Medicine & Health

A pandemic flu outbreak could kill millions. Now, School of Medicine researchers have found features of the virus’ genome that influence how well it multiplies. The findings could help target pandemic flu surveillance efforts to make it easier to find the next outbreak before it spreads widely.

Washington University School of Medicine researchers have found that circadian rhythm disruptions occur much earlier in people whose memories are intact but whose brain scans show early, preclinical evidence of Alzheimer’s.

The School of Medicine is joining with Sun Pharma Advanced Research Co. (SPARC) to support new drug development through the university’s Center for Drug Discovery and the Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship. SPARC will provide $10 million to fund the Skandalaris Center’s LEAP Inventor Challenge and provide drug development expertise to researchers pursuing the commercialization of new pharmaceuticals.

The School of Medicine’s Samuel Achilefu and colleagues are working to develop a novel cancer therapy that uses light against tumors that have spread.

Using cells from children diagnosed with primary ciliary dyskinesia, a genetic lung disease, School of Medicine researchers have figured out how mutations disrupt the clearing of the airways.

A long-term study of adult children of Alzheimer’s patients — led by the School of Medicine — aims to define who is likely to develop the disease and when, and to establish a timeline for how quickly the disease will progress.

People who survive brain infection with West Nile virus can have neurological problems long after the virus is gone. A new study in mice suggests unresolved inflammation may be the reason.

Washington University School of Medicine’s Stephen Beverley found that viruses hidden inside the parasite Leishmania worsen disease caused by the parasite. Now, an evolutionary survey of the viruses in related parasites suggests that Leishmania’s viruses may have helped it make the jump from infecting insects to infecting vertebrates.

A 15-year global study of children genetically predisposed to developing Type 1 diabetes found that drinking formula made with cow’s milk did not increase their risk for developing the disease. School of Medicine scientists were among the international team of researchers who conducted the study.

Chronic poor sleep has been linked to cognitive decline. A new study from the School of Medicine shows that a sleepless night causes levels of the Alzheimer’s protein amyloid beta to rise faster than the brain’s waste-disposal system can remove it. Persistently high levels of the protein can set off a cascade of brain changes leading to dementia.