Medicine & Health

With every meal, immune cells in the intestine stand like sentries at a citadel, turning away harmful bacteria but allowing vitamins and nutrients to pass. Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified the cells that chaperone food antigens, or proteins, in the intestine so that the immune system doesn’t mount an attack. Their discovery provides scientists with a potential target for therapies against inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease and food allergies.

Louis W. Sullivan, MD, secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services in the administration of President George H. W. Bush and president emeritus of the Morehouse School of Medicine, will lead a public forum on the future of health care at 4 p.m. Wednesday, April 11, at the Eric P. Newman Education Center, 320 S. Euclid Ave., at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Researchers, including Richard Wilson, PhD, director of The Genome Institute, have identified the first gene mutation associated with a chronic and often fatal form of neuroblastoma that typically strikes adolescents and young adults. The finding provides the first clue about the genetic basis of the long-recognized but poorly understood link between treatment outcome and age at diagnosis.

A program that helps obese patients improve healthy behaviors is associated with modest weight loss and improved blood pressure control in a high-risk, low-income group, according to Graham A. Colditz, MD, DrPH, at Washington University School of Medicine. Compared to those receiving usual care, the lifestyle intervention slowed increases in weight and blood pressure in this population of high-risk patients.

Doctors at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, working with Shriners Hospital for Children and other institutions, have identified a promising new treatment for a rare and sometimes life-threatening bone disorder that can affect infants and young children. Known as hypophosphatasia, the condition upsets bone metabolism, blocking important minerals such as calcium from depositing in the skeleton.

Emergency physician Chris Carpenter, MD, is conducting a study of patients in the emergency room who are older than 65 and at increased risk of having dementia. He wants to determine if referring suspected Alzheimer’s patients to an outreach agency will reduce frequent returns to the emergency department and help them remain independent longer.

Students in the Program in Occupational Therapy talk with Liz Hanson of MarianJoy at the Occupational Therapy/Physical Therapy Job Fair Feb. 23 at the School of Medicine. More than 200 students from Washington University and eight other schools attended the fair, which featured more than 50 representatives from employers in the two fields.

BJC HealthCare, Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine are taking another step forward in the future development of the Washington University Medical Center. The vision is to transform the campus over the next 10 years through renovations and new construction.

A new marker of Alzheimer’s disease can predict how rapidly a patient’s memory and other mental abilities will decline after the disorder is diagnosed, Rawan Tarawneh, MD, found while a postdoctoral research associate at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The new data suggest that VILIP-1 potentially may be a better predictor of Alzheimer’s progression than other markers.

Rebecca Dresser, JD, the Daniel Noyes Kirby Professor of Law and professor of ethics at the School of Medicine, was diagnosed with head and neck cancer six years ago. For perspective, she reached out to other medical ethicists, who had either had cancer themselves, or had a spouse diagnosed with the disease. The group’s meetings became the basis for the book, Malignant: Medical Ethicists Confront Cancer.