Lotfipour Lab Launches Podcast Series Exploring Addiction Posted: 2025-07-24 Source: UC Irvine School of Medicine News Type: Features & Briefs share The Lotfipour Lab has launched a new podcast series, The Translational Addiction Podcast, exploring cutting-edge addiction science through timely and relatable topics. In the debut episode, "Matthew Perry, Opioids, and the Gut-Brain Connection," host and lead producer Michaela Sumortin reflects on the legacy of actor and addiction advocate Matthew Perry. The episode highlights UC Irvine research on the gut-brain axis and its role in opioid use, based on recent work by Michelle Ren, PhD, and Shahrdad Lotfipour, PhD. Listen now on lotfipourlab.org Media Contacts Matt Miller Director mrmille2@uci.edu Communications & PR Office Associated Links Work on the gut microbiome in opioid use Related Faculty/Staff Shahrdad Lotfipour, PhD Associate Professor, Emergency Medicine, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine