Anti-amyloid drug shows signs of preventing Alzheimer’s dementia (Links to an external site)

Randall J. Bateman, MD, the Charles F. and Joanne Knight Distinguished Professor of Neurology at WashU Medicine, is the study director of an international clinical trial that finds an anti-amyloid drug can delay the onset of cognitive decline if given many years before symptoms of Alzheimer's disease arise. The participants in the study had inherited genetic variants that lead to early-onset Alzheimer's disease, and among those who received the drug the longest – an average of eight years – the treatment lowered the risk of developing symptoms from essentially 100% to about 50%, according to a preliminary analysis of the data.

An experimental drug appears to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s-related dementia in people destined to develop the disease in their 30s, 40s or 50s, according to the results of a study led by the Knight Family Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network-Trials Unit (DIAN-TU), which is based at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The […]

Generous donation from Jansky/Bander Family to fund Movement Disorders fellowships, support brain bank

Generous donation funds Movement Disorders fellowships, supports brain bank

The Jansky/Bander Family Fund, a generous commitment of $1,100,000 over five years, has been established to advance critical initiatives within the Section of Movement Disorders at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis Department of Neurology. This significant financial contribution is earmarked for two primary functions under the direction of Joel Perlmutter, MD: funding […]

Ushe appointed as new ombud for WashU Medicine

Mwiza Ushe

Mwiza Ushe, MD, MA, professor of neurology, has been appointed as one of two new ombuds for Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Ushe was appointed alongside Alison Antes, PhD, associate professor of medicine. Their terms begin Jan. 1, 2025. The goal of the Office of the Ombuds is to meet and provide […]

WashU Medicine celebrates first R01 recipients (Links to an external site)

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis celebrated rising investigators at the First R01 Celebration, marking a significant milestone for scientists embarking on their independent research careers. The event honored recipients of their first R01 research grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The research grants represent the NIH’s recognition of investigators’ rigorous, […]

First-ever WashU ALS Symposium brings national ALS community together

Individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig’s disease, their caregivers, friends, family and medical providers who specialize in ALS treatment and research had the opportunity to connect at the first-ever Washington University ALS Symposium Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024. The event, hosted by the Washington University Department of Neurology ALS Center, was held at […]

Three Washington University child neurologists distinguished in first-ever Child Neurology Society fellow class

2024 Fellow of the Child Neurology Society Christopher Smyser Soe Mar Renee Shellhaas

Christopher Smyser, MD, MSCI, Soe Mar, MD, MBBS, MRCP, and Renée Shellhaas, MD, MS, have all been included in the inaugural Fellow of the Child Neurology Society (FCNS) program class. The designation “recognizes and honors our dedicated members’ professional achievements and contributions.” In order to be eligible, the applicant must be an active member in good standing with […]

WashU Medicine Cerebral Palsy Family Day 2024: Overview

CP Family Day 2024

Cerebral Palsy Family Day is an annual event at the Missouri Botanical Garden that is free to all families cared for at the Cerebral Palsy and Mobility Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. During this event, caregivers learn about what it is like to grow up with CP from adults with CP. They also engage […]

Opinion: A Piece of My Mind — Don’t Waste Your Cancer (Links to an external site)

In eighth grade, instead of going to the annual class trip, I reclined in a hospital bed on the ninth floor of the cancer hospital. And instead of being handed an invitation to the eighth grade dance (though under normal circumstances, I’m not sure this would have happened either), I received a 16-page long article […]

This Is Literally Your Brain on Drugs (Links to an external site)

This heat map of brain activity patterns shows profound disturbance during an individual’s experience after taking psilocybin. Relatively stable patterns before and after the dose (blue and green hues) are temporarily scrambled during the "trip" (red, orange and yellow hues). Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report that psilocybin destabilizes a critical network of brain areas involved in introspective thinking. The findings provide a neurobiological explanation for the drug’s mind-bending effects.

The image, as it happens, comes from dozens of brain scans produced by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis who gave psilocybin, the compound in “magic mushrooms,” to participants in a study before sending them into a functional M.R.I. scanner.

Now accepting applications for WashU Medicine Bold Pioneer Award!

Bold Pioneer Award

The goal of the $10,000 WashU Medicine Bold Pioneer Award is to recognize and encourage early career investigators who have demonstrated bold, pioneering research that is high-risk by virtue of being fundamentally different from standard approaches. The intent is to encourage scientific research investigators to challenge status quo approaches by developing fundamentally different methods, approaches, […]