Medicine & Health

Saturday can be the worst enemy for our waistlines, according to researchers at the School of Medicine. They found that study subjects on strict diet and exercise programs tend to lose weight more slowly than expected because they eat more on weekends than during the week.

Surgery to remove a kidney tumor is no longer a hands-on operation. Sam Bhayani, a urologic surgeon at the school of Medicine, has pioneered robotic surgery for kidney cancer. Instead of standing for hours with his arms raised above the patient, Bhayani sits at a nearby computer console to maneuver joystick-like controls that guide robotic scalpels, scissors and high-resolution cameras.

ParkT.S. Park, the chief of pediatric neurosurgery at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Shi Hui Huang Professor of Neurological Surgery at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has received the H. Richard Winn, M.D., Prize, the highest honor of the Society of Neurological Surgeons. The international award recognizes a neurosurgeon for outstanding research in the neurosciences that impacts clinical practice.

DeBaunMichael DeBaun has been named the Ferring Family Chair in Pediatric Cancer and Related Disorders at the School of Medicine and St. Louis Children’s Hospital. The endowed chair was established by John and Alison Ferring of St. Louis. DeBaun is professor of pediatrics, of biostatistics and of neurology at the School of Medicine and a pediatric hematologist/oncologist at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

Washington University has awarded four Bear Cub Fund grants totaling $150,000 to support innovative research projects that could be attractive for licensing by commercial entities or serve as the foundation for a start-up company.

A set of promising new anticancer agents could have unforeseen risks in individuals with heart disease, suggests research at the School of Medicine. The anticancer drugs — which go by the strange name of hedgehog antagonists — interfere with a biochemical process that promotes growth in some cancer cells. But the researchers showed that interfering with this biochemical process in mice with heart disease led to further deterioration of cardiac function and ultimately death.

As if the emotional and financial impact of flood damage isn’t bad enough, floodwaters can also bring health problems. H. James Wedner, professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Allergy and Immunology at the School of Medicine, says after the water recedes, damp homes and businesses are fertile grounds for mold growth, which can cause allergic reactions and asthmatic symptoms in sensitive people.

A group of steroids found in female mouse urine goes straight to the male mouse’s head, according to researchers at the School of Medicine. They found the compounds activate nerve cells in the male mouse’s nose with unprecedented effectiveness.

Nutrition researchers at the School of Medicine have identified five common genetic variations that increase the risk of metabolic syndrome, a group of factors linked to heart disease and diabetes. Another variant they found appeared to protect against the condition.

The Burroughs Wellcome Fund (BWF) has recognized three researchers at the School of Medicine for their studies of infectious diseases. Instructor Jeffrey Henderson will receive the BWF 2008 Career Award for Medical Scientists. Assistant professors David Wang and Dong Yu will each receive a 2008 BWF Investigators in Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease award.