Mice with Tax-induced leukemia/lymphoma develop large tumors and many areas of bone destruction, as shown in this X-ray.Defeating cancerous tumors by attacking healthy cells seems like an unusual strategy, but researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown the strategy to be effective against leukemia/lymphoma in mice. The research group found that inhibiting normal bone-maintenance cells called osteoclasts not only prevented the mice’s cancer from spreading to their bones, it also slowed the growth of tumors in the body’s soft tissues.
Sustiva is the brand name for efavirenz.The largest detailed, prospective clinical study of the mental side effects of a potent anti-AIDS drug, efavirenz, has revealed that the anxiety, dizziness, “funny feelings” and vivid dreams triggered by the drug fade away within a month, possibly clearing the way for more widespread use. Efavirenz is the first drug from its class that lasts long enough to be taken once a day, and that makes it a potentially valuable drug for AIDS treatment, according to scientists at the AIDS Clinical Trials Unit (ACTU) at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
WUSM scientists have identified a protein that helps keep internal “clocks” in sync.Scientists have identified a receptor protein that helps the fruit fly know when to start and shut down its day. Neuroscientists from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis identified a receptor for pigment-dispersing factor (PDF) protein, which scientists previously recognized as a molecule that helps keep different internal “clocks” synchronized. Because these timekeeping processes have been highly conserved through evolution, what the scientists learn from flies and other organisms may help them better understand the same systems in humans.
Bright areas in this image highlight the junctions between heart muscle cells.Failing hearts develop interference in their communication channels, according to research conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The problem involves a subtle change in the pores that connect heart muscle cells. When the scientists duplicated this change in mice, the mice became susceptible to ventricular tachycardia, a dangerous heart rhythm disorder that can lead to sudden cardiac death.
Using pieces of the collection housed in University Archives, Russell Sturgis: Critic, Historian and Collector runs through April 8 in the Bernoudy Gallery of Architecture.
Current treatments for asthma and chronic bronchitis aren’t able to address the ultimate source of the problem — they can only alleviate symptoms. But researchers at the School of Medicine have gone to the root of these disorders and found a two-drug treatment that could potentially restore patients’ troubled airways to healthy function.
Courtesy photo*America’s Best Architecture and Design Schools 2006*Washington University’s Graduate School of Architecture & Urban Design, part of the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts, has tied for 10th in the nation, according to Design Intelligence, a monthly newsletter published by the Design Futures Council.
Courtesy photoLucie Brock-BroidoAcclaimed poet Lucie Brock-Broido will read from her work at 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 9, for The Writing Program Reading Series. She is the author of three collections of poetry, including Trouble in Mind (2004), The Master Letters (1995) and A Hunger (1988).
Medicare Part D decisions can be confusingDuring the next six months, Medicare recipients will need to enroll in one of the new prescription drug coverage plans. But with the deluge of information about Medicare Part D, some reliable and some not, “seniors find themselves in an environment of fear and confusion,” says Edward F. Lawlor, Ph.D., a Medicare expert and dean of the School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis. “There is so much noise about the prescription drug program, but people are not getting clear, simple information. Many seniors aren’t even entertaining making the proper plan choice.”
Robert BostonJoe Buck, Jonathan Gitlin, Lee Fetter and Larry Shapiro (L-R) join a group of children to launch the Children’s Discovery Institute.Scientists from the School of Medicine and St. Louis Children’s Hospital have teamed up to search for cures for childhood diseases in four areas: heart disease, brain cancer, lung disease, and musculoskeletal defects. The Children’s Discovery Institute is a new $120 million endeavor by the two partners aimed at reaping the rewards of a sequenced human genome.