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CBS News Alzheimer’s brain tangles offer clue to worsening If scientists could figure out how to lower tau levels, it might slow dementia, says senior researcher Alison Goate of Washington University in St. Louis. The only available medications temporarily ease symptoms but don’t slow the disease. Goate’s work is a first step at identifying genetic […]

Acclaimed author Jonathan Safron Foer, whose latest book, Eating Animals, chronicles his lifelong journey toward vegetarianism, will be on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 30, in Graham Chapel (please note that this is a location change.) The Assembly Series lecture, co-sponsored by University Libraries, the Campus Bookstore and the senior honorary Mortar Board, is free and open to the public.

Henry L. “Roddy” Roediger III, PhD, received the Arts & Sciences Distinguished Leadership Award and William E. Wallace, PhD, received the David Hadas Teaching Award during Arts & Sciences’ annual faculty reception. Gary S. Wihl, PhD, dean of the faculty of Arts & Sciences and the Lewin Distinguished Professor in the Humanities, presented the awards and introduced new faculty at the reception, which also recognized the start of the new academic year.

Washington University Medical Center is continuing to improve lighting around campus sidewalks this fall.

Associated Press A new clue in solving Alzheimer’s puzzle 09/20/2010 That sticky gunk coating Alzheimer’s patients’ brains gets all the notoriety, but another culprit is gaining renewed attention. A second protein called tau seems to signal how aggressive the mind-robbing disease will be. Researchers discovered that patients with mild Alzheimer’s and high levels of tau […]

Of note Gautam Dantas, PhD, assistant professor of pathology and immunology, has received a two-year, $75,000 grant from the National Academies Keck Futures Initiative for research titled “Functional Metagenomic Discovery of Novel Enzymatic Functions from Ultra Low-Volume Samples with Whole Metagenome Amplification.” … Kavit Alan Desouza, MD, research scientist in biomedical engineering, has received a […]

The Daily Telegraph (UK) Gene predicts speed of Alzheimer’s development 9/17/2010 Knowing that certain patients are going to develop the disease very quickly could also help experts better analyze the effectiveness of trial drugs designed to slow its development, suggests a WUSTL study. “We have looked at data from three separate, international studies, and in […]

Washington University installed automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) in seven areas across the Danforth Campus Sept. 16 with a high volume of foot traffic. An AED is a computerized medical device that can monitor a person’s heart rhythm and can recognize when a distressed person requires a shock to re-establish a normal heart rhythm.

A search is under way to fill a new vice provost position in the Office of the Provost whose initial focus will be on diversity and faculty development, among other areas of university-wide importance. An advisory committee has been formed that will identify and recommend candidates from within the Washington University community.

Missouri has one of the highest statewide smoking averages in the country, more than 23 percent. And racial and ethnic minorities, people with lower incomes and education levels, Medicaid recipients and the LGBT community smoke or experience secondhand smoke at a rate significantly higher than the state average.These findings are highlighted in a new report by the Center for Tobacco Policy Research (CTPR) at Washington University in St. Louis. The report, “Who is Most Affected? Tobacco-Related Disparities in Missouri,” identifies statewide differences related to who is smoking, who is exposed to secondhand smoke and who is quitting.CTPR is offering a media-only webinar on the new disparities report at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 21. Researchers will discuss the report and be available to answer questions about the findings. Visit https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/895612886 to register. More information about CTPR’s report is available at: http://news.wustl.edu/news/Pages/21180.aspx  .ExternalClass p.MsoNormal, .ExternalClass li.MsoNormal, .ExternalClass div.MsoNormal {margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:’Times New Roman’;} .ExternalClass a:link, .ExternalClass span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue;text-decoration:underline;} .ExternalClass a:visited, .ExternalClass span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {color:purple;text-decoration:underline;} .ExternalClass div.Section1 {page:Section1;}