The neonatal kidney is one of the most understudied organs in our field — and yet the drugs we use every day in the NICU may be affecting it in ways we are only beginning to understand. In this episode of At the Bench, Dr. Misty Good and Dr. Betsy Crouch sit down with Dr. Pamela Good, neonatologist and physician scientist at Columbia University, to discuss her groundbreaking research on nephron development, low nephron endowment, and acute kidney injury (AKI) in preterm infants. From building a first-of-its-kind mouse model to rethinking how we use gentamicin, this conversation will change how you think about the tiniest kidneys in your NICU.

In this episode of At the Bench, Misty Good and David McCulley interview Dr. Christopher Thom, a neonatologist and leader blood lineage development. Dr. Thom discusses his training in hematology research and what inspired him to build an outstanding research program studying platelet biology and how his research is being translated to change transfusion care for patients. The conversation emphasizes the importance of collaboration in neonatology physician-scientist driven research.

What is actually happening inside the uterus during a threatened pregnancy — and does the timing of infection change everything? In this episode of At the Bench, hosts Ben Fensterheim and Betsy Crouch sit down with Dr. Kristen Noble, assistant professor at Indiana University, to explore her work building a transcriptomic and proteomic atlas of intrauterine immune responses across gestation. Dr. Noble shares how clinical uncertainty at the bedside — that impossible question of deliver now or wait — drove her into the lab. She also opens up about navigating doubt early in training, finding the right mentors, and what it looks like to rebuild a research program from scratch at a new institution.