Mandë Holford: Killer Snail Hunter

Nerdette Recaps With Peter Sagal

WBEZ

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4.6 • 924 Ratings

🗓️ 14 December 2018

⏱️ 22 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In a curious twist, venomous, killer sea snails are helping scientists make some incredible biomedical advances. Dr. Mandë Holford is the head of the Holford Lab in New York City, but her line of research often means she’s taking nighttime scuba dives in seas and oceans across the globe.

“Yes, a snail can kill you,” Holford tells Greta. “But a snail can also help you! In various, various ways. And that’s what our lab is investigating: The power of these snails and the venom that they have to transform organisms and to transform lives.”

Holford is also an associate professor in chemistry at Hunter College and the Graduate Center at City University of New York, with scientific appointments at the American Museum of Natural History and Weill Cornell Medical College.

She tells us how snail venom can help relieve pain and treat cancer, how she’s giving back with a line of science-based board games, and how it feels to be on a “Top 100” list that includes Beyoncé.

Transcript

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0:00.0	I'm Natalie Moore. I fell in love with soap operas when I was just five years old, and I still
0:06.1	watch them. Their television's longest scripted series and have zero reruns. Now let me tell you,
0:12.7	soap operas aren't just some silly art form. They are significant. In this season of making,
0:18.0	Stories Without End from WBEZ Chicago.
0:25.7	Join me as I share how the genre began, their social impact, and why these stories endure.
0:28.3	Listen wherever you get your podcast.
0:35.3	From WBEZ Chicago, this is NERDET.
0:36.1	I'm Greta Johnson.
0:38.0	And NERDET is a show where we talk to your favorite or soon-to-be favorite people. And this week, we are talking with someone who is a pretty
0:43.9	excellent human. She was recently listed on the Route 100, which is a list of the most
0:49.2	influential African-Americans between the ages of 25 and 45. No big deal. She also runs a science lab in New York
0:56.9	with her name on it, and she spends a lot of her time poking around for venomous snails.
1:05.9	I am talking about Dr. Mandy Hallford. Mandy, welcome to Nerdat. Hi, how are you?
1:11.9	I'm good, but I am a little surprised to hear that there is such a thing as toxic snails,
1:16.1	and I'm a little bit worried about, like, is this something I need to add to my list of current anxieties?
1:21.5	No, no, no, no.
1:22.3	The whole point of our lab is to try to change these snails from agents of fear into agents of hope.
1:29.9	And so, yes, they are deadly and yes, they are lethal.
1:33.3	And yes, a snail can kill you.
1:35.3	But a snail can also help you in various ways.
1:39.1	And that's what our lab is investigating, the power of the venom that they have,
1:43.8	to transform organisms and to transform lives.
	...

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