School of Medicine

ApteStudying a mouse model of age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in older Americans, scientists at the School of Medicine have found age is key in determining whether damaging blood vessels will form beneath the retina and contribute to vision loss. The scientists, led by principal investigator Rajendra Apte, discovered that specific immune cells called macrophages play a role in the disease process in older mice by failing to block the development of abnormal, leaky blood vessels behind the retina.

Mouse embryos stained to show MOF (green) and its histone tag (red) demonstrate that MOF is essential for cell proliferation.To make tumors more sensitive to the killing power of radiation is a key aspiration for many radiation oncologists. Researchers at the School of Medicine have uncovered new information that leads them closer to that goal. In an upcoming issue of the journal Molecular and Cellular Biology, they report the first extensive study of an enzyme called MOF that helps control how DNA is packaged in cells. The researchers show that MOF is an essential factor for tumor development, and they say it may be possible to manipulate the enzyme to make tumors more sensitive to radiation therapy.

Tom R. Miller, M.D., Ph.D., professor of radiology and of biomedical engineering, died Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2007, at his home in Webster Groves. He was 63.

Six School of Medicine faculty have been named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world’s largest general scientific society.

Photo by Robert BostonA $30 million gift from BJC HealthCare will help construct a new seven-story research building on the School of Medicine campus.

The largest building ever constructed on the School of Medicine campus will be the home base for BioMed 21, the University’s innovative research initiative designed to speed scientific discovery and to rapidly apply breakthroughs to patient care.

A 16,000 square-foot data center is being constructed on Newstead Avenue to meet the massive computing needs of the Genome Sequencing Center.

Beginning Nov. 7, free flu vaccinations will be provided to School of Medicine employees with a valid identification badge.

Artist’s rendering of a rooftop view of the new buildingA $30 million gift from BJC HealthCare will help construct a new 11-story research building on the campus of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. This is the largest donation ever received for construction of a building at the School of Medicine. To be named the BJC Institute of Health at Washington University, the building will house the laboratories and support facilities for BioMed 21, the University’s research initiative to rapidly translate basic research findings into advances in medical treatment.

Artist’s rendering of the new buildingThe largest building ever constructed on the campus of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis will be the home base for BioMed 21 — the University’s innovative research initiative designed to speed scientific discovery and apply breakthroughs to patient care rapidly. The building is supported by a $30 million gift to Washington University’s medical school from BJC HealthCare and will be named the BJC Institute of Health at Washington University.