Gene therapy has gained momentum in the past year, following the federal government’s approval of the first such treatments for inherited retinal diseases and hard-to-treat leukemia. Now, research led by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has shown, in mice, that genetic material can be delivered to damaged cells in the kidneys, a key step […]
Many lifesaving advances in human health can be traced to physician-scientists, the professionals who treat patients while also conducting biomedical research. “They’re an essential national resource because of their collective impact on understanding diseases and helping to extend life spans,” said Melvin Blanchard, MD, director of the Division of Medical Education and of the Internal Medicine […]
Position available for Co-Director of the Physician Scientist Training Program of the Department of Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis The Department of Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis has initiated a search for a Co-Director of the Oliver Langenberg Physician Scientist Training Program (PSTP). The purpose of the PSTP is to facilitate […]
New research links outdoor air pollution — even at levels deemed safe — to an increased risk of diabetes globally, according to a study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Veterans Affairs (VA) St. Louis Health Care System. The findings raise the possibility that reducing pollution may lead to a […]
Washington University alumnus Kim D. Kuehner has committed $15 million through outright and planned gifts to support research that advances personalized approaches to fighting heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States and worldwide. His gift to Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis will establish and endow the Kim D. […]
Some 50 to 80 percent of cancer patients taking powerful chemotherapy drugs develop diarrhea, which can be severe and in some cases life-threatening. Their problems occur when contractions in the smooth muscle lining the gastrointestinal (GI) tract go haywire as food is digested. The same issues can occur in people with irritable bowel syndrome and […]
When Kim Morey was a young girl, a mysterious illness affected her family, striking relatives one by one at around the age of 40, she recalled. “My dad’s grandmother had it, and then his mother and her sisters,” Morey said. “Then my dad’s cousin. And soon after that, my dad started showing symptoms.” For years, […]
PHILADELPHIA—The Pew Charitable Trusts named 22 early-career researchers today as the 2018 class of Pew scholars in the biomedical sciences. The scholars will receive four-year grants to advance their explorations of biological mechanisms underpinning human health and disease. Megan T. Baldridge, M.D., Ph.D. Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis Dr. Baldridge will explore […]
Dr. Sina Jasim joined the Department of Medicine in the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Lipid Research on October 1, 2017 as Assistant Professor. She was previously affiliated with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Sina Jasim obtained her master’s degree in public health with a focus in Epidemiology at St. Louis University as […]
Scientists have zeroed in on a culprit that spurs damaging inflammation in the heart following a heart attack. The guilty party is a type of immune cell that tries to heal the injured heart but instead triggers inflammation that leads to even more damage. Further, the researchers have found that an already approved drug effectively […]
Sandor Kovacs, MD, PhD attended a ceremony in Lund, Sweden, during which he was given an honorary degree from Lund University. The ceremony took place at Lund Cathedral. Lund University, founded in 1666, is the location where echocardiography was discovered by Inge Elder in 1953. The entire ceremony was presented in Latin, as […]
Most people with the deadly brain cancer glioblastoma die less than 18 months after diagnosis. But a multicenter clinical trial of a personalized vaccine that targets the aggressive cancer has indicated improved survival rates for such patients. The study appears May 29 in the Journal of Translational Medicine. The phase three clinical trial included 331 […]
Losing weight can seem like an overwhelming undertaking, but even dropping just a few pounds can have a big impact on your overall health. “You get a large ‘bang for your buck’ with only a 5 percent weight loss,” says Samuel Klein, MD, professor of medicine and nutritional science, and director of the Center for […]
Two new studies of patients with difficult-to-control asthma show that the eczema drug dupilumab alleviates asthma symptoms and improves patients’ ability to breathe better than standard therapies. Dupilumab, an injectable anti-inflammatory drug, was approved in 2017 by the Food and Drug Administration as a treatment for eczema, a chronic skin disease.
A new study shows that a kind of E. coli most associated with “travelers’ diarrhea” and children in underdeveloped areas of the world causes more severe disease in people with blood type A. The bacteria release a protein that latches onto intestinal cells in people with blood type A, but not blood type O or B, according […]
Chikungunya virus is a growing threat to the United States and other regions of the world as the mosquito that carries the virus expands its reach. Telltale symptoms of chikungunya infection are fever and joint pain that last about a week. But in up to half of patients, the virus can cause a debilitating form […]
Faculty and fellows gathered to present the “Annual Gerald Medoff MD Visiting Professor” plaque to Dr. Medoff. Dr. Medoff is honored for his leadership, outstanding vision, dedication and commitment to excellence during his tenure in the Infectious Disease Division at Washington University. The perpetual plaque hangs on the wall of the Infectious Diseases Division with […]
A $5 million grant from the Department of Defense will support research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis aimed at improving breast cancer therapies. The research focuses on HER2-positive breast cancer. Such tumors are dotted with an overabundance of so-called HER2 receptors. About 20 percent of women with breast cancer have HER2-positive […]
Visceral fat differs from subcutaneous fat in that it releases fatty acids and inflammatory substances directly into the liver rather than into the general circulation. Some experts believe this may play a direct role in causing the diseases linked to abdominal obesity. But not everyone agrees. Samuel Klein, who heads the Center for Human Nutrition […]
For some people, particularly those who are elderly, even a light touch of the skin or contact with clothing can lead to unbearable itching. What’s worse, anti-itch treatments, including hydrocortisone, don’t provide much relief for this type of itching. Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis have discovered, in mice, why […]
Washington University students are working closely with staff at Hawthorn Leadership School for Girls in north St. Louis to help students succeed academically and introduce them to new experiences.
An investigational drug in clinical trials for rheumatoid arthritis prevents a common, life-threatening side effect of stem cell transplants, new research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis shows. Studying mice, the researchers found the drug prevented what’s known as graft-versus-host disease, a debilitating, sometimes lethal condition that develops when transplanted stem cells […]
Researchers nationwide have reached a major milestone in describing the genetic landscape of cancer. Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and other institutions have completed the genetic sequencing and analyses of more than 11,000 tumors from patients, spanning 33 types of cancer — all part of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) […]
The National Advisory Committee of The Pew Scholars Program in the Biomedical Sciences has recommended that Dr. Megan Baldridge be named a 2018 Pew Scholar. The recommendations of the committee will be presented to the board of The Pew Charitable Trusts at it’s meeting in June, after which Pew will issue a national press release […]
Scientists have designed a new drug compound that dials down inflammation, suggesting possible future uses against autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis. The new inhibitor is more selective than other compounds designed to target the same inflammatory pathway, according to new research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Such precision, along with […]
People infected with West Nile virus can show a wide range of disease. Some develop life-threatening brain infections. Others show no signs of infection at all. One reason for the different outcomes may lie in the community of microbes that populate their intestinal tracts. A study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis […]
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For patients with difficult-to-treat, drug-resistant infections, seeing an infectious diseases specialist can be a lifesaver. Such patients experienced significantly lower mortality rates when treated by physicians specializing in infectious diseases, according to a study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Researchers found that infectious disease physicians helped reduce 30-day mortality rates by […]
Patients who developed infections that were resistant to antibiotics were much more likely to survive if doctors specializing in infectious disease were consulted on their cases, according to a study published today in Open Forum Infectious Diseases. “Having an infectious-disease specialist see you when you have one of these infections [was linked to] a 50 percent […]
Abstract Background Multidrug-resistant organism (MDRO) infections are associated with high mortality and readmission rates. Infectious diseases (ID) consultation improves clinical outcomes for drug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections. Our goal was to determine the association between ID consultation and mortality following various MDRO infections. Methods This study was conducted with a retrospective cohort (January 1, 2006–October 1, 2015) […]
I am very pleased to announce Todd A. Fehniger, MD, PhD, as the new Medical and Scientific Director of the Biologic Therapy Core Facility (BTCF). Dr. Fehniger is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Oncology and Section of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Leukemia at Siteman Cancer Center. Fehniger received his MD and […]
Despite public health campaigns aimed at reducing unnecessary prescriptions for antibiotics, the drugs continue to be prescribed at startlingly high rates in outpatient settings such as clinics and physician offices, according to a new study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The researchers analyzed de-identified data from Express Scripts Holding Co., which […]
A new study indicates that the kinds of microbes living in the gut influence the severity and recurrence of parasitic worm infections in developing countries. The findings, by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, suggest that manipulating the gut’s microbial communities may protect against intestinal parasites, which affect more than 1 […]
Three researchers at Washington University in St. Louis are being honored for their outstanding contributions to science by the Academy of Science-St. Louis. Raj Jain, David Kirk and Stuart Kornfeld will be honored April 5 at a dinner at the Missouri Botanical Garden. Award recipients were nominated by their peers in the scientific community in […]
Last year, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first cellular immunotherapies to treat cancer. These therapies involve collecting a patient’s own immune cells — called T cells — and supercharging them to home in on and attack specific blood cancers, such as hard-to-treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. But so far, these T […]
Dr. Mark Udey joined the Department of Medicine in the Division of Dermatology on June 1, 2017. Dr. Udey has led a vigorous independent laboratory-based research program for more than 30 years. He trained at Washington University and Barnes Hospital in St. Louis and initiated his independent academic and research career at that institution. In […]
Dr. Patel will take part in a meeting entitled, “Working towards International Association of Providers of AIDS Care (IAPAC) Recommendations for the Introduction and Scale-Up of PrEP in Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) Fast-Track Cities.” The meeting will take place on March 7, 2018 in Boston, MA, USA. The meeting’s aim is to […]
Megan Baldridge, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine, is among 13 recipients to receive Kenneth Rainin Foundation “Innovator Awards”. The foundation has awarded $3 million for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) research through its Innovator Awards program. Grants will support an international pool of early-career and seasoned researchers to study untested ideas that could lead to […]
Trauma is the leading cause of death for Americans under the age of 46. In the U.S., there are about 30,000 preventable deaths each year in patients with severe bleeding from trauma. In an effort to stem the number of fatalities, a research team led by Allan Doctor, MD, a professor of pediatrics at Washington University […]
Norman E. “Ned” Sharpless, MD, the newly appointed director of the National Cancer Institute, visited the Medical Campus this week to talk about the institute’s research enterprise and hear from faculty, students and staff as part of a listening and learning tour. “I’ve learned a lot about immunotherapy (on the Medical Campus) and had the […]