The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Rochelle P. Walensky, MD, will participate in a conversation about the pandemic Thursday, March 3, from 8 to 9 a.m. at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The virtual event, available via livestream, will be geared toward faculty, staff, students and trainees on the […]
A large study that investigates just what keeps our brains sharp as we age and what contributes to cognitive decline has been launched by researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Harvard University/Massachusetts General Hospital, the University of Minnesota Medical School and the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). Known as the […]
During the pandemic, news reports surfaced of a surge of young adults showing up at doctors’ offices with unexplainable movement disorders that looked, perhaps to a nonspecialist, a little bit like Tourette syndrome. But when those patients were sent to see a specialist, “They’d say, ‘that doesn’t look at all like any of my first […]
A blood test developed at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has proven highly accurate in detecting early signs of Alzheimer’s disease in a study involving nearly 500 patients from across three continents, providing further evidence that the test should be considered for routine screening and diagnosis. The study is available in the […]
Researchers and clinicians have been working to use focused ultrasound combined with microbubbles to open the blood-brain barrier (BBB) for both noninvasive diagnostic use as well as to deliver treatments to the brain for tumors and neurodegenerative diseases. However, the few existing devices for preclinical research are expensive, bulky and lack the precision needed for […]
When you seek medical care, you expect a diagnosis. You may need to answer a lot of questions and undergo tests, but usually doctors can figure out the root of the problem. This is not the case for a surprisingly large group of patients. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), 25 million to […]
St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are tackling the issue of behavioral health support that has emerged as a leading health concern in our country — for people of all ages. The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic have revealed the number of children suffering and how few resources are […]
This episode of ‘Show Me the Science’ focuses on the pandemic’s role in anxiety, depression and other issues for health-care workers, as well as how to train future workers to get help before burnout begins. With U.S. hospitals crowded with COVID-19 patients for almost two years, the pandemic’s relentlessness has pushed many doctors, nurses and […]
As the COVID-19 pandemic stretches into its third year, countless people have experienced varying degrees of uncertainty, isolation and mental health challenges. However, those who have had COVID-19 have a significantly higher chance of experiencing mental health problems, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Veterans Affairs St. […]
A study in mice — led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis — shows that a new class of compounds the scientists developed can improve multiple aspects of metabolic syndrome. An increasingly common group of conditions that often occur together, metabolic syndrome includes type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, fat buildup […]
After two years of wearing layers of protective equipment on crowded hospital floors and working shift after shift with COVID-19 patients, many front-line health-care workers are suffering burnout, anxiety, depression and other difficulties. Consequently, many have left the field or started to question whether to remain. Reducing burnout and promoting mental health and wellness among […]
Binyam Nardos, PhD, an instructor in the Program in Occupational Therapy at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, died unexpectedly Jan. 29, 2022, in St. Louis. He was 39. Nardos joined the faculty in summer 2021 as an instructor in occupational therapy and neurology. As an instructor, his focus was research methods, evidence-based […]
Congratulations to Maren Loe on being named a 2022 Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Graduate Fellow. The fellowship provides early career individuals with the opportunity to spend 12 weeks at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Washington, DC learning about science and technology policy and the role that scientists and engineers play in advising the nation. Maren earned her […]
Sabin Nettles, a graduate student in the Department of Neuroscience at the School of Medicine, received the Pre/Postdoctoral Next Generation Award from the Society for Neuroscience in recognition of her outreach work introducing neuroscience to young students through the Brain Discovery initiative. Read more on the Department of Neuroscience website.
Eight faculty members at Washington University in St. Louis are among 564 new fellows selected by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society and publisher of the Science family of journals. Arts & Sciences’ Leonard Green, PhD, Elizabeth S. Haswell, PhD, Sophia E. Hayes, PhD, Erik Herzog, PhD, Mark A. McDaniel, PhD, Jay W. Ponder, PhD and Crickette […]
Glioblastoma, an aggressive cancer in the brain or spinal cord, has proven stubbornly resistant to newer immunotherapies. And radiation and chemotherapy, the standard treatment for glioblastoma, result in fewer than 10% of patients surviving longer than five years after diagnosis. But a new study from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis […]
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is part of a major international study aimed at identifying causes and effects of the early stages of schizophrenia in young people, with the goal of improving early diagnosis and treatment. The mental illness is characterized by alterations in thoughts, feelings and behaviors, which may include psychosis, […]
The burden of Alzheimer’s disease doesn’t fall on all communities equally. Black Americans face about double the risk of developing the devastating neurodegenerative disease than non-Hispanic white Americans do. The factors that place Black people at elevated risk remain poorly understood, partly because Black people historically and systematically have been underrepresented in Alzheimer’s studies. Without […]
Longtime St. Louis benefactor Joanne Knight has committed up to $11.5 million to Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis to support an innovative clinical trial aimed at preventing Alzheimer’s disease by treating people before the first signs of the illness appear in the brain. In recognition of this gift and the Knight family’s […]
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is launching an international clinical trial aimed at preventing Alzheimer’s disease in people genetically destined to develop the illness at a young age. Unlike most other Alzheimer’s prevention trials, this one will enroll people before the disease has taken hold – up to 25 years before the […]
The Whitehall Foundation has awarded a three-year $225,000 grant to Tristan Qingyun Li, PhD, assistant professor of neuroscience and of genetics at Washington University School of Medicine. The funding will go to investigate the function of microglia, immune cells that reside in the brain and perform myriad critical functions during development, injury and disease. Microglia were once thought […]
Four faculty members in the Department of Neuroscience at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis — Yao Chen, Thomas Papouin, Jason Yi and Guoyan Zhao — have been awarded their first R01 grants through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This funding will support research critical to understanding the cellular and molecular processes occurring during neurodevelopment and […]
Jason Yi, PhD, assistant professor of neuroscience at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has joined the scientific advisory board of the Angelman Syndrome Foundation, an organization that supports research on this rare disorder. His expertise on UBE3A, the protein that is lacking in individuals with Angelman syndrome, will advance the board’s work of […]
Justin Rustenhoven, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been named a finalist for the Eppendorf & Science Prize for Neurobiology. This international prize is awarded annually in recognition of outstanding neurobiological research conducted within the past three years by a young scientist and described in a 1,000-word […]
Geoffrey Goodhill, PhD, professor of developmental biology and of neuroscience at the Washington University School of Medicine, has received a two-year $675,000 grant to enhance the capabilities of light field microscopy for brain imaging. The funds, awarded by the Brain Research Through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), will […]
Daniel Scott Marcus, PhD, professor of radiology at the School of Medicine, received a one-year $2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research titled “A high performance research image repository (RIR) for the Washington University Center of High Performance Computing.” Originally published on The Source.
Dear Colleagues, I am pleased to announce that, after a nationwide search, Paola Cepeda, PhD, has been named Director of Postdoctoral Affairs in the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, effective January 4, 2022. Paola currently serves as the Program Manager for Graduate and Postdoctoral Professional Development at Stony Brook University. In the role […]
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis were awarded $575.8 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in federal fiscal year 2021, according to the School of Medicine’s 2021 State of the School Report, an increase of nearly $88 million over FFY2020. This is an all-time high for the […]
Daniel Kerschensteiner, MD, professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences, of biomedical engineering and of neuroscience the School of Medicine, received a five-year $2 million grant from the National Eye Institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)for research titled “Synaptic organization and function of retinal interneurons and downstream visual pathways.” Originally published on The Source.
There’s not much good that can be said about asthma, a breathing disease in which the airways become narrowed and inflamed. But there’s this: People with asthma seem to be less likely to develop brain tumors than others. And now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis believe they have discovered why. […]
The IpsiHand, an innovative stroke-recovery device that helps stroke patients recover significant arm and hand function by retraining their brains, has received the 2021 Pantheon Product of the Year Award from California Life Sciences. The organization advocates for the state’s life sciences sector and its innovation pipeline by supporting companies of all sizes, from early-stage […]
Tracking medications provided to over a half million U.S. women, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that many commonly prescribed older antipsychotic medications, and some newer ones, are associated with a significant increase in risk of breast cancer. Antipsychotics are prescribed for a broad range of conditions, including depression, […]
Paul J. Shaw, PhD, professor of neuroscience at the School of Medicine, received a one-year $2.3 million grant from the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research titled “Bidirectional interactions between sleep and Alzheimer’s disease: Functional dissection of the brain transcriptome in humans and drosophila.” Originally published on The Source.
The National Academy of Inventors has elected three faculty members from Washington University in St. Louis to its 2021 cohort of fellows: Psychiatry professor Douglas F. Covey, PhD, geneticist Jeffrey Milbrandt, MD, PhD, both at the School of Medicine; and bioengineer Daniel Moran, PhD, at the McKelvey School of Engineering. The NAI fellowship is the highest professional distinction reserved solely […]
“Levetiracetam Prophylaxis for Children Admitted With Traumatic Brain Injury” (2022) Pediatric Neurology Levetiracetam Prophylaxis for Children Admitted With Traumatic Brain Injury (2022) Pediatric Neurology, 126, pp. 114-119. Surtees, T.-L.a , Kumar, I.b , Garton, H.J.L.c , Rivas-Rodriguez, F.d , Parmar, H.d , McCaffery, H.b , Riebe-Rodgers, J.b , Shellhaas, R.A.b a Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, United Statesb Departments […]
Steven J. Mennerick, PhD, the John P. Feighner Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology and a professor of neuroscience at the School of Medicine, received a five-year $2.3 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research titled “GABAA receptor populations in hippocampus and thalamus.” Originally published on The […]
Cyrus A. Raji, MD, PhD, assistant professor of radiology and of neurology at the School of Medicine, received a one-year $2.3 million grant from the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research titled “Neuroinflammation and Alzheimer’s disease imaging biomarkers in midlife obesity.” Originally published on The Source.
To assess how different styles of face masks affected speech intelligibility in normal hearing listeners, researchers from Washington University in St. Louis put some of the most popular mask designs to the test. Their research was published in the journal Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications. The team, from the labs of Kristin Van Engen, PhD, assistant professor […]
Jessie Minton, vice provost and chief information officer at the University of Oregon, has been appointed vice chancellor for technology and chief information officer at Washington University in St. Louis, effective April 15, according to Shantay Bolton, executive vice chancellor and chief administrative officer. Minton will succeed Stephanie L. Reel, who has served as interim chief […]
In a new study from the lab of Deanna Barch, PhD, professor and chair of psychological and brain sciences in Arts & Sciences, and the Gregory B. Couch Professor of Psychiatry and of radiology at the School of Medicine, all at Washington University in St. Louis, researchers examined the association between distressing and persistent psychotic-like experiences […]
“Multi-scale semi-supervised clustering of brain images: Deriving disease subtypes” (2022) Medical Image Analysis Multi-scale semi-supervised clustering of brain images: Deriving disease subtypes(2022) Medical Image Analysis, 75, art. no. 102304, . Wen, J.a , Varol, E.b , Sotiras, A.c , Yang, Z.a , Chand, G.B.d , Erus, G.a , Shou, H.a e , Abdulkadir, A.a , Hwang, G.a , Dwyer, D.B.f , Pigoni, A.g , Dazzan, P.h , Kahn, R.S.i , Schnack, H.G.j , Zanetti, M.V.k , […]
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is one of 22 medical schools selected to receive funding aimed at helping medical schools retain clinical scientists. The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, along with the American Heart Association, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, the John Templeton Foundation, the Rita Allen Foundation and the Walder Foundation, announced Wednesday, […]
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are joining scientists at 24 other sites around the country to conduct a comprehensive study aimed at understanding how prenatal factors and early life experiences influence brain development and behavior in infants and young children. With more than $37 million in funding from several institutes […]
Moving innovations out of the so-called ivory tower and into the public domain holds enormous power to treat disease and improve quality of life. But while academic researchers and physicians may imagine promising clinical solutions, some are unprepared to navigate commercialization: pitching themselves, attracting investors, wrangling with intellectual property law, designing rigorous proof-of-concept studies, locating […]
“Personalized networks of social anxiety disorder and depression and implications for treatment” (2022) Journal of Affective Disorders Personalized networks of social anxiety disorder and depression and implications for treatment(2022) Journal of Affective Disorders, 298, pp. 262-276. Piccirillo, M.L., Rodebaugh, T.L. Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, United States AbstractIntroduction: Social […]
The Brown School, the Institute for Public Health’s Center for Dissemination and Implementation and the School of Medicine’s Infectious Disease Division at Washington University in St. Louis have launched the Infectious Disease Dissemination and Implementation Science (IDDI) Initiative. Led by Virginia McKay, PhD, research assistant professor at the Brown School, the initiative is designed to cultivate local […]
In the largest study yet to evaluate a common, low-cost antidepressant as a treatment for COVID-19, researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and from Canada and Brazil have found that the drug fluvoxamine prevents some of the most serious complications of COVID-19, sharply reducing the risk of hospitalization and death. The […]
In a new study, researchers examined the association between distressing and persistent psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) in youth and important risk factors for psychopathology. The researchers found that youth who indicate they have persistent, distressing PLEs show impairment in a variety of areas such as cognition and reported psychopathology, highlighting the long-term challenges these children may […]
Jonathan Kipnis, PhD, the Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Distinguished Professor of Pathology & Immunology and a BJC Investigator at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been named an academic editor of the Journal of Experimental Medicine, a high-impact journal that publishes papers on immunology, cancer biology, vascular biology, microbial pathogenesis, neuroscience and […]
Irene Antony, a neuroscience major in the School of Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, won the Trainee Professional Development Award (TPDA) from the Society for Neuroscience (SfN). The TPDA is awarded from a common pool of undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows who demonstrate scientific merit and excellence in research. Recipients […]