Medicine & Health

William Thomas Thach Jr., MD, professor emeritus of neurobiology, died Tuesday, July 1, 2014, in Town and Country. He was 77. A neuroscience researcher and clinical neurologist, Thach was a renowned expert and pioneering researcher on the cerebellum.

Emil Unanue, MD, the Paul and Ellen Lacy Professor of Pathology and Immunology, has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Association of Immunologists. The award is the organization’s highest honor.

Bradley L. Schlaggar, MD, PhD, head of the Division of Pediatric and Developmental Neurology at the School of Medicine, has been awarded the Frank Hatch “Sparkplug” Award for Enlightened Public Service by The John Merck Fund.

Louis Gilula, MD, a faculty member at the School of Medicine for more than 30 years, died July 2, 2014, of pancreatic cancer. Gilula was a pioneer in wrist imaging. Landmarks in the wrist that radiologists use to check for normal alignment are still known as “Gilula’s arcs.”

Researchers at the School of Medicine are leading a nationwide clinical trial to determine whether one of the most commonly used probiotics can safely and effectively treat infants and toddlers suffering from acute gastroenteritis, otherwise known as stomach virus or “stomach flu.” David Schnadower, MD, is the trial’s principal investigator.

From July 21 through Sept. 23, McKinley Avenue between Taylor Avenue and the Olin Circle will be closed to pedestrians, vehicles and shuttle bus traffic. The closure will allow for installation of an underground tunnel to connect the School of Medicine’s Environmental Health and Safety building, currently under construction, with the Scott McKinley Research Building, also under construction.

Arnold Bullock, MD, is highly regarded for his expertise in urology and his community outreach efforts, which are helping to reduce cancer disparities. He has been named the inaugural Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Distinguished Professor of Urology at the School of Medicine.

David C. Linehan, MD, has been named the inaugural Neidorff Family and Robert C. Packman Professor at the School of Medicine. Linehan is a professor of surgery and chief of the Section of Hepatobiliary, Pancreatic and Gastrointestinal Surgery.

Jeffrey A. Lowell, MD, of the School of Medicine is also a commander in the U.S. Navy. He currently is deployed to Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, Africa. He’s checked in to tell us about his experience there — and about the gratitude of service members who recently received care packages from some generous Washington University employees.

Scientists at the School of Medicine have produced the first detailed images of a protein important to viral infection. The images, from Phyllis Hanson, MD, PhD, and her colleagues, are of molecular scissors that let viruses such as HIV bud from infected cells.