Episode 172: Kevin Tracey on neuro-immunology and the treatment of inflammatory diseases

Few people know as much about inflammation and neuroscience as Dr. Kevin Tracey does. In this episode of STEM-Talk, we learn much from Tracey, who was the first to identify the inflammatory reflex, a physiological mechanism that regulates the body’s immune response to injury and invasion. He is a neurosurgeon, a pioneer in bioelectrical medicine and president and CEO of the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in Manhasset, N.Y. The conversation in this episode covers a career spent working on “producing tomorrow’s cures today” in the treatment of inflammatory diseases, including: How the death of his mother from a brain tumor when Tracey was 5 years old ultimately influenced his scientific journey. How the death of a young patient of his from sepsis further fueled his path, leading him to the insight that “good science begins with hard questions,” as Tracey shared in a TedTalk.  The molecular mechanisms of inflammation and the use of vagus nerve stimulation to treat it. His 1987 discovery of tumor necrosis factor (TNF), which contributed to a new class of drugs for inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Another discovery that allowed him and his colleagues to merge neuroscience and immunology. His work on “The Inflammatory Reflex”, which emphasized the basic neural pathway that reflexively monitors and adjusts the inflammatory response. A sketch he drew while having lunch, which laid out how treating inflammatory diseases using a bioelectronic device might be possible. What advances in bioelectronic medicine he envisions in the next decade, and much more. [00:03:04] Dawn asks Kevin to tell the story of how he developed an interest in science that evolved into him becoming a neurosurgeon. [00:04:56] Dawn mentions that Kevin was a curious youth and asks if it is true that after getting his first car, Kevin removed the entire engine because he wanted to better understand how to do a valve job. [00:06:33] Ken mentions that after Kevin graduated from high school, he enrolled in Boston College where he earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. Ken explains that Kevin went to Boston University Medical School for his M.D. and asks Kevin about the transition. [00:08:41] Ken asks if it is true that during Kevin’s first year at medical school his classmates had better luck finding him on the golf course than in the classroom. [00:10:42] Dawn asks Kevin about his transition from medical school to the neurological surgery training program at New York Hospital, home of the Cornell University Medical College. [00:13:11] Dawn pivots to talk about sepsis, which kills more than 350,000 people annually. She asks Kevin to discuss his tragic story of treating a patient with sepsis as a young neurosurgeon and how that changed the trajectory of his career. [00:16:38] Ken explains that since the aforementioned incident, Kevin has focused on determining why septic shock occurs. Ken refers to a Ted Talk of Kevin’s in which he says, “good science begins with hard questions.” Ken asks Kevin to elaborate on this point. [00:20:49] Dawn mentions that Kevin often describes himself as a brain surgeon who is fascinated by inflammation. Dawn asks Kevin how he responds when people ask him what inflammation is. [00:22:29] Ken follows up by explaining that in 1987 Kevin made progress investigating inflammation with his discovery of tumor necrosis factor (TNF), which contributed to a new class of drugs for inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Ken asks Kevin to discuss this discovery. [00:25:56] Dawn mentions that in the late ‘90s, Kevin made another discovery that allowed him and his colleagues to merge neuroscience and immunology. Before getting into that discovery, Dawn asks Kevin to explain how humans have simple reflex circuits that harmonize the activity of our organs. She also asks him to talk about Charles Sherrington’s Nobel Prize-winning research, which laid the groundwork for contemporary neuroscience by...