Medicine & Health

New findings may significantly improve the safety of methadone, a drug widely used to treat cancer pain and addiction to heroin and other opioid drugs, according to researchers at the School of Medicine and the University of Washington in Seattle. The researchers discovered that the body processes methadone differently than previously believed.

Scientists have long known that cells in the retina called photoreceptors are involved in how vision can adapt to darkness, but a study from investigators at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Boston University School of Medicine has uncovered a new pathway in the retina that allows the cells to adapt following exposure to bright light. The discovery could help scientists better understand human diseases that affect the retina, including age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in Americans over the age of 50.

Spine surgeons at theSchool of Medicine and other U.S. centers are reporting that artificial disc replacement works as well and often better than spinal fusion surgery. The two procedures are performed on patients with damaged discs in the neck.

The Centers for Disease control reports approximately 280,000 Americans are hospitalized each year because of traumatic brain injuries. Explaining the complications associated with these injuries has been a difficult task for doctors. A new research project — the Attention Dynamics Consortium in Traumatic Brain Injury — seeks to better understand the effects of traumatic brain injuries.

Paul Alivisatos, Ph.D., shares his pioneering work with nanocrystals for the Assembly Series at 11 a.m. March 4 in Graham Chapel.

Diagnosing acute stroke is a high-pressure decision. The speed with which treatment is delivered makes all the difference. Early treatment can stop brain damage, but if treatment is given inappropriately, it can dangerously increase the risk of bleeding in the brain. Because of this risk, the final decision to administer stroke treatment is usually reserved for neurologists or, in some cases, other attending physicians. But now researchers have shown that residents with appropriate training can safely make the call, ensuring that effective treatment is delivered faster.

Paul Alivisatos shares his pioneering work with nanocrystals to develop medical breakthroughs in biological imaging at the Assembly Series on Wednesday, March 4, at 11 a.m. in Graham Chapel.

I. Jerome Flance, emeritus professor of clinical medicine at the School of Medicine, has received the Ralph O. Claypoole Sr. Memorial Award from the American College of Physicians. The award recognizes an outstanding practitioner of internal medicine who has devoted his or her career to the care of patients.

Differences in the way they use their genes cause different strains of the E. coli bacterium to take on different hues.Bacteria that cause urinary tract infections (UTIs) make more tools for stealing from their host than friendly versions of the same bacteria found in the gut, researchers at the School of Medicine and the University of Washington have found. The tools, compounds called siderophores, allow the bad bacteria to steal iron from their hosts, making it easier for the bacteria to survive and reproduce.

Brain cells long lumped into the same category have hidden differences that may contribute to the formation of tumors, according to a new study from researchers at the School of Medicine. Scientists showed that brain cells known as astrocytes make use of different genes depending on what region of the mouse brain they came from. These differences are too subtle to overtly mark them as distinct cell types, but substantial enough to make it easier for the cells to multiply more in response to genetic changes that increase cancer risk.