Medical Laboratory Technician: Media

This program takes viewers on a journey through the vast universe of microscopic life that comprises more than 99 percent of the DNA and between 50 to 90 percent of the cells in our bodies. With the epidemic rise of non-communicable diseases, from allergies to Alzheimers to cancer, that plague the developed world, we learn that only by understanding ourselves as ecosystems, rather than singular organisms, can we understand and defeat the diseases that destroy millions of lives each year. We learn about the connection between vaginal delivery and the development of the newborn’s immune system; packs of viruses that hunt for invasive bacterial in our mucosal membranes, and can be harnessed to combat antibiotic; and the connection between our gut bacteria and our mental health.

This eight-part, eye-opening series looks at diseases that destroy lives around the globe, as well as the cutting-edge science that is being developed to combat them. Each program focuses on a single disease and the attempts to develop treatments that are both effective and affordable to the world’s poor, who make up the vast majority of the victims.

Science is developing sophisticated weapons in the battle against life-threatening diseases—yet people in economically struggling countries continue to die from infections that are treatable or curable. Combining biomedical and outreach-related perspectives, this ten-part series examines the latest efforts to eradicate such illnesses. 10-part series, 25 minutes each.

Many developing-world diseases are ignored in the West, either because a particular illness doesn’t occur in wealthy countries or because an effective (and expensive) treatment is available only to affluent populations. This ten-part series, both harrowing and hopeful, examines the problem in Asia, Africa, and South America. 10-part series, 25 minutes each.

Diseases that are no threat in developed nations claim tens of millions of lives every year in developing countries. Modern, effective treatments targeting affluent Westerners are too expensive for the world’s poor. Old drugs are cheap, but resistance is spreading very fast. In some cases the only drugs available kill up to one in 10 of the patients who take them. Kill or Cure covers the hunt for effective and affordable treatments for populations earning less than a few dollars a day. But even in developed nations, the hunt is on for cures for diseases such as HIV and Buruli ulcers.

Imagine a laboratory that teaches us more than we have ever known about disease, muscle and bone health, and eyesight. This lab has an environment that impacts the human body in ways we have never seen before. In fact, there is no place like it in the entire world. That is because this lab does not exist on Earth; it is the International Space Station, orbiting nearly 400 kilometers above our planet's surface. Explore the final frontier of outer space, from freeze-dried food and zero-gravity exercise, to a brain surgery robot. See how medical research in space is benefiting life for all of us here on Earth.

During the 20th century, more people died from viral infections than from all the wars around the globe. During the 21st, in a world where air travel can quickly transport a human virus host to any population concentration on Earth, runaway pandemics or bioterror attacks could easily exceed that number. This alarming two-part call to action uses true-to-life dramatizations, detailed 3-D animations, and commentary by virus specialists, WHO and CDC administrators, and other experts to analyze the continual mutation and proliferation of the most diverse group of life forms on the planet—and to propose steps that must be taken to thwart them. 2-part series, 52-53 minutes each.

For decades, experts have been warning about the growing resistance to antibiotics. Could a rarely discussed alternative hold the answer to the crisis? Phage therapy—the use of viruses which attack and destroy certain bacteria without harming their human hosts—has been around for longer than antibiotics. But it was forgotten in much of Europe once antibiotics became the standard treatment, and it is still not generally accepted there. However, partly due to their historical isolation from antibiotics research, Russian scientists have pioneered new developments in phage therapy. To illustrate the potential of phage treatments, this film follows the case of Henri Lemaitre, whose leg became infected with resistant bacteria during a hospital stay. Contains images of wounds and infections that may disturb some viewers. (53 minutes)

From SARS to the swine flu, viruses that threaten the developed world seem to be growing in ranks. Even as medical science rises to the challenge, our knowledge of viruses is filled with troubling gaps and bewildering realities. Starting on the virus front lines—the rain forests of central Africa—this program unlocks the truth about nature’s greatest terror weapons. Viewers learn why HIV is such a successful virus, why monkey pox may become the next global killer, and why viruses actually benefit marine ecosystems. In addition, the film shows how modern agriculture and international travel have given viruses more chances than ever to flourish inside us. A BBC Production. (52 minutes)