School of Medicine

Working in mice, School of Medicine researchers report developing a gene delivery method long sought in the field of gene therapy: a deactivated virus carrying a gene of interest that can be injected into the bloodstream and make its way to the right cells. In this proof-of-concept study, they targeted tumor blood vessels in mice without affecting healthy tissues.

Bariatric surgery is effective at helping patients lose weight and improve obesity-related conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and sleep apnea, according to a review of published studies. Complications are possible following these procedures, but death rates generally are low, according to School of Medicine researchers who performed the analysis.

Steven C. George, MD, PhD, has been named chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, effective July 1, 2014. George is professor of biomedical engineering and of chemical engineering and materials science at the University of California, Irvine. In addition, he is the Edwards Lifesciences Professor and director of the Edwards Lifesciences Center for Advanced Cardiovascular Technology.

A new study in mice suggests that gene therapy may one day be a viable treatment for Alport syndrome, an inherited disease that leads to kidney failure.

Patients who experience ‘chemobrain’ following treatment for breast cancer show disruptions in brain networks that are not present in patients who do not report cognitive difficulties, according to School of Medicine researchers.

Cancer genetic counselor Jennifer Ivanovich helps bridge the gap between what genome sequencing can tell patients and what patients and their families want to know.

Huntington’s disease is a devastating, incurable disorder that results from the death of certain neurons in the brain. Rohit Pappu, PhD, and colleagues in the engineering and medical schools are conducting studies to learn from nature’s own strategies to battle the disease.

Students from the School of Medicine and Division of Biology & Biomedical Sciences recently shared their musical talents at the fall coffeehouse at the Farrell Learning and Teaching Center. Coffeehouses are hosted by the School of Medicine Arts Commission. Shown are Charise Garber (on piano) and her sister, Kristen Garber.

Human breast tumors transplanted into mice are excellent models of metastatic cancer and are providing insights into how to attack breast cancers that no longer respond to the drugs used to treat them, according to research led by Matthew J. Ellis, MD, PhD, from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Four WUSTL faculty members were recognized for their accomplishments during the Faculty Achievement Awards ceremony Dec. 7 in Simon Hall. (From left) David M. Holtzman, MD, and Randall J. Bateman, MD, received the Chancellor’s Award for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Award from Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton. James V. Wertsch, PhD, and Richard H. Gelberman, MD, received the Arthur Holly Compton Faculty Achievement Award and the Carl and Gerty Cori Faculty Achievement Award, respectively.