School of Medicine

Washington University School of Medicine neuroscientists, led by Michael R. Bruchas, PhD, assistant professor of anesthesiology and of neurobiology, have attached the light-sensing protein rhodopsin to opioid receptor parts to activate the receptor pathways using light from a laser fiber-optic device. They also influenced the behavior of mice using light, rather than drugs, to activate the reward response.

Washington University School of Medicine and the Brown School have received a $4 million grant to study whether a new model of providing family planning services can reduce unintended pregnancies and births. As part of the study, they are recruiting 10,000 women of child-bearing age in the St. Louis area to participate.

Regis J. O’Keefe, MD, PhD, is the new head of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. The former captain of the Yale University basketball team takes a collaborative approach to managing the department. O’Keefe, who specializes in musculoskeletal oncology, said his goal is to make those around him better.

The Center of Regenerative Medicine has received a $4,000 grant from the Society for Developmental Biology to aid in the project titled “Developmental Biology Educational Outreach to St. Louis Public Schools.”

Grant W. Farmer, PhD, a postdoctoral research associate at Washington University School of Medicine and an adjunct professor at Saint Louis University, died unexpectedly April 7, 2015, at his home in Richmond Heights. He was 36.

Washington University in St. Louis kicked off a yearlong initiative, “Gun Violence: A Public Health Crisis,” with a panel discussion April 21 at the Eric P. Newman Education Center.

Fragile X syndrome, an inherited cause of autism and intellectual disability, can have consequences even for carriers of the disorder who don’t have full-blown symptoms. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a potential target for treatment for fragile X carriers.

An enzyme secreted by the body’s fat tissue controls energy levels in the brain, according to new research led by Shin-ichiro Imai, MD, PhD, of the School of Medicine. The findings, in mice, underscore a role for the body’s fat tissue in controlling the brain’s response to food scarcity, and suggest there is an optimal amount of body fat for maximizing health and longevity.

New research highlights how nerves – whether harmed by disease or traumatic injury – start to die, a discovery that unveils novel targets for developing drugs to slow or halt devastating neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and amyolateral sclerosis as well as peripheral nerve damage.

Many studies have linked more sleep to better memory, but new research in fruit flies at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis demonstrates that extra sleep helps the brain overcome catastrophic neurological defects that otherwise would block memory formation.