The estimated 19 million Americans living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) face a high risk of death from cardiovascular disease. Now researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have demonstrated that drugs that reduce phosphate levels could help protect CKD patients from cardiovascular disease.
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca have announced a research collaboration that aims to develop new and improved ways to diagnose and treat Alzheimer's disease. The major focus of the alliance will be biomarkers, characteristic changes in the brain and spinal fluid that physicians can use to diagnose Alzheimer's disease and track its response to treatment.
Even though the benefits of free trade outweigh the harm, the subject has not garnered a lot of attention during this year's election cycle. A professor of business discusses why it is important for Congress to liberalize trade, and the dangers of embracing stricter policies.
The ability of brain cells to communicate and to take in substances from their surface is essential to the production of a key ingredient in Alzheimer's brain plaques, neuroscientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have learned.
Heart surgeons at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report that by adding a simple 10-20 second step to an operative procedure they achieved a significant improvement in the outcome for the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation.
To help address the special needs of breast cancer patients under age 40, Jennifer Ivanovich directs the Young Women's Breast Cancer Program (YWBCP) at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The program offers support and education and now conducts research into the genetics of breast cancer.
In the first comprehensive study of the genetic basis of psoriasis, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have discovered seven new sites of common DNA variation that increase the risk of the troublesome skin condition. They also found that variations in one genetic region link psoriasis and a related joint disorder, psoriatic arthritis, to four autoimmune diseases: type 1 diabetes, Grave's disease, celiac disease and rheumatoid arthritis.
Anyone facing chemotherapy would welcome an advance promising to dramatically reduce their dose of these often harsh drugs. Using nanotechnology, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have taken a step closer to that goal.
While consumer spending once helped keep the economy healthy, rising consumer debt is the reason it's getting sick. The root cause of the current economic slowdown in the U.S. goes back several decades, according to an economics professor at Washington University in St. Louis.
Whether or not Hillary Clinton wins the Democratic nomination for president, the question of how much being a woman helped or hurt her campaign will linger for a long time. A WUSTL professor discusses the unique challenges Clinton faces and why people seem to react so strongly to her.
Scientists estimate that there may be as few as 50 to 100 genes in human DNA that have no counterparts in other species. Little is known about the contributions these genes likely make to our species. Now scientists have produced the first analysis of a gene found only in humans and close primate relatives.
By injecting a customized "genetic patch" into early stage fish embryos, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis were able to correct a genetic mutation so the embryos developed normally.
A brain network linked to introspective tasks such as forming the self-image is less intricate and well-connected in children, scientists have learned. They also showed that the network establishes firmer connections between various brain regions as an individual matures.
Cancer cells get a helping hand from platelets, specialized blood cells involved in clotting. Platelets shelter and feed tumor cells that stray into the bloodstream, making it easier for cancer to spread, or metastasize. Research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggests that inactivating platelets could slow down or prevent metastasis.
Researchers trying to improve cancer immune therapy have made an unexpected find: They've produced the most accurate mouse model to date of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a cluster of conditions that afflict approximately 1.4 million Americans with abdominal pain, constipation and diarrhea.
Depressed heart attack patients have a higher risk for sudden death in the months following a heart attack. Now a team led by researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found that the risk continues for many years.
Frustrated by the slow pace of new drug development for a condition that causes pediatric brain tumors, a neurologist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis decided to try to fine-tune the animal models used to test new drugs.
Patient care often keeps scanners and the doctors who run them tied up, only leaving room for research in the off hours. To change this, Washington University School of Medicine created a multimillion-dollar imaging facility in the heart of a major hospital that is dedicated to scientific research.
A team of scientists led by Washington University in St. Louis has 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.
Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis 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.
Critically ill patients who need a ventilator to breathe face a high risk of pneumonia. The lung infection, however, is exceedingly difficult to diagnose because a patient's underlying condition often skews laboratory test results and masks pneumonia's symptoms "“ a reality that can delay appropriate antibiotic treatment.
Former dean of the business school at Washington University in St. Louis comments on the wisdom behind the Congressional stimulus package. Stuart Greenbaum is skeptical that a stimulus package will be effective and proposes several other strategies that could improve the economy.
To overcome the genetic defect in Niemann-Pick disease, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggest that chemical compounds could "chaperone" mutant proteins to treat the rare, deadly disease. They believe this approach also could be useful for more common diseases "” such as cystic fibrosis "” that stem from a similar type of defect.
If politics were like high school, Republicans would be the football stars and Democrats would be chess club captains. Those stereotypes are the easiest way to summarize part of the conclusions made by a marketing professor at the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis.
The kidney actively cleans its most selective filter to keep it from clogging with blood proteins, scientists from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have revealed. Breakdown of this self-cleaning feature apparently makes kidneys more vulnerable to dysfunction and disease.
Price promotions may not be the best way to increase sales of frequently purchased consumer good. Managers can become overly focused on losing market share and get caught up in a mindless cycle of discounting, without regard to the long-term implications of their actions, research finds.
A review of epidemiological data has found evidence that people who spend fewer years in school may experience a slight but statistically significant delay in the realization that they're having cognitive problems that could be Alzheimer's disease.
The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing Quanta v. LG, a case that could determine the future direction of patent law. "This case is key to ensuring that patent law develops in a way that best promotes innovation and competition," says F. Scott Kieff, J.D., professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis. Kieff and colleagues have filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court in support of LG.
As the number of foreclosures on homes purchased with a subprime mortgage continues to grow, politicians are focused on a way to slow, or even reverse, the trend. However, bailing out the credit industry isn't necessarily the way to go, says a finance professor at Washington University in St. Louis.
Increasing levels of a protein that helps the brain use cholesterol may slow the development of Alzheimer's disease changes in the brain, according to researchers studying a mouse model of the disease at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
Children who are obese or who are at risk for obesity show early signs of heart disease similar to obese adults with heart disease, a study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found.
Overweight people who lose a moderate amount of weight get an immediate benefit in the form of better heart health, according to a study conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. And the heart improvements happen whether that weight is shed by eating less or exercising more.
One of the most common human parasites, Toxoplasma gondii, uses a hormone lifted from the plant world to decide when to increase its numbers and when to remain dormant, researchers have found. Scientists report in Nature that blocking production of the molecule prevented fatal infections in mice.
Scientists have used yeast cells to better understand a collection of proteins associated with the formation of actin networks, which are essential to cell movement. The cell's ability to move is important to topics ranging from the body's immune defenses to metastasizing cancer cells.
Want to begin to be more environmentally friendly in 2008 but can't afford a hybrid car? Don't worry "” there are plenty of ways to lessen your impact on the environment that don't come with such a daunting price tag, says a Washington University in St. Louis sustainability expert.
So you've decided to start or finish that degree you've always intended to earn. But if it's been awhile since you've stepped foot inside a classroom "” or at least one that wasn't your kids' "” here are some suggestions to help you follow through.
Today's Iowa Caucuses may be the last in which the largely rural, sparsely populated and predominately white conservative Midwestern state exerts such a huge influence on the presidential nomination process, predicts Steven S. Smith, a political expert at Washington University in St. Louis.
Today's assassination of Benazir Bhutto is not only a great loss to Pakistan, but also a great loss to the world, says a sociocultural anthropologist at Washington University in St. Louis who lived in Pakistan for six months and whose research focuses on Islamic movements in that country and in Afghanistan.
Arguing that democratic principles do not support a strict separation of church and state in educational policy, a new book contends that government has both the responsibility to pay for religious schools and the right to regulate what's taught within them.
Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found definitive proof that some of the bacteria that plague women with urinary tract infections (UTIs) are entrenched inside human bladder cells.
It is a common economic development strategy to locate similar firms close to each other. A business professor at Washington University in St. Louis shows the tactic is most effective when companies are within 500 meters of each other. After that, the benefits of proximity quickly lose its power.
During viral invasion, uninfected cells prepare by "armoring" for combat, attaching specific antiviral molecules to many of their own proteins to resist the invader. Unfortunately, the deadly Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) knows a way around this defense: just cut the armor off.
Researchers have shown that the controversial phenomenon known as antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) of infection is suppressed by C1q, an immune system compound. The link may provides a much-needed lead for untangling decades of puzzling epidemiological and laboratory-based studies of ADE.
For college students, the winter break can be a welcome time off. Classes are over, finals are finished and it it's a time to spend with family and friends. But, says a practicing psychologist at Washington University in St. Louis, the break between semesters can also be a very stressful time for students.
A group of children who have sickle cell disease and who experience silent strokes showed some relief from the silent strokes with blood transfusion therapy, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found.
Early childhood education advocates have a new weapon at their disposal. An economics professor found evidence that preprimary education leads to more years spent in school based on the experience of children from relatively disadvantaged households in Uruguay.
The Gap Inc.'s recent discovery that some of its clothing manufactured in India was made by young children demonstrates a lack of understanding the pros and cons of international outsourcing. Through proper risk management, any firm can avoid damaging its reputation and losing market share.
Washington University in St. Louis is bringing these evergreen stories to you in case you missed them when first issued in 2007. If you're writing end-of-the-year stories or cover these issues again in 2008, contact to arrange an interview, including interviews through our free VYVX and ISDN lines.
Whole-body PET (positron emission tomography) scans done three months after completion of cervical cancer therapy can ensure that patients are disease-free or warn that further interventions are needed, according to a study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
A multinational team of researchers has shown for the first time that the immune system can stop the growth of a cancerous tumor without actually killing it. Scientists have been working for years to use the immune system to eradicate cancers. The new findings prove an alternate to this approach exists: it may be possible to find ways to use the immune system to contain cancer.
RSS
Medicine keyboard_arrow_right
Sciencekeyboard_arrow_right
Life keyboard_arrow_right
Business keyboard_arrow_right
Journal News keyboard_arrow_right
By Location keyboard_arrow_right
Meetings, Grants, and Events keyboard_arrow_right