Medicine & Health

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine have shown that Chiari 1 malformation can be caused by variations in two genes linked to brain development and that children with large heads are at increased risk of developing the condition.

How will this year’s celebrations be remembered? The answer will be “differently than normal” for some individuals, but collective memory for the pandemic itself is likely to fade quickly for most people.

The American Psychological Association has named Henry L. “Roddy” Roediger, the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of Psychological & Brain Sciences in Arts & Sciences, the recipient of its 2021 Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions. In addition, the Psychonomic Society has awarded Roediger the Clifford T. Morgan Distinguished Leadership Award.

The School of Medicine’s eastern border will look strikingly different in 2023, when the 11-story neuroscience research building is complete. At this point, more than 106 drilled concrete piers have been poured, and the interior columns and floor in the basement’s western half are complete.

Washington University School of Medicine is one of four institutions to receive a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to study how to improve emergency care for adults with dementia. For the project, experts in emergency medicine, geriatrics and dementia will identify and address gaps in emergency care.

By studying animals choosing between drink options, School of Medicine researchers have found that the activity of certain neurons in the brain leads directly to the choice of one option over another. The findings could lead to better understanding of how decision-making goes wrong in conditions such as addiction and depression.

When Celia McKee, a doctoral student studying neuroscience, revealed on Twitter that her grant had been rejected, she wasn’t looking for pity, but asking for honesty. Her message struck a chord: more than 225,500 users liked the viral post and 15,000 shared the message.

People with Down syndrome nearly always develop signs of Alzheimer’s as they age. School of Medicine researchers are taking part in a multisite study to understand how Alzheimer’s develops in this population, with a long-term goal of finding ways to prevent or treat the disease.

Pharmaceutical maker Eli Lilly and Company has purchased Disarm Therapeutics, a startup biotechnology firm founded by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine to speed the development of treatments for multiple neurodegenerative conditions.

Carlos Ponce, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neuroscience at the School of Medicine, is one of 20 people to receive a 2020 Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering. Packard fellows are among the nation’s top early-career scientists. Ponce studies how visual recognition works in the brain.