Year: 2017

Question: The late Vilray P. Blair, MD, the first division chief of plastic and reconstructive surgery at the School of Medicine, had distinctive taste in decorating. What covered the walls of Blair’s operating room?

Angela Bauman, director of admissions operations for Olin Business School’s Executive MBA program, and Nadia Ghasedi, associate university librarian for University Libraries, were selected for the fall 2017 class of FOCUS St. Louis’ Emerging Leaders program.

A study led by researchers at the School of Medicine shows that the presence of ApoE4 exacerbates the brain damage caused by toxic tangles of a different Alzheimer’s-associated protein: tau. In the absence of ApoE, tau tangles did very little harm to brain cells.

Legendary saxophonist Freddie Washington will launch Washington University in St. Louis’ fall Jazz at Holmes series Thursday, Sept. 21. The series will include 10 performances by locally and nationally known musicians, including Italian guitarist Filippo Cosentino and the university’s director of jazz performance, William Lenihan (pictured).

A new endowed head coaching position for the Washington University men’s soccer team has been established with a generous gift from Petro and Mary Estakhri, whose son, Paymon, played on the team as an undergraduate at the university. Current coach Joe Clarke will be installed in October as the inaugural Estakhri Family Men’s Soccer Head Coach.

A more comprehensive picture of mental health that includes subjective well-being and other positive mental health characteristics could lead to more successful educational experiences among black youth, finds a recent study from Sean Joe, professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

Employees are encouraged to give their time and financial support to the annual United Way Campaign. For the second year, Human Resources and the Gephardt Institute are helping employees find volunteer opportunities in the St. Louis region.

Research at the School of Medicine has identified a way to convert bad, white fat into good, brown fat, at least in mice. The findings raise the prospect of developing more effective treatments, in people, for obesity and diabetes related to weight gain.

I first sat down to write a piece like this three years ago, when my city, St. Louis, was wracked with the initial convulsions of what would later be known simply as “Ferguson.” I didn’t submit it for publication then. I wasn’t sure it would make a useful contribution. I didn’t know if it would jeopardize other important work I was involved in. I wasn’t confident that people would understand my meaning.

An ongoing study at the School of Medicine is aimed at understanding what factors may increase or decrease the risk of developing asthma in childhood.