30 episodes

The Vanderbilt Kennedy Center (VKC) facilitates discoveries and best practices to improve the lives of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families. More than 200 faculty affiliated with Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center are engaged in multidisciplinary research, training, technical assistance, and dissemination. The VKC’s Treatment and Research Institute for Autism Spectrum Disorders (TRIAD) works to improve assessment and treatment services for children with autism while advancing knowledge and training.

Vanderbilt Kennedy Center Vanderbilt Kennedy Center

    • Science
    • 5.0 • 3 Ratings

The Vanderbilt Kennedy Center (VKC) facilitates discoveries and best practices to improve the lives of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families. More than 200 faculty affiliated with Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center are engaged in multidisciplinary research, training, technical assistance, and dissemination. The VKC’s Treatment and Research Institute for Autism Spectrum Disorders (TRIAD) works to improve assessment and treatment services for children with autism while advancing knowledge and training.

    Associations Between Executive Functioning Impairments and Anxiety Symptoms among Youth with Autism

    Associations Between Executive Functioning Impairments and Anxiety Symptoms among Youth with Autism

    The Promise of Discovery Season 4, Episode 3

    Many people with autism experience executive functioning (EF) impairments, and its widely acknowledged that these challenges play a significant role in autism. Anxiety symptoms are highly prevalent and impairing challenges for autistic youth, and emerging evidence suggests EF impairments exacerbate anxiety. This study examines how everyday EF impairments are related to specific anxiety symptoms in autistic youth.

    Featuring: Christina Burroughs, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow, Vanderbilt University

    Interviewer: Blythe Corbett, Ph.D., James G. Blakemore Chair and Professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences; Professor of Psychology; Associate Director, Division of Psychology, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, and VKC Member

    • 18 min
    Chronic developmental manganese exposure alters response to amphetamine and methylphenidate

    Chronic developmental manganese exposure alters response to amphetamine and methylphenidate

    The Promise of Discovery Season 4, Episode 2

    Manganese is essential for brain development and human health. However, excess manganese can be toxic. The Harrison lab discusses how manganese exposures can alter the response to some drugs currently used to treat intellectual and developmental disabilities.


    Featuring: Adriana Tienda, Lab Manager, Harrison Lab

    Interviewer: Fiona Harrison, Ph.D., assistant professor of Medicine; Director, IDDRC Behavioral Phenotyping Core (Core D); Mouse Behavioral Phenotyping Faculty Coordinator; VKC Member

    • 8 min
    Investigating markers of Alzheimer’s in individuals with Down syndrome

    Investigating markers of Alzheimer’s in individuals with Down syndrome

    The Promise of Discovery Season 4, Episode 1

    Adults with Down syndrome have a greatly increased risk of developing Alzheimer's disease later in life. Ongoing research focuses on investigating different markers of Alzheimer's disease in adults with Down Syndrome. These studies are specifically examining a neurotransmitter system called the cholinergic system that is vitally important for cognition and known to decline early in Alzheimer's disease in the neurotypical population. Understanding the progression of these different markers associated with Alzheimer's disease will provide essential data for future therapeutic trials in adults with Down Syndrome.

    Center for Cognitive Medicine website: https://www.vumc.org/ccm/welcome

    Trial Ready Cohort for Down Syndrome: https://www.vumc.org/ccm/trcds

    Featuring: Jason Russell, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Psychiatry

    Interviewer: Paul Newhouse, M.D., Jim Turner Professor of Cognitive Disorders; Professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Pharmacology, and Medicine; Director, Vanderbilt Center for Cognitive Medicine; VKC Member

    • 25 min
    Erik Carter: A career in friendships, flourishing, and faith

    Erik Carter: A career in friendships, flourishing, and faith

    The Promise of Discovery Season 3, Episode 4

    In 2022, VKC UCEDD Co-Director Erik Carter announced he would be leaving Vanderbilt and taking a position at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Carter to discuss some of his highly impactful research, training and technical assistance in the areas of adolescent transitions to adult life and employment; social interaction and friendships, school and community inclusion; faith and disability, and belonging.

    VKC Researcher:
    Erik Carter, Ph.D., Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair and Professor of Special Education; Co-Director, Vanderbilt Kennedy Center University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD)

    Interviewer: Courtney Taylor, M.Div., Director of Communications and Dissemination, Vanderbilt Kennedy Center

    • 51 min
    Exploring memory circuit changes in neurodevelopmental disorders

    Exploring memory circuit changes in neurodevelopmental disorders

    The Promise of Discovery Season 3, Episode 3

    In this podcast we discuss our research using mice with a genetic deletion similar to a human neurodevelopmental disorder to understand how brain regions important for memory are affected. We discuss the methods we use in mice to study a memory region called the hippocampus and talk about how our research might lead to new treatments for neurodevelopmental conditions.

    VKC Researcher:
    Alan Lewis, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences and Neurology

    Interviewer: Leann Seañez, research assistant

    • 27 min
    Neurocognitive effects of neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome

    Neurocognitive effects of neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome

    The Promise of Discovery Season 3, Episode 2:

    Rates of neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) have increased, and prenatal opioid exposure is thought to have profound effects on the developing nervous system and lead to long-term impairments in functioning, potentially including increased rates of educational and developmental disabilities. This research examines whether preschool-aged children with and without NOWS differ in neural and behavioral indicators of cognitive control and evaluates the extent to which associations between NOWS and cognitive control persist.

    VKC Researcher:
    Autumn Kujawa, Ph.D., assistant professor of Psychology and Human Development

    Interviewer: Courtney Taylor, M.Div., Director of Communications, Vanderbilt Kennedy Center

    • 20 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
3 Ratings

3 Ratings

Top Podcasts In Science

Hidden Brain
Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam
Radiolab
WNYC Studios
Something You Should Know
Mike Carruthers | OmniCast Media | Cumulus Podcast Network
Ologies with Alie Ward
Alie Ward
StarTalk Radio
Neil deGrasse Tyson
Science Vs
Spotify Studios