Latest / The Dr. Randi Show / Your Hair Follicles Hold Stem Cells—and the Key to Regenerative Medicine — Dr. Drew Taylor / Acorn Biolabs

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Your Hair Follicles Hold Stem Cells—and the Key to Regenerative Medicine — Dr. Drew Taylor / Acorn Biolabs · The Dr. Randi Show

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The views expressed in this podcast are for informational
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purposes only and do not constitute medical advice.
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This episode of The Doctor Randy Show is proudly sponsored by New
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Beauty, the ultimate authority in beauty and aesthetics.
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Whether you're looking for the latest innovations, expert
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insights or trusted recommendations, New Beauty is
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ahead of the trends and discover what's next in beauty.
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Now let's get into the episode. Hello everyone, and welcome to
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the Doctor Randy show, where science meets beauty, where
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innovation meets impact, and where we go beyond the surface
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to bring you the real stories driving the aesthetics, Wellness
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and medical industry forward. I'm your host, Doctor Randy
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Boya, and today's guest is about to change the way you think
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about your own biology. He played pro baseball before
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becoming a scientist. He holds a PhD in biomedical
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engineering and he's revolutionizing the future of
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anti aging one hair follicle at a time.
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Please welcome Doctor Drew Taylor, CEO of Acorn Bio Labs.
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Doctor Randy, thanks so much for having me.
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That was quite the introduction. Well, we're very glad to have
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you. And the buzz and the
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conversation is all about ACORN. So excited we got to meet at
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scale in Nashville. So excited to have you on the
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show because even myself, I want to know more about Acorn and
1:29
what's going on. It's so unique.
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So let's start right at the top. If you don't mind, tell us about
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Acorn Bio Labs. Why is banking your own stem
1:40
cells something people need to be thinking about in 2025?
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Yeah, absolutely. So unfortunately, every day that
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goes by, our cells are becoming less and less efficient at doing
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the things that they're supposed to do.
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And that also includes our own stem cells.
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And our stem cells are really these repositories for renewal
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and a replenishment. And so if they're failing that,
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how are they going to be able to really keep up with the demands
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of servicing and supplementing all of the cells around our
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body? And so as that goes down, we
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really want to be making sure that we're doing everything we
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can to try to stave off those effects.
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And part of one of the ultimate solutions that you can do is
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really by capturing some of your stem cells and cryogenically
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freezing them in time, which is really the only true way to
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totally stop the aging process. We freeze them down in in liquid
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nitrogen. So these are levels that are
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-310°F, so only slightly warmer than the surface of Pluto.
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And at those temperatures, the cells do not metabolize, they do
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not age. They're literally frozen in
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time. And so now you've got your own,
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your very own cells at your disposal and definitely moving
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forward from that age that you froze them down.
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Wow, that is some unique science and you are doing something
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definitely different. So I think most people have
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heard of stem cells, but using hair follicles, that's something
3:07
new. So why that method and what are
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you actually preserving? Tell us more about that.
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Yeah. So my background was really in
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regenerating connective tissues and that included a number of
3:20
different cell types that included things in orthopedics
3:23
and sports medicine as well as in aesthetics and skin.
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When we kind of think back to how our approach was then is it
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was really trying to make sure that we could check a few boxes
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for a patient in preparing them for a regenerative medicine and
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and one was a source of quality cells.
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There's a few different places around the body that we can get
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very high quality cells from. But then also something that
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patients would actually do proactively and wouldn't have
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create other complications or other risk factors and wouldn't
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leave them potentially with some unsavory complications, right?
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Yes. When we think about harvesting
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cells, bone marrow has obviously been an area of focus for a long
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time. There's also stem cells that can
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be harvested in other sources and tissues, including our fat.
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They're dispersed through our fat.
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But then also we've discovered really in the last decade, these
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high concentrations of very similar stem cells in our hair
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follicles. And so both from bone marrow,
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from the adipocytes or fat as well as from the hair follicle,
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these are all mesenchymal stem cells.
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And so these are the cells that have really focused a lot of
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scientists attention on on leveraging near term
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regenerative solutions using these cells.
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They're very robust cells and they have the ability to become
4:40
a multitude of different types of cells that are important for
4:43
our performance in our bodies. And so targeting the hair
4:47
follicle allows us really an Ave. to do something
4:50
prospectively right by capturing those cells and freezing them
4:54
without the need to engage in something that is invasive.
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And so bone marrow obviously tapping into your iliac Crest,
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harvesting that bone marrow is not a nothing procedure.
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And then not everybody is in the middle of contemplating A
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liposuction or a fat retrieval, a treatment or procedure where
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they could actually take some of that excess fat and look at the
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other interesting thing about fat though, is the stem cells
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themselves are dispersed throughout all of the regular
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dip sites, regular fat cells which are actually oil based.
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And unfortunately, all of the cryoprotectants that we have
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that have been invented are efficient at freezing cells.
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They are all water soluble. And so there's a bit of a
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conflict, whereas we're able to more effectively and efficiently
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freeze down bone marrow and hair follicle cells than fat.
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And so that really, when you think about some of the
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limitations that exist in the invasiveness and in the type of
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cell, the hair follicle has truly emerged as the ideal cell
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source to save for the future of regenerative medicine.
5:58
Wow. Well, I think that it has been
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sort of the hype around this is the hair follicle, right?
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Because I think that's something no one else is doing.
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And so it is creating a buzz. So for our listeners and viewers
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out there, who is this really for?
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What type of future uses are we talking about?
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Is it cosmetic? Is it medical?
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Is it longevity? And what type of person should
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be doing this today? What should we be doing right
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now with our darker follicles? It's a, it's a fantastic
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question and I'm going to try to keep it a concise answer because
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honestly, there's a lot of different avenues where this is
6:35
going to go. We've already seen the creation
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of applications using our own cryopreserved hair follicles in
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the world of aesthetic medicine. And so we recently launched and
6:47
released the first opportunity to leverage your bank cells,
6:50
which is actually capturing your hair follicle cells, your very
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own and growing them in our laboratory.
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And as they grow in the laboratory, we actually capture
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all of the molecules that are released from those cells as
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they're growing. And so this includes large
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matrix molecules like collagens and elastin, fibronectin and
7:08
Agrican, as well as small growth factor proteins that are like
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PDGF, A number of factors like IGF, one can go under the very
7:18
long list, the EGF, but ultimately the things that
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stimulate our cells to grow, divide and create matrix or the
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things that, you know, create our skin and other connective
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tissues. And then on top of that,
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exosomes themselves are released.
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So you have this entire complement, it's called the
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secret tone, where the entire secreted product from these
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cells and that can be actually collected over a period of time
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while those cells are growing. So we can collect very high
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volumes of these essential molecules and then bottle that
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essentially and deliver it back to a physician to apply for you
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alongside procedures to open up your skin and enhance absorption
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like micro needling and laser and and even just apply
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topically. And so it's a very exciting
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opportunity to get value out of your cells right away.
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But I think there's a very long future.
8:08
And the idea is by capturing a template of yourself and
8:11
freezing it, you can use them today already in the world of
8:14
cosmetics and aesthetics. And then in in the future,
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you're going to be able to leverage these cells in a
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multitude of different ways. And so we've got ongoing
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research projects that have taken these cells from her hair
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follicle and turn them into cartilage, bone, fat.
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We've been able to create even pancreas, pancreas cells.
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We've been able to create natural killer cells, which is
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part of our immune system. So all of these different
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opportunities really lead to an ever expanding use cases of
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leveraging these cells for own benefit.
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And in fact, we're working on a project right now where we've
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already turned the cells into neurons and even dopaminergic
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neurons, which are the neurons we lose during Parkinson's
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disease. And so this is a joint
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collaboration with the University of Guelph right now,
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where we're actually going to be creating different types of
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neurons, all sourced from stored hair follicle stem cells.
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Unbelievable. And I think this really is the
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future and what we're going to be able to do.
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So why would you say to somebody do this today, not ten years
9:18
from now? What are what is your advice on
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that? Because I think everybody out
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there is so curious. Stem cells, exosomes, you know,
9:26
all of these treatments are piquing all of our interest.
9:28
And we're just kind of curious, what are we supposed to do next?
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Yeah. I think that it's early on.
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I think in the regenerative medicine scene, you know, we
9:37
talked a little bit about how some of these new innovative
9:41
technologies emerge. And an analogy I usually make is
9:44
actually to another really amazing discovery, which is
9:48
flight. And so if you think back to the
9:50
Wright brothers, the first time that they actually created
9:53
flight and flew a plane, obviously it carried somebody
9:56
that, you know, 100 feet, right? It was not exactly useful or
10:00
delivering value to humanity. And it took another almost 40
10:04
years, the better part of four decades, for it to actually
10:08
deliver tangible value for people by carrying passengers
10:12
across the Atlantic Ocean. And so it took a long time and
10:16
revelations and new things added on to that technology.
10:18
But then after that was accomplished, within 10 years,
10:22
they'd achieved supersonic flight.
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And within another 10 years after that, they had landed on
10:26
the moon. And so you start to see this
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acceleration in these technologies.
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And so right now, we are the youngest that we're ever going
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to be, right? The opportunity in front of us
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is immense. We already know use cases that
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are delivering value to patients from these cells today, and
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that's only going to grow and escalate really at an
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exponential scale. So the best action that that we
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can do is to make sure that the best version of our cells is
10:53
ready and waiting and we can stop the clock so that we can
10:56
tap into our younger, better cells to take advantage of that
10:59
amazing bright future. Right.
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So this is the future, right? This is where the future is
11:04
going. And I think that our listeners
11:07
will want to know, if you don't mind, take us through what
11:11
happens when someone signs up. Do they sign up directly through
11:15
you? Do they have to sign up through
11:16
a clinic? And then what is the experience
11:19
like? So we've been really grateful
11:21
that we're working alongside some of the top dermatologists
11:25
and plastic surgeons and really physicians across North America.
11:29
And so there's the opportunity for you to visit one of their
11:32
practices. You can see a comprehensive list
11:34
on our website at acorn dot me and you can see all the
11:38
different amazing physicians that we're lucky to work with.
11:41
And you can have your cells banked as well as create your
11:45
secret tone and order your secret tone at the same time
11:48
through any of those partners. And so I urge anybody that's
11:51
interested to to jump online and see where the closest clinic to
11:53
you is. I can't wait to do mine.
11:55
I'm very excited about this because I think the future is
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bright and where this is going. So you keep them frozen for
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decades, right? Is there any exploration on that
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at all? So that's a great question and
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that's one of the limitations with some of these other cell
12:12
types that don't work well with cryoprotectants.
12:14
We've been very lucky that we've identified ways to cryogenically
12:18
preserve these cells optimally. And that's really built on the
12:21
shoulders of giants like that technology has been emerging
12:23
since the 1960s and the way that we cryogenically free cells.
12:27
And so there is theoretically no limit, right?
12:30
We have data from the 60s through to today on
12:34
cryogenically preserving cells and doing it in a way that
12:38
allows for these adult somatic cells to be cryopreserved and
12:41
not have that degradation over time.
12:43
That being said, theoretically you can keep these cells banks
12:46
for 1000 years. Wow.
12:49
So this really, I can't wait to see what happens with all of
12:53
this because that's a very long time.
12:56
So let's for our viewers to kind of understand the difference,
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What is the true difference between what you're doing at
13:04
Acorn and PRP exosomes toward blood banking?
13:09
These are some of the buzzwords in the industry.
13:11
Can you tell us just so people can understand the difference?
13:15
Yeah. So what I would say is just in
13:17
cells in general, right, If you think about some of these
13:20
sources of different cells in general or like a mountain and
13:23
around the bottom of that mountain are all of the cells
13:27
that are performing a job in our body.
13:28
They're defined, right. So our kidney or liver or skin,
13:32
they're doing a job. Now, if we go up the mountain,
13:36
certain faces, we've got different cell types.
13:38
That would be like stem cells that actually have the
13:40
opportunity to create multiple different types of cells.
13:44
So they can actually roll down the mountain in different paths
13:47
and create different cell types at the bottom.
13:50
Now that magic moment when sperm meets egg, that's at the very
13:53
top of that mountain, right? So at that point, that cell can
13:57
roll down any face of that mountain.
14:00
So what we're after really is anytime after that point when
14:04
you know you're you have a human being in front of you is where
14:07
can we access quality cells from that patient that can become a
14:10
multitude of cells and also hold the promise of being able to be
14:15
pushed back up to the top of that mountain.
14:18
Not every cell does that efficiently and not every cell
14:21
can become many other cell types.
14:22
And so we're really looking after these pockets of stem
14:25
cells and bone marrow has some or fat has those adipocyte stem
14:30
cells, progenitor cells or hair follicles have it.
14:32
And there's other areas that you can capture them like at the
14:35
time of birth with cord blood, right?
14:37
Or you can get in Wharton's Jelly specifically if you're
14:40
after mesenchymal stem cells. And so these are all different
14:43
cell types, right, that are providing opportunities to
14:48
create different and new cells. So for us, what we focus on is
14:52
being able to do this at any age.
14:55
Capturing an umbilical cord has to be done in a period of time
14:58
when you're being born. And so that's a very specific
15:01
time you have to be ready, willing and able to do it.
15:04
Going beyond that, when you think about a hair follicle, you
15:07
can capture it almost any age. And so that really provides an
15:11
opportunity for anybody, right, the entire population to engage
15:15
in having their cells banked and be prepared for regenerative
15:18
medicine. So we're all about access and
15:20
we're all about really making sure that patients have an
15:22
opportunity to engage in this bright future.
15:25
So Speaking of access, right, that kind of brings me to my
15:29
next question, because some people think of this as stem
15:34
cell banking is only a luxury, right?
15:37
That only maybe this kind of technology is only available to
15:41
the wealthy. Do you see it becoming more
15:44
common, almost like a necessity that something that health
15:47
insurance might even cover at some point?
15:50
I do believe that absolutely at one point having access to your
15:54
own cells cryogenically preserved will be a standard of
15:56
care, right? And it won't be a luxury item.
15:59
In fact, we very much are trying to drive that opportunity
16:02
already. Stem cells traditionally have
16:04
been an expensive yet experimental opportunities for
16:08
patients to to engage with and often have to go outside of the
16:12
United States or Canada to, to actually access that right,
16:16
going to countries where the regulations aren't as severe and
16:19
the protections and safety measures aren't as developed.
16:23
So for us, we want to make sure that we're operating within
16:26
those parameters right, so that you can have access to this in
16:29
your own country and don't have to travel for it.
16:31
And then also have all the safety measures are surrounding
16:34
you that we think are super necessary.
16:36
But we also want to democratize it to really make sure that
16:40
anybody can access it, not just those can fly somewhere and pay,
16:44
pay high fees. This is an opportunity for, I
16:47
think you know, really if you look at our costs annually,
16:51
right, our cost to keep sales banked are cheaper than a
16:54
Netflix account. So it really is trying to make
16:56
sure that people can engage with this and make it a very easy
16:59
decision. Yeah, it sounds like it could
17:02
fit. I remember when the whole
17:04
concept of freezing women's eggs became accessible to all, and it
17:10
was still like, people thought it was almost like science
17:12
fiction when that happened. And everybody was like, Oh no,
17:16
that's scary. But now, like so many people are
17:19
doing it because it becomes more accepted, right?
17:22
So on that, I guess on that mindset, what do you think the
17:26
biggest mental shift is that people need to make in order to
17:30
understand the future of regenerative medicine?
17:34
I, I think people are making it right.
17:36
And I think that the fertility industry and the opportunity
17:39
that it provided for women to cryogenically preserve eggs is
17:44
the massive step forward and a tremendous opportunity.
17:46
And I'm grateful for the people that worked so hard to do that.
17:49
And I'm lucky to have to be friends with some great
17:52
physicians in that industry that were pioneers in giving access
17:56
to that, like Doctor Bob Casper here in Toronto as an example.
18:00
So I think there's some amazing people out there that that
18:02
provided that opportunity. We would like to do the same
18:04
thing and in making sure that, you know, we're following those
18:07
footsteps and making sure that patients have an opportunity to
18:10
bank their own cells outside of obviously fertility, but for
18:14
healthcare needs and regenerative medicine needs.
18:18
And that starts our beachhead is in regenerative aesthetics, but
18:21
I think it goes well beyond that into too many other areas of
18:25
medicine as we talked about. So thinking the 10 year game, if
18:30
people are banking themselves today, what's your hope of what
18:33
they'll be able to do within 10 years at least?
18:36
Yeah. Well, we're already seeing
18:37
patients receive benefit from using their cells in
18:40
regenerative statics, which is phenomenal.
18:42
I think the next wave of things is going to be increasingly more
18:45
complex and in forms of delivery.
18:47
We already have studies that are going on right now evaluating
18:51
our approach in orthopedics and sports medicine and we have
18:55
preclinical studies going on in areas of internal medicine
18:58
obviously been creating pancreatic cells, neurons and K
19:02
cells and the like, right. So some really long term settler
19:05
approaches. So I think that patients are
19:08
already receiving benefit from it.
19:09
In the next 10 years we're going to see an ever expanding
19:11
opportunity of different ways that they'll receive benefit
19:14
from them. And I think a really exciting
19:17
moment for us will be, you know, seeing that first patient that
19:20
might have gotten exposed to ACORN by banking their cells for
19:23
skin care needs or they're a set of considerations and then maybe
19:27
years down the road receiving benefit from those cells that
19:30
may even save their life one day.
19:32
I think that's going to be really exciting moment.
19:34
That has to be super exhilarating.
19:37
Have you seen any same mind blowing clinical use cases that
19:41
are coming down the pipeline sooner than you thought?
19:45
Yeah. I think the opportunity to
19:46
create neurons on demand is an exceptionally promising
19:49
opportunity. The NK cells is a very exciting
19:52
opportunity. I mean, these are immune cells
19:54
that are part of our bodies that recognize our own cells.
19:58
And so they go around and they look for either precancerous or
20:02
cancerous cells before they start to grow and divide and
20:05
become a tumor or our own cells that have become senescent.
20:09
Right. And that's a big word in
20:10
longevity right now of our own cells that unfortunately aren't
20:13
performing that well and then become senescence.
20:15
Now there's a very complex definition of what senescence
20:18
is, but essentially think of cells that really are exhausted,
20:22
not performing very well and need to be cleared really to
20:25
make way because their presence is negative at that point.
20:30
And so these NK cells do a really efficient job of that.
20:33
Fortunately, they drop rapidly due to age and so for us, the
20:39
opportunity to create a patient's own NK cells that can
20:44
be delivered back to them as they age.
20:47
I think it's a very exciting prospect of fighting off some
20:50
of, you know, some terrible things like senescence and the
20:54
acceleration of age-related conditions, but on top of that,
20:58
thinking about things like cancer, right?
21:02
Right, right. I think the future is very
21:05
bright. I think that you're going to and
21:07
I think it's probably exciting for you as the CEO to wake up
21:11
every morning and and decide, hey, you know, where, where are
21:15
we going to take science today? And I guess that's, that leads
21:19
me into my next question, which what was the moment where you
21:22
knew Acorn could actually work, not just scientifically, but
21:27
commercially, and then getting a set of clinics to accept it and
21:31
dive in. How did all that take place for
21:33
you? Yeah.
21:35
I mean that's, I think that's a whole podcast episode on its own
21:37
on the business development side, right.
21:39
I think for us, we wanted to really share our goals at a with
21:46
a small group of physicians initially to really test the
21:49
waters with understanding how something like ACORN can
21:52
integrate in with their practice.
21:54
And so we're really grateful to have a phenomenal group of
21:56
medical advisors that helped us to understand the inner workings
22:00
of aesthetic practices and how our product would be positioned
22:04
within them. It was growing our team and
22:06
including people that have long great careers in aesthetic
22:09
medicine and understanding how they've worked to bring new
22:12
products to market. So we're really lucky to have a
22:17
fantastic team and a fantastic group of doctors that are
22:20
working with us. And that's grown, right.
22:22
So from those humble beginnings, we've been able to amass more
22:26
and more physicians that are excited about offering this next
22:29
generation of healthcare to their patients.
22:31
And so we've seen a growing list of amazing clinics that we're
22:35
lucky to work with, that it's increasing every month.
22:39
How many clinics so far on board?
22:41
Well, it's growing fast. I'd have to look, but I know
22:44
that we are available and well over 100 practices now across
22:48
what's the US and Canada. Congratulations, that's great.
22:51
And it's unchartered territory, right.
22:53
So I'm sure toughest part about building a company in this space
22:57
is getting people to adopt it, understand it, right and being
23:01
that first case scenario, right, so.
23:05
Yeah, exactly. It is.
23:07
You have to have people that are really passionate about what
23:09
you're trying to build. And I think part of my gratitude
23:12
around that was we really had a group of core physicians that
23:16
were working with us. They understood the vision of
23:20
what Acorn was trying to be, right?
23:22
Like this really is a platform, an opportunity to lock in the
23:26
best cellular content from a patient that can benefit them
23:29
today in the world of aesthetic medicine, but really can drive
23:33
forward their healthcare needs in the future regenerative, you
23:36
know, in cellular medicine. So that was a big step forward
23:39
and kind of assembling a group of people that saw that vision
23:41
and wanted to help us test this out and how this would be
23:44
commercially viable. So do you deal with ethical
23:49
concerns at all? Do people bring that up?
23:52
How do you stay grounded as the science advances and you know,
23:56
the critics and whatnot? How does?
23:58
How does that go for you? So we're, we're pretty lucky
24:00
because we're fairly agnostic until a lot of the ethical
24:03
issues that come up with with some of the cellular medicine,
24:08
right? And I think it's important to
24:12
understand what are our ethical considerations and then what
24:17
might be best practices or safety considerations.
24:21
And I think that for us, we look at both of those two areas.
24:24
We look at those as being massive areas where we thrive
24:28
and we have a great benefit on the ethical side.
24:31
Procurement of cells is a question, right?
24:35
So where are you getting these cells from?
24:38
And from a company perspective, from a treatment perspective, it
24:42
then starts to think about, well, some of these things are
24:45
experimental and do you and if you don't understand where those
24:48
cells came from a healthcare perspective, applying those
24:51
cells to the patient can do more harm than good.
24:55
And so these are the areas that for us, we are that patient's
24:59
very own cells. And so they're from that
25:01
patient, We're delivering them back to that patient.
25:04
And so we know where they're procured.
25:05
We know that there's consent and we know that the patient knows
25:08
exactly how those cells are going to be used on the other
25:12
side, from a safety perspective, I think that there is a number
25:17
of different avenues right now where we are testing out
25:20
regenerative medicine in aesthetics topically.
25:24
And so you have different sources of where you get these
25:27
cells from. And it can be things that are
25:29
fairly benign like plants all the way through to different
25:34
animals and into donor humans. And so the questions now across
25:38
that entire chain or what are the implications on having
25:41
things that are taken from an animal?
25:44
Is there disease transference or are those cells even accepted by
25:48
our cells? What are the differences from
25:50
recognizing those cells as foreign?
25:52
And and those same things then end up extending into cells from
25:56
other patients, right. So what diseases could be
26:00
transferred? What pieces of mRNA are encoding
26:04
things that you may not want to deliver to that patient, Right?
26:08
We're very unique beings. We're very different.
26:10
And so taking something from somebody else and put it into
26:14
ourselves is not always a good idea.
26:16
And so there's a lot of limitations and how we can
26:18
leverage regenerative medicine in a Safeway right now where
26:22
we're testing out the waters or a lot of groups are testing out
26:24
the waters topically. And that is what we kind of see
26:27
right now in this world of topical regenerative aesthetics.
26:30
I think that as we progress into more and more invasive ways of
26:35
delivering cells, it is going to be more and more important to
26:40
understand where those cells were derived from and, and
26:43
ensuring that those patient is not going to react negatively to
26:46
those cells. The two big ways that we can do
26:49
that is 1, make sure that they're from that patient
26:51
themselves. And then two, make sure that
26:54
those cells have been treated well when they're being
26:57
prepared. That's an era that I think is
27:00
going to get more and more focus here because it's largely been
27:03
not addressed with a lot of detail.
27:06
When we take cells from a donor, not only are there questions,
27:09
but where they came from and all of these things, but often
27:12
they're used to try to treat many patients.
27:15
And so if you think about taking a sample from a patient and then
27:20
our source and then growing those cells up to fill 10,000
27:25
vials to sit on shelves and doctors offices across the
27:28
country, the dilution effect and the changes that those cells
27:33
would have endured during that culture step can vastly impact
27:36
the product. And there's been some fantastic
27:39
studies by Patella Del and Hartman ET al.
27:41
In the last five years that have demonstrated really the
27:45
detrimental things that happen to cells when they are overgrown
27:49
in the lab. And on top of that the
27:53
diminishment of the value of some of those cellular things
27:56
that are released like EXO cells when those cells are over
28:00
divided. Well, I think what you said
28:03
about it being like this almost like a clean option, right,
28:07
because it's not coming from some foreign matter.
28:11
I think that's the most appealing piece of all of it
28:15
right to the outside, right. So the non scientists or I think
28:19
that. To scientists as well.
28:20
I mean, like all of the reasons that we just talked about,
28:24
right, scientifically I think are fantastic reasons for us to
28:27
have our own cells. But just on principle alone,
28:29
understanding that if I'm going to receive regenerative
28:33
medicine, I'm going to get exosomes, I'm going to get
28:34
growth factors, knowing that they came from me is essential.
28:38
Yes, and I've heard some stories of where these come from and it
28:41
is scary. So now I'm going to rush to have
28:44
my collection done because I'm very excited, so very pumped to
28:49
get that done. So Doctor Drew, changing gears
28:51
for just a minute. So it is intriguing about your
28:55
background that you were a professional baseball player.
28:58
How do you think that's affected your mindset and how does that
29:02
translate into the lab and the business world?
29:06
My husband is an ex pro baseball player and I see how it affects
29:10
our lives so I'm curious how it affects yours.
29:13
Yeah, well, I come from a baseball and healthcare family,
29:15
so it was always kind of dual focus.
29:17
My dad happened to be a professional baseball player and
29:19
a doctor as well, and I get a phenomenal career.
29:23
So for me, I think baseball has influenced my life in a lot of
29:27
positive ways. I didn't have the longest career
29:30
in the world. I actually had an injury.
29:31
So that going through that injury and that experiences a
29:34
patient and that uncertainty helped put me in the chair of
29:38
somebody that is in need and looking to healthcare for
29:41
solutions. And so I think that was a very
29:43
valuable experience at a young age to go through and have that
29:47
perspective. Secondly, baseball is a sport
29:51
where you have a team, right? Is a team sport, but every
29:55
player in the team has vastly different skill sets, right?
29:59
So it is no myth that the first baseman in the pitcher, in the
30:03
catcher in the outfield are all even different body makeups and
30:06
abilities and different talents. And so understanding that it
30:09
takes a team to accomplish your goal and finding the right
30:13
people for the job, I think is something that was a very good
30:16
lesson for me to carry over into business.
30:18
And so as a matter of principle, we at Acorn try to find when we
30:23
hire somebody, we're trying to hire somebody that is better at
30:26
something than anybody else in the company.
30:28
And if we can find out, that's really exciting.
30:31
And then trust them to do that job that they're more skilled at
30:34
than us. So that's been wonderful.
30:36
And I think, you know, baseball is as a long road.
30:39
And I took it as far as I could. Unfortunately, I had an injury
30:41
and I didn't get to that last last level or, or, or have a
30:45
long career. But you know, it's a game where
30:48
you have a game almost every day, right?
30:51
And so you're going to lose. And the best teams lose barely
30:55
or win barely more than half their games.
30:57
They lose just under half their games.
30:59
And you have to figure out how to kind of show up the next day
31:03
ready to give it another shot and give the best of your
31:06
ability. And so that's nasty, I think is
31:09
super important in business and then bringing something new for
31:12
entrepreneurs. And so I'm pretty grateful for
31:15
all those lessons learned. Sure.
31:17
I think it's a test of discipline, right?
31:19
I think it's less than 1% of the population maybe makes it to
31:25
that pro level. And I think it it says something
31:28
about who makes it there because the amount of discipline that
31:32
goes into getting there is the kind of discipline that the rest
31:36
of us were not born with, right? So, you know, it's a different
31:39
level and it's also a resilience that you all have, right?
31:44
Because that you know, as I'm sure you are too.
31:48
My husband on any given day weekend, I mean, we have many
31:52
TV's going in one room at the same time, 5 sometimes going 5
31:56
different games. And I watch like the losers, the
32:00
losing team has to walk off hanging their heads.
32:03
And then I think about, you know, I always ask him like,
32:06
what was it like to have to come back the next day and put it all
32:10
back together again? So that resilience of taking
32:13
that beating and then coming back in again the next day, I
32:16
think it says a lot about who you are, right.
32:20
So and then it shows up in business as well for.
32:23
Sure. And you know, I think it was a
32:24
better scientist than baseball players.
32:26
So everything worked out. But I got a chance to learn a
32:29
lot of those lessons. Yes.
32:32
Well, it definitely toughens you up, right.
32:34
So, yeah, definitely. So if we had to, first of all,
32:39
if there's anything else, you know, you want our viewers or
32:42
listeners to know about Acorn, but I was going to ask you, in
32:46
10 years, what do you want people to say Acorn Bio Labs
32:51
made possible? What would that be?
32:53
Yeah. So I think there's a lot of ways
32:56
to answer that question. And I think that ultimately, I
33:00
want people that bank themselves to sit back and say, I'm really
33:04
glad I did that, right? And the way that we can make
33:08
sure that that said is that we've delivered value to them in
33:11
a number of different ways, right?
33:13
We delivered value to them in the world of aesthetics, helping
33:17
them accomplish their goals with their skin or their hair, right?
33:20
Or it can be all the way through to some of the opportunities
33:23
that we're exploring and regenerating neurons on demand
33:27
to stave off diseases like Parkinson's, right?
33:30
There's a lot of different categories.
33:31
But if they walk away and saying I'm really glad I banked myself
33:34
with Acorn, then I think we've done our job.
33:37
I think you have too, and I think you've started something
33:40
so completely different in you. And I'm excited to bring this
33:44
podcast episode to the public, to the consumer so that they
33:48
understand because I'm in the industry for a long time.
33:53
And I was still like, wait, what are they doing with the hair?
33:56
You know, what are they doing? So I think that making people
34:00
aware of what you're doing, it is so critical.
34:02
I would say that maybe a very small, maybe that's small amount
34:06
of the population. Maybe that's same thing that
34:08
gets the pro level sports understands this right now.
34:11
So our job is to make sure that people know about it, right?
34:14
Because this is a change for their health.
34:17
Absolutely. I'm super grateful for the
34:19
opportunity to share a message with your audience.
34:22
We've worked really hard in the lab behind closed doors, and I
34:25
think we've created something that is has the potential to
34:28
deliver a lot of value to a lot of people, but it won't be
34:31
unless people hear about it and then go ask their physician
34:34
about it and then engage with it.
34:36
And so this really is the opportunity for us to reach a
34:39
lot more people so we can try to help them.
34:42
Well, I'm excited for you and I can't wait to hear more.
34:44
So I think that we should probably have you back on the
34:47
show in about 6 months and hear what's happened, what any new
34:51
developments, because this really is the future and I'm
34:54
excited to see what you're doing.
34:55
So if you don't mind sticking around, we'd love to to take you
34:59
through our speed round and get to know you just a little bit
35:02
better. Doctor Drew, is that OK?
35:03
Let's. Do it.
35:05
All right, Ready. OK.
35:07
How many people on your team report directly to you?
35:11
Oh my gosh, that's interesting. 1234 right now.
35:15
OK, how many hours of sleep do you get per night?
35:19
That varies greatly and especially running a startup and
35:23
especially with with our busy schedules and the fact that my
35:26
wife and I still have three young boys at home, it's pretty,
35:30
pretty variable. Somewhere between 6:00 and 7:00
35:33
is probably normal. That's pretty good.
35:35
Not bad. When is the last time you took a
35:38
full day off? Before I started ACORN.
35:43
That and how many years is that? It's been what, 7 years?
35:46
Yeah, that sounds. About.
35:48
Right, it's been a while. No, there's time.
35:50
So we do a my wife and I try to do a trip once a year, just the
35:54
two of us, to do a bit of a getaway and connect without
35:57
distractions. And I'm really lucky.
35:59
I've got some awesome people on my team that let me do that and
36:02
only harass me if absolutely necessary.
36:04
So I get it. Yeah, what's the first thing you
36:07
do when you wake up? First thing I do when I wake up
36:12
is I go start the coffee machine.
36:16
OK, fair enough. And what's the last thing you do
36:19
before you go to bed? Say goodnight to my wife.
36:22
Aw, OK. Do you answer all of your emails
36:26
yourself? Emails.
36:27
Yes, right now. And would you say you're a quick
36:32
responder to text messages? No I'm not.
36:36
I am bad at responding to text fast because I'll put my phone
36:40
down and then often times I'll have to get caught back up.
36:44
That's OK, I that's where that mark is.
36:46
Unread button works really well and you can make sure to catch
36:51
up on those. Do you remember every person's
36:54
name on your payroll? Do you know everybody in your
36:57
payroll? OK, good.
36:58
Ignoring your phone for an hour? Easy or painful?
37:02
Depends on what's going on, right?
37:03
There's waves where it's painful and then there's moments where
37:06
it's OK. Do you take business calls on
37:09
the weekends? When necessary, yeah.
37:12
Do you use ChatGPT at work? Not very often.
37:16
Do you check LinkedIn every day? No your goal for the company
37:22
exit or legacy. Oh, that's a good question.
37:26
I think whatever helps allow us to drive more value to patients.
37:29
I'm open to all. I love what I do, so I can do it
37:31
forever. But I think that there's some
37:33
amazing partners could join our team or us join them and take
37:36
this to the next level. One word that describes your
37:40
leadership style. Trusting.
37:43
When are you at your best? Morning or night?
37:45
I've had to make some adjustments with three kids in
37:47
the house, but I would say I'm normally default a night owl.
37:52
Same. OK, what is the first app that
37:56
you open every morning on your phone?
37:59
E-mail. When you hear the word no, what
38:03
is your first thought? When I hear the word no, what
38:08
did the dog do? It's good.
38:13
What's your biggest current time waster?
38:16
Something that drives you crazy that you spend time on.
38:20
I would I it's probably have a love hate relationship with
38:24
social media. Yeah.
38:26
Yeah, it's a very powerful tool and can be an enormous suck of
38:30
time if it takes your attention in the wrong direction.
38:32
Sure, absolutely. How often do you?
38:35
Are you texting your team after hours?
38:38
I try to be respectful and, you know, I think they know my style
38:41
so that if I do message them, it's because it's on my mind
38:44
right now and we have a system where I can do it so that I can
38:47
do that. Not in text that bothers them.
38:50
They'll see it when they're back online and can react to it.
38:54
If you lost everything tomorrow, what would be the first thing
38:57
you would do? Lost everything.
39:00
Yes, business wise. Business wise, if I lost
39:04
everything business wise, the first thing that I would do the
39:07
next day is contemplate probably what learnings there were from
39:14
whatever went wrong to make sure that I embraced where mistakes
39:19
were made. I always say I would just start,
39:22
I'd start all over again. So right.
39:23
I mean, we're, we're like that. May not be the next day, maybe
39:28
the. Day after yes.
39:30
Do you believe in more of a five year plan or a 90 day Sprint?
39:34
Both and you have to believe in both.
39:36
Yes, agreed. How fast can you make the big
39:40
decisions? Minutes, hours or days?
39:43
So this is something I think is one of my skill sets.
39:46
I'm very comfortable making a decision quickly.
39:51
And what's one thing that your team knows never to do around
39:55
you? Probably ignore our customers.
39:59
OK, Yeah, that's that's a good one.
40:01
That's a good one. OK.
40:02
What's more pressure, pitching in a stadium or pitching to
40:05
investors? It's really interesting.
40:09
I've had some moments where I feel the sense of the weight of
40:14
what we're trying to accomplish and build and the opportunity in
40:16
front of us and it can be in front of one person and I feel
40:20
more sense of urgency and more stress or or that acute need
40:27
then when I was itching in front of 25,000 people.
40:31
So I would say that, yeah, I had a comfort on the mound at all,
40:35
although there's stressful moments.
40:36
But I would say that there's just a heightened level of
40:39
importance sometimes when you're talking about people's
40:41
healthcare. Yeah.
40:43
One-on-one would be just as stressful.
40:45
How competitive are you on a scale of 1 to 10?
40:49
I'm pretty competitive, I would say.
40:51
Yeah, I think Jen would say I'm pretty competitive.
40:53
I don't know 9. What's your real life?
40:57
I can't believe I pulled that off moment.
41:00
So probably playing professional baseball and getting my PhD at
41:05
the same time that that took some discipline.
41:09
And there's a couple of crazy moments of me.
41:12
Like one time I flew from Chicago to Toronto to write an
41:14
exam and I flew out on like the last flight out.
41:18
And then I wrote the exam and I flew back and ended up pitching
41:23
that night. So I wrote an exam in the
41:25
morning in Toronto and then pitched in Chicago later that
41:29
day. Wow, I love that.
41:32
Good for you. That is some discipline.
41:34
OK, and one last question. If someone shadowed you for a
41:38
day, what would surprise them most about you?
41:41
How often I forget to eat? Anytime I'm spending like long
41:47
periods of time with one person, they're always the one says can
41:51
we just stop and get something to eat?
41:55
And you don't carry snacks I'm assuming?
41:58
No, no, I I'm an unintentional faster.
42:02
So that's all right. That's OK.
42:04
That's good for your health. Yeah.
42:06
Well, thank you so much for joining us today, Doctor Drew.
42:08
It's been an amazing episode. I think that the listeners, the
42:12
viewers, everybody will be finding out more about what goes
42:16
on at ACORN and banking their cells.
42:18
So thank you for taking the time with us today.
42:21
No, Doctor Randy, thank you so much for the tremendous
42:22
opportunity to join you. I really appreciate it and thank
42:25
you for helping get our our goal and our message out there.
42:28
I really appreciate it. Absolutely.
42:31
Thanks everyone. Doctor Randy Boyett holds a PhD
42:34
and is a recognized leader in the aesthetics and medical
42:37
industry. She is not a licensed medical
42:39
doctor. All commentary and product
42:42
recommendations are based on industry expertise and are
42:45
provided for informational purposes only.