Newsroom Stories

Researchers at the School of Medicine have found further evidence linking a method used to deliver gene therapy in humans with the development of liver tumors in mice. The new research, published in the July 27 journal Science, suggests that ferrying a corrective gene into mice using a disabled virus – an adeno-associated virus (AAV) – inadvertently inserts mutations into the mouse DNA that initiate tumor growth.

An improved approach to gene therapy may one day treat some of the nearly 200 inherited forms of blindness, scientists at the School of Medicine suggest this week. In a paper published online by Public Library of Science ONE, researchers take initial steps toward filling a gap in the toolkit for treating blindness by identifying DNA elements that control when and where genes linked to blindness are turned on.

Itching for a better anti-itch remedy? Your wish may soon be granted now that scientists at the School of Medicine have identified the first gene for the itch sensation in the central nervous system. The discovery could rapidly lead to new treatments directly targeting itchiness and providing relief for chronic and severe itching.

WrightonMark S. Wrighton, Ph.D., is chancellor and professor of chemistry at Washington University in St. Louis. As chancellor, he is the chief executive officer of the university and reports to the board of trustees. Wrighton was elected the 14th chancellor in the spring of 1995 and assumed his duties on July 1, 1995.

*screens*Windows shape and frame, both literally and figuratively, the ways we see the world around us. Interfaces represent the points of contact between different systems, spaces and entities — for example, the screen, the mouse or the keyboard that connects the computer with the human user. In August, the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum will present Window | Interface, an exhibition highlighting the use of windows and interfaces as both boundaries and sites of transaction between machine and mind, data and perception, the world of the body and the world of the imagination.

Matthew Malten has been appointed assistant vice chancellor for campus sustainability at Washington University in St. Louis. His appointment marks the first time that Washington University has given a person the responsibility for campus sustainability.

With today’s rapid rate of medical advancement, it’s hard to imagine that an over-the-counter drug introduced in the 1800s could still be widely popular and effective. But due to its low cost and versatility, millions of Americans still keep a bottle of aspirin in their medicine cabinets.

A private equity acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover might be the best thing to happen to the companies, according to a professor at the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis. “The public-equity firms will clean house,” said Anne Marie Knott, associate professor of strategy. “They will find the areas of poor performance and turn them around.”

Connie DiekmanEleven big food companies, including McDonald’s, Pepsi Co. and General Mills, have all agreed to stop advertising products to children under 12 that do not meet certain nutritional requirements. The move is a positive step, says Connie Diekman, director of nutrition at Washington University in St. Louis and current president of the American Dietetic Association.

Campus book discussion groups specifically for faculty and staff are scheduled for the following dates and locations. All discussions start at noon except where noted. Feb. 2: Barnes & Noble, Euclid Avenue and Children’s Place, 1 p.m. Feb. 7: Duncker Hall, Hurst Lounge, Room 201 Feb. 8: West Campus, Room C Feb. 9: Danforth Campus, […]