School of Medicine

Whether it’s needed to track the activity of a drug, the growth of a tumor or the progress of a medical disorder, high-tech imaging equipment often is an essential component of advanced clinical research. Unfortunately, patient care typically keeps these machines and the doctors who run them jammed with activity, often making it necessary to fit in research activities late at night or on the weekends.

Richard K. Wilson, Ph.D., is leading efforts to sequence the corn genome.University scientists have begun to unlock the genetic secrets of corn, a crop vital to U.S. agriculture. The researchers have completed a working draft of the corn genome, an accomplishment that should accelerate efforts to develop better crop varieties to meet society’s growing demands for food, livestock feed and fuel.

A better drug for osteoporosis wouldn’t just preserve patients’ old bone structure; it would help fortify their weakened bones with new bone material. Such a drug could be on the horizon because of research at the School of Medicine that has uncovered new information about how to amplify the bone formation process.

Photo by Robert BostonChris Stander, who manages the lab of Andrey Shaw, M.D., the Emil R. Unanue Professor of Immunobiology in the Department of Pathology and Immunology, gives blood in the Clinical Sciences Research Building link at the recent blood drive.

A common human parasite uses a hormone lifted from the plant world to decide when to increase its numbers and when to remain dormant.

Medical professionals from Washington University and Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes-Jewish College are helping older adults in underserved areas of St. Louis address health problems.

Photo by Robert BostonChris Stander, who manages the lab of Andrey Shaw, M.D., in the Department of Pathology and Immunology, gives blood in the Clinical Sciences Research Building link at the recent blood drive.

An unexpected finding led School of Medicine researchers to propose a new treatment approach for a rare, deadly neurodegenerative disorder.

School of Medicine scientists have found that some of the bacteria that plague women with urinary tract infections (UTIs) are entrenched inside human bladder cells.

Scientists at the School of Medicine have linked a mutation in a gene known as TDP-43 to an inherited form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the neurodegenerative condition often called Lou Gehrig’s disease. Researchers found the connection intriguing because studies by other groups have revealed abnormalities in the TDP-43 protein in both sporadic and inherited ALS, as well as in several other neurodegenerative disorders.