Newsroom Stories

New research at the School of Medicine shows that chronic itching, which can occur in many medical conditions, is different from the urge to scratch a mosquito bite. Chronic itching appears to incorporate more than just the nerve cells that normally transmit itch signals. In the image shown, researchers identified elevated signaling (in red) in nerve cells involved in both itch and in pain.

Valerie S. Ratts, MD, has been named the new associate dean for admissions at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, effective Jan. 1.

Sixty-five years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court — in a unanimous decision — ruled that housing covenants restricting home ownership based on race violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment. The case was Shelley v. Kraemer. Leading the charge in that historic 1948 case was Margaret Bush Wilson, an African-American lawyer and civil rights activist. Margaret Bush Wilson’s legacy will be explored in a 1.0 credit CLE event, “Celebrating the 65th Anniversary of Shelley v. Kraemer and the Legacy of Margaret Bush Wilson: Where Are We Now?”, at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22,  in the Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom of Washington University School of Law. The celebration will feature Theodore M. Shaw, JD, professor of professional practice at Columbia University School of Law. The event is free and open to students, faculty, staff, and the community.

Leaders from two of the world’s top research universities and several major international corporations will gather in St. Louis Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 19-20, for the Washington University in St. Louis-Indian Institute of Technology Bombay Corporate Conclave, aimed at strengthening the U.S.-India connection around innovation and education, particularly in addressing pressing global issues.

Nirupama Rao, Indian Ambassador to the United States, will speak about U.S. and India relations during a visit to the university Saturday, Oct. 19. Rao will present the McDonnell International Scholars Academy 2013 S.T. Lee Distinguished Lecture at 5:30 p.m. in Simon Hall’s May Auditorium. Rao’s lecture will serve as the capstone to the Washington University in St. Louis-Indian Institute of Technology Bombay Corporate Conclave.​

Ramanath Cowsik, internationally recognized for his contributions to neutrino physics and to the understanding of dark matter in the universe, was installed as the James S. McDonnell Professor of Space Sciences in Arts & Sciences in a ceremony Oct. 7 in Holmes Lounge.

WUSTL students kicked off Car-Free Month Oct. 4 with a bike-in movie at Forest Park. Today is the last day to sign up for the Car-Free Challenge. Other events this month include free bike tune-ups, bike rides and the MetroLink Prom. 

Twin brothers Obi and Malachi Griffith and their colleagues at The Genome Institute have created a massive online database that matches thousands of genes linked to cancer and other diseases with drugs that target those genes.

Members of the Washington University in St. Louis community will gather at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 15, in the Ginkgo Room of Olin Library to remember Rita Levi-Montalcini, one of two women from the university who won the Nobel Prize. The event, which is hosted by the Woman’s Club of Washington University, is free and open to the public.

Scientists from the School of Medicine and in the Netherlands have found that a class of specialized cells in the stomach reverts to stem cells more often than researchers had thought. One or more chief cells, which normally make digestive juices in the stomach, have changed into a stem cell in the image shown.