire smoke and can settle on vineyards in the region. When they do, they can get stuck in grape skins and bind with sugars, making them really hard to remove. Those phenols then create unpleasant flavors in the wine, like the taste of smoked fish or cigarette ash. Growers have tried a bunch of different things to try to prevent that smoke taste, like applying protective coatings or even moving their vineyard to a new location. But a team led by researchers from the usda, they wanted to find a solution closer to home. They wanted to see if any existing microbes on grape leaves could help with this issue. The researchers swabbed bacteria living on greenhouse grown Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon plants. Then they did something clever to find out which ones might be good at eating up the nasty smoke tasting phenols. They took one of these phenols called guaiacol and made that the only source of food for their bacteria. Only two closely related strains of bacteria survived. They're called Gordonia alkynivorans, or G Alkinivorens. These bacteria love to eat the smokyphenol. Then the team did some genetic tests to knock out specific genes and identify exactly which pathways are responsible for its preferred helpful smoky diet. Since that could inspire future protective measures for wineries, they published their study in the journal Plosone. The team is excited about the possibilities here. The microbe could be integrated into protective sprays to keep guaiacol from entering berries in the first place. Or perhaps researchers could engineer the guaiacol consuming genes into the yeast that's used during fermentation that would neutralize the unpleasant flavor without impacting the grape's quality. Now, if this all sounds like literal Champagne problems, okay, fair. But California and Oregon lost an estimated $3.7 billion due to this issue in 2020. So it's affecting real communities and businesses big and small. This microbe, GL cannivorens, isn't a magic all purpose solution because guaiacol is just one of the many compounds that can cause that smoky taste. But it might actually be a good thing that it's specific to just this type of phenol because other phenols are actually what give wine a lot of its taste and the complexity that wine enthusiasts are chasing now. Perhaps this smoky taste will become a new normal for wine, but I kind of doubt it. And so I think this approach, using bacteria to balance the wine flavor will continue to grow. For Warner Bros. Discovery Curiosity Weekly is produced by the team at Wheelhouse DNA. The senior producer and editorial correspondent is Teresa Carey, our producer is is Kiara Noni, our audio engineer is Nick Kimi and head of Production for Wheelhouse DNA is Cassie Berman. And I'm Dr. Samantha Yamin. Thanks for listening.
- [39:54]
Verizon Advertiser
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- [40:25]
Workday Go Advertiser
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- [40:54]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Ready to order?
- [40:55]
Teresa Carey
Yes.
- [40:56]
Dr. Samira Jamie
We're earning unlimited 3% cash back on dining and entertainment with a Capital One Saver card cards. So let's just get one of everything.
- [41:02]
Verizon Advertiser
Everything.
- [41:03]
Capital One Advertiser
Fire everything. The Capital One Saver card is at table 27 and they're earning unlimited 3% cash back.
- [41:09]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Yes Chef. This is so nice.
- [41:12]
Capital One Advertiser
Had a feeling you'd want 3% cash back on dessert.
- [41:14]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Oh tiramisu.
- [41:16]
Capital One Advertiser
Earn unlimited 3% cash back on dining and entertainment with the Capital One Saver Card. Capital One what's in your wallet?
- [41:22]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Terms apply. See capital1.com for details. Holidays mean feasting. From cheddar biscuits, biscuits to French toast.
- [41:28]
Dr. Samantha Amin
Bakes, Herobred has you covered with 0.
- [41:30]
Dr. Samira Jamie
To 5 grams net carb and high fiber options to ensure your holidays stay delicious and balanced.
- [41:35]
Dr. Samantha Amin
Like their 3 grams net carb pain.
- [41:37]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Au chocolat, Herobread is offering 10% off your order. Go to Hero Co and use code Fall25 at checkout.
- [41:43]
Teresa Carey
That's Fall25EROCO.
- [41:46]
Dr. Samantha Amin
All figures are per serving of Herobread contains up to 17 grams of fat per serving. See the product nutrition panels on Hero.
- [41:53]
Dr. Samira Jamie
Co for more information.