People, Parasites, and Plagues
by David Peterson and Kim Klonowski
Insights from recent episode analysis
Audience Interest
Podcast Focus
Publishing Consistency
Platform Reach
Insights are generated by CastFox AI using publicly available data, episode content, and proprietary models.
Est. Listeners
Based on iTunes & Spotify (publisher stats).
- Per-Episode Audience
Est. listeners per new episode within ~30 days
10,001 - 25,000 - Monthly Reach
Unique listeners across all episodes (30 days)
25,001 - 75,000 - Active Followers
Loyal subscribers who consistently listen
5,001 - 15,000
Market Insights
Platform Distribution
Reach across major podcast platforms, updated hourly
Total Followers
—
Total Plays
—
Total Reviews
—
* Data sourced directly from platform APIs and aggregated hourly across all major podcast directories.
On the show
Recent episodes
The World’s Most Successful Parasite: Inside Toxoplasma’s Weird Biology
Apr 13, 2026
39m 29s
Rebuilding Immunity: The Thymus, Your Immune System’s Hidden Architect
Mar 23, 2026
35m 43s
An Open-Source Pandemic: Genomes, Metadata, and Real-Time Outbreak Science
Mar 6, 2026
32m 40s
When Neutralizing Isn’t Enough: The Immunology of Alphavirus Defense
Feb 20, 2026
33m 26s
The Hidden Empire of Parasitoid Wasps
Feb 4, 2026
40m 44s
Social Links & Contact
Official channels & resources
Official Website
Login
RSS Feed
Login
| Date | Episode | Description | Length | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4/13/26 | The World’s Most Successful Parasite: Inside Toxoplasma’s Weird Biology | In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Diego Huet, an associate professor in the College of Pharmacy at the University of Georgia, to explore Toxoplasma gondii. It's often called the world’s most successful parasite. Infecting up to a third of the global population, Toxoplasma is both incredibly common and largely invisible. Dr. Huet breaks down how it spreads, why most people never know they have it, and how it can persist in the body for life by forming dormant cysts. We also dive into the p... | 39m 29s | ||||||
| 3/23/26 | Rebuilding Immunity: The Thymus, Your Immune System’s Hidden Architect | In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Nancy Manley, Director of the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University. Before ASU, she spent over 20 years at the University of Georgia, where she served as Head of the Department of Genetics and a Distinguished Research Professor studying the thymus. We explore one of the body’s most overlooked yet essential organs, the thymus, and how it builds and shapes the immune system over time. Dr. Manley breaks down why this organ is far more dynamic ... | 35m 43s | ||||||
| 3/6/26 | An Open-Source Pandemic: Genomes, Metadata, and Real-Time Outbreak Science | In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Justin Bahl, a UGA Professor of Epidemology and Biostatistics. David and Kim explore how modern epidemiology uses genomic data and statistics to track the spread of infectious diseases. From studying fungi on palm leaves across Asia and Australia to analyzing viral genomes during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, Dr. Bahl shares how global field experience and biostatistical tools come together to reveal how pathogens move through populations. We discuss molecular ... | 32m 40s | ||||||
| 2/20/26 | When Neutralizing Isn’t Enough: The Immunology of Alphavirus Defense | The hosts sit down with Dr. Julie Fox, Chief of the Emerging Virus Immunity Unit at NIAID, National Institutes of Health, to explore the science of alphavirus immunity and what antibodies really do in the context of alphavirus infection. From chikungunya virus and its debilitating joint disease to broader mosquito-borne alphaviruses, Dr. Fox explains why these viruses are powerful models for studying immune protection. We move beyond the traditional view of antibodies as simple neutralizers a... | 33m 26s | ||||||
| 2/4/26 | The Hidden Empire of Parasitoid Wasps | Parasitoid wasps are some of the most successful organisms on Earth, even if most of us never notice them. In this episode, Dr. Michael Strand from the UGA Department of Entomology takes us inside the hidden world of parasitoid wasps. These insects lay their eggs in other insects and rely on domesticated viruses to suppress host immune systems and control development. We explore how these virus–wasp partnerships evolved over millions of years, why they have made parasitoid wasps incredib... | 40m 44s | ||||||
| 1/9/26 | From Pathogen to Prescription: Reimagining E. coli | What if your gut bacteria could become medicine? In this episode, a UGA microbiologist, Greg Phillips, reveals how engineered probiotic E. coli can produce L-dopa, the frontline treatment for Parkinson’s, directly inside the gut. We explore the gut–brain connection, the power of the microbiome, and how living microbes could become the next generation of drug delivery systems. From World War I probiotic strains to modern genetic engineering, this episode takes you inside a bold new frontier ... | 34m 33s | ||||||
| 12/5/25 | The Silent Architect: Chromatin’s Role in Fungal Outbreaks | Dive into the world of chromatin and epigenetics with Dr. Zachary Lewis, an associate professor at the UGA Department of Microbiology. His research explores how chromatin structure and other epigenetic mechanisms shape genome organization, function, and long-term stability in eukaryotic cells. He particularly studies chromatin within fungal pathogens. In this episode, Dr. Lewis breaks down why these molecular systems matter, how they influence fungal disease, and the cutting-edge methods his ... | 34m 11s | ||||||
| 11/14/25 | Endocytosis: T. cruzi's Cool Parasite Trick | This episode takes us inside the lab of Dr. Drew Etheridge, an associate professor in the UGA Department of Cellular Biology. He walks us through his scientific path and his current work on endocytosis in Trypanosoma cruzi. This parasite is often overlooked, yet it is becoming increasingly prevalent in the United States as it moves north from Central and South America. | 40m 41s | ||||||
| 10/31/25 | Parasites & Passports: Graduate Students on Science & Self-Discovery | Two UGA graduate students take us inside their world of science! Kaelynn Parker (Cellular Biology) and Grace Woods Vick (Infectious Diseases) share what it’s really like working in the lab, traveling abroad, and chasing their passion for research. | 33m 24s | ||||||
| 10/15/25 | The Science of Public Policy | This episode leans into the “people” side of People, Parasites & Plagues. Our guest is Dr. Erik C. Ness, Professor and Director of the Louise McBee Institute of Higher Education at UGA. While his past work explored how education policy is implemented across states, his latest research takes on a timely challenge: how misinformation and “alternative facts,” especially in the age of AI, shape public policy. | 36m 14s | ||||||
Want analysis for the episodes below?Free for Pro Submit a request, we'll have your selected episodes analyzed within an hour. Free, at no cost to you, for Pro users. | |||||||||
| 9/26/25 | Lock and Key: The Devious Mechanisms of Viral Entry | Today we’re joined by Dr. Melinda Brindley, a molecular virologist at the UGA Department of Infectious Diseases. Her research explores how enveloped viruses enter host cells and replicate. Understanding this process could lead to new ways of developing treatments for viral infections. | 33m 55s | ||||||
| 9/13/25 | Observable Variations: Using Genetic Marker Systems for Infectious Diseases | This week, we’re joined by Dr. Travis Glenn, Director of the UGA Institute of Bioinformatics, to discuss his work with genetic marker systems and how he's using these systems to group infectious diseases. | 38m 29s | ||||||
| 5/30/25 | PPP Book Club: Infectious Reads 2 | We're ending this season with another Book Club! Our hosts are joined today by Production Assistant Syd Weigand to discuss the novels they've read about malaria, tuberculosis, and new guinea tapeworms. | 33m 01s | ||||||
| 5/16/25 | Treating Mosquitoes: Innovative Ways To Combat Malaria | This week we're joined by Dr. Douglas Paton, Assistant Professor of the UGA Department of Infectious Diseases. We've covered malaria before- but not like this! Tune in to hear about his groundbreaking work on an incredible new way to treat the disease. | 35m 56s | ||||||
| 4/25/25 | Harnessing the Hulk: Insights on T Cell Function | Today's guest is a special one; he's travelled all the way from Australia to chat with us! Dr. Stephen Turner, Professor and Head of the Department of Microbiology at the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, joins us in the studio to discuss his research on T cells, his journey into science, and some great immune system analogies. | 39m 40s | ||||||
| 4/11/25 | SCWDS: Monitoring Wildlife Health for 50 Years | Today we're talking to Dr. Mark Ruder, the Director of SCWDS and Professor of Wildlife Heath here at UGA. Tune in to hear about the origins of the Southern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study and Dr. Ruder's fascinating work with diseases in whitetail deer! | 33m 06s | ||||||
| 3/28/25 | Wolbachia: Unwelcome Guest or Essential Partner? | You'll have to tune in to find out! Today we're chatting with Dr. Vincent Starai, an associate professor of the UGA Department of Microbiology about his research with the obligate intracellular bacterium Wolbachia and his passion for teaching. | 35m 30s | ||||||
| 3/14/25 | Hypnozoites: World's Best Nappers | This week we're joined by Dr. Chester Joyner of the UGA Department of Infectious Diseases to discuss his research with Plasmodium vivax and the curious nature of its dormant liver stage. | 44m 06s | ||||||
| 2/28/25 | Mom For The Win: Setting Up Your Early Immunity For Success! | We're back today with a special visitor: Dr. Stephanie Langel, Assistant Professor of the Case Western University Department of Pathology. Tune in to hear about her journey to science, her research on colostrum and immunity, and her own experience as a podcast host! Check out Stephanie's podcast "Immune" here: https://open.spotify.com/show/7vA26ZVp392p6udK7jltrI?si=dHqBa5_GSMuzuASWn2JT6Q | 30m 11s | ||||||
| 2/10/25 | TB, Or Not TB | This week we're talking tuberculosis with Dr. Frederick Quinn, the Department Head of Infectious Diseases here at UGA. Tune in to hear about his current research with zoonotic tuberculosis and what he's learned about transmission of this deadly disease. | 38m 45s | ||||||
| 1/17/25 | The Ins And Outs of Biocontainment | We've got a treat for you this week! Dr. Jeff Hogan of the UGA Department of Infectious Diseases is joining us to talk about his work in the most secure building on campus and his time spent protecting our country from diseases with USAMRIID. | 38m 04s | ||||||
| 12/27/24 | The Life & Times of the Schisto Kid | Join us this week for a special discussion with Emeritus Professor of Microbiology Dr. Daniel Colley. We're chatting with him about his time spent with the CDC, becoming the director of the Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases at UGA, and the research abroad that sparked his passion for schistosomes. | 34m 19s | ||||||
| 12/13/24 | Galen: A Guy With A Great Sense Of Humors | We're mixing it up a little bit this week with Dr. Susan Mattern of the UGA Department of Classics! Join us on our walk through history as we talk about Galen, a prolific Roman physician whose treatises dominated Western medicine for over a thousand years. | 32m 31s | ||||||
| 11/29/24 | Bears Hibernate, And So Does Malaria? | Today we're chatting with post-doctoral associate Dr. Anthony Ruberto about his work with the Kyle Lab here at UGA and his journey towards the unique field of malaria research he's in today. | 29m 22s | ||||||
| 11/15/24 | Transposons Advance Fungal Research By Leaps & Bounds | We're back this week to talk more Cryptococcus neoformans with Dr. Blake Billmyre of the UGA Department of Infectious Diseases! Join us to hear how he's studying transposons in an effort to improve antifungal drugs. | 29m 12s | ||||||
Showing 25 of 52
Sponsor Intelligence
Sign in to see which brands sponsor this podcast, their ad offers, and promo codes.
Chart Positions
5 placements across 5 markets.
Chart Positions
5 placements across 5 markets.