Malaria drug could hold key to treating heart disease, diabetes

School of Medicine researchers found that a malaria drug eased many symptoms of metabolic syndrome in mice. Study findings were published in the November issue of Cell Metabolism, and senior author Clay F. Semenkovich, M.D., professor of medicine and of cell biology and physiology, says funding for a clinical trial has been received.

Just Desserts

Photo by Tim ParkerThe Corpus Delicti: Just Desserts play analyzes the ethics of dissection using a life-sized cadaver from gelatin with fruits and vegetables for organs.

Nobel Prize-winner Pamuk receives inaugural Humanist Medal

Jerry BauerOrhan PamukTurkish writer Orhan Pamuk, winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature, will receive Washington University’s inaugural Distinguished Humanist Medal as part of “Celebrating Our Books, Recognizing Our Authors,” the university’s fifth annual faculty book colloquium. The award — which includes a cash prize of $15,000 — is supported by the Center for the Humanities and the Office of International and Area Studies, both in Arts & Sciences. It will be given biannually to a distinguished scholar, writer or artist whose career merits special recognition for excellence and courage.

Benefits unveils two new savings plans

The Office of Human Resources has announced the introduction of the Health Savings Account (HSA) and Retirement Medical Savings Account (RMSA) for eligible faculty and staff. These new savings accounts, a major component of the Benefits Plan for the Future, will be effective Jan. 1.

Campus Author: Andrew Rehfeld

The Concept of Constituency by Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D., assistant professor of political science in Arts & Sciences, takes on the origins of the country’s electoral districts and how they came to be.

Davis wins Lannan Award for ‘extraordinary novels’

Kathryn Davis, the Fannie M. Hurst Senior Fiction Writer in The Writing Program in Arts & Sciences, has won a $150,000 Lannan Foundation Literary Award. Presented annually, the Lannan Literary Awards honor “both established and emerging writers whose work is of exceptional quality.”