School of Medicine

Andrew Brimer and Abigail Cohen, May graduates from the School of Engineering & Applied Science at Washington University in St. Louis and co-founders of the med-tech startup Sparo Labs, have won the $150,000 CIMIT Student Technology Prize for Primary Care, bringing their total competition winnings to more than $275,000.

​Public health is becoming one of the most pressing social concerns facing the global community, and it’s an issue Alfredo Palacio recognized years ago as president of the Republic of Ecuador. Palacio will visit Washington University during its annual Global Health Week Sept. 23-27 and give an Assembly Series talk on “Government and Health Care: Perspectives from a President and a Physician” at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 25, in Graham Chapel.

Faculty members manned posters highlighting their research at a recent Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences event geared toward helping graduate students meet faculty and learn about research before signing up for laboratory rotations. The event is an engaging step for students earning their PhDs or MD/PhDs through the Medical Scientist Training Program. Pictured is student Allyson Mayer visiting with Carlos Bernal-Mizrachi, MD, at the event.

As part of ongoing efforts to bolster pediatric research and lead to new discoveries, Children’s Discovery Institute plans to award more than $2.4 million to research initiatives at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

H. James Wedner, MD, (left) has been installed as the Dr. Phillip and Arleen Korenblat Professor at the School of Medicine, where he serves as chief of the division of allergy and clinical immunology. The named professorship, a gift from Jess and Alice Yawitz, honors their longtime friend and physician, Dr. Phillip E. Korenblat, and his wife, Arleen.

The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR) has announced the six winners of the 2013 University Research Strategic Alliance (URSA) grants. URSA grants provide one-year, $25,000 seed funding to full-time WUSTL faculty members. The URSA program aims to encourage researchers to collaborate across disciplines and schools.

Scientists at The Genome Institute at Washington University School of Medicine helped lead an international team of researchers who have identified a genetic mutation linked to age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of blindness in Americans over age 50. Shown is an eye with signs of macular degeneration.

This year’s Washington University Global Health Week has something for everyone. The public can watch Ethiopian dancers, listen to the melodies of Argentina and attend a lecture by the former president and health minister of Ecuador. Attendees also can buy ethnic food, shop for artisan crafts and ask Global Health Scholars, medical students and undergraduates about their outreach efforts.

Carey-Ann Burnham, PhD, assistant professor of pathology and immunology and of pediatrics, has been awarded the American Society for Microbiology/Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics Young Investigator Award.

The surface parking lot on the Medical Center campus at the corner of Taylor and Parkview avenues (C-lot) will close permanently at 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27.