Newsroom Stories

Washington University in St. Louis is pleased to announce the first cohort of its College Prep Program, a new multi-year initiative that will prepare high-achieving high school students with limited financial resources for college.

A nationwide survey of heroin users indicates they are attracted to the drug not only for the “high” but because it is less expensive and easier to get than prescription painkillers. Shown is the study’s principal investigator, Theodore J. Cicero, PhD, of the School of Medicine.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has recognized Washington University in St. Louis for reducing its waste. Among other efforts, used cooking oil is recycled into biodiesel to fuel Bon Appétit campus delivery trucks. Here, executive chef Patrick McElroy (far right) explains the process.

Robert Schreiber, PhD, delivered the Stanley J. Korsmeyer Memorial Lecture in May. The annual lecture honors a beloved former Washington University medical oncologist and researcher whose groundbreaking discoveries opened new doors to understanding and treating cancer.

Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton presented Helen Kathleen Cook, PhD, of the Department of Anthropology, with the Gloria W. White Distinguished Service Award. The recognition was part of the annual Staff Day activities May 19. 

It’s been a good run, but eventually the house lights come up. Since 1973, the Edison Ovations Series has brought nationally and internationally known performing artists to Washington University in St. Louis and the community. But the 2014-15 season will be the Ovations’ last.

A new theory about disorders that attack the brain and spinal column has received a significant boost from scientists at the School of Medicine. The theory links these conditions to corrupted proteins known as prions, which appear bright green in this image of brain cells from a patient with Alzheimer’s disease.

The Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis has honored Kansas City architect Theodore H. Seligson (BArch ’53) with its Distinguished Alumni Award.

A project to provide low-cost eyeglasses for people in the developing world and one to develop a cell-death detector will share $25,000 to further develop their projects as winners of the 2014 Discovery Competition. Washington University in St. Louis’ School of Engineering & Applied Science created the competition in 2012.

Bacteria that naturally live in the soil have a vast collection of genes to fight off antibiotics, but they are much less likely to share these genes than infectious bacteria, a new study by researchers at the School of Medicine has revealed. Shown is senior author Gautam Dantas, PhD.