Guilak receives award from Osteoarthritis Research Society

Guilak
Farshid Guilak, PhD, a professor of orthopaedic surgery at Washington University School of Medicine and director of research at Shriners Hospitals for Children-St. Louis, has received the Basic Science Research Award from the Osteoarthritis Research Society International.

New clues to understanding autoimmune diseases

DNA molecule
With research that points to potential therapeutic targets for autoimmune diseases, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified genetic master switches that turn up – or down – the activity of specific types of immune cells.

Study: Golden Rice falls short of life-saving promises

Golden Rice
Heralded on the cover of Time magazine in 2000 as a genetically modified (GMO) crop with the potential to save millions of lives in the Third World, Golden Rice is still years away from field introduction and even then, may fall short of lofty health benefits still cited regularly by GMO advocates, suggests a new study from Washington University in St. Louis.

Gut microbes’ metabolite dampens proliferation of intestinal stem cells

Intestinal stem cells.
New research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis indicates stem cells located in “pockets” in the intestine avoid contact with a prominent metabolite produced by beneficial microbes living in the gut. That metabolite – butyrate – restricts the proliferation of stem cells, potentially hampering the intestine from repairing itself after an injury or damage.

Inaugural College Prep scholars to spend final summer on campus

College Prep students
The inaugural cohort of Washington University’s College Prep Program will spend its final summer on campus learning from a leading scientist and lifelong musician: Provost Holden Thorp. Thorp has created a college-credit course that explores teamwork in science and music. Now in its third year, the College Prep Program is a multiyear, immersive program for talented, low-income high school students.

I-CARES announces 2016 research projects

I-CARES word cloud
The International Center for Advanced Renewable Energy and Sustainability (I-CARES) at Washington University in St. Louis has named the funding recipients from its 2016 call for proposals. I-CARES supports researchers who focus on renewable energy, climate change and sustainability.

Brophy named to orthopaedic surgery board

Robert Brophy photo
Sports medicine specialist Robert H. Brophy, MD, associate professor of orthopaedic surgery at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been elected to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons board of directors.