Category: Uncategorized

For this Faculty Feature, we spoke with Liang-I Kang, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Anatomic and Molecular Pathology. Tell us about your background. Where did you grow up, and when did you first become interested in science and medicine? My family is Taiwanese. We moved to the US when I was an infant, and I grew […]

The Department of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine is proud to announce that Vahid Azimi, MD and Stephen Roper, PhD were part of a multidisciplinary team that was recently named a Univants of Healthcare Excellence Team of Distinction by Abbott.  The team sought to reduce the barrier in prenatal care for black […]

The Office of Technology Management recently hosted the seventh annual Celebration of Inventors, an event to honor and recognize Washington University inventors, researchers and faculty entrepreneurs. Honorees included 2023 United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) awardees; National Academy of Inventors Fellows and Senior Members; and the recipient of the 2024 Chancellor’s Award for Innovation […]

Two innovative pilot projects led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have received funding from the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative to address critical challenges in the fields of neurodegeneration and neuroscience. The initiative has awarded a total of $12.8 million to more than 60 pilot projects nationwide. Each project receives $200,000 over […]

Physicians treating patients with early-stage lung cancer face a conundrum: choosing potentially helpful yet toxic therapies such as chemotherapy, radiation or immunotherapy to knock out the cancer and lessen the risk of it spreading to the brain, or waiting to see if lung surgery alone proves sufficient. When up to 70% of such patients do […]

A team including scientists from Yale School of Medicine and Scott Handley, PhD, Professor of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine, have received $575,000 from PolyBio Research Foundation to fund long COVID research. The grant will support the team’s efforts to define mechanisms by which the SARS-CoV-2 virus can persist for long […]

Three graduate students affiliated with labs in the Department of Pathology and Immunology have been named Spencer T. and Ann W. Olin Medical Science Fellows. Lucas Adams, an MD/PhD student in the Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences (DBBS) Immunology program who is completing his thesis work in the labs of Dr. Daved Fremont and […]

There lies a paradox in sleep. Its apparent tranquility juxtaposes with the brain’s bustling activity. The night is still, but the brain is far from dormant. During sleep, brain cells produce bursts of electrical pulses that cumulate into rhythmic waves – a sign of heightened brain cell function. But why is the brain active when we […]

For this Faculty Feature, we spoke with Samuel J. Ballentine, MD. Dr. Ballentine’s clinical and research interests include Gastrointestinal and Pancreaticobiliary Pathology, Liver Pathology and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. In addition to his clinical work and research, Dr. Ballentine is associate director of the department’s residency program, where he provides mentorship for the next generation of […]

A genetic test that identifies cancer mutations in solid tumors and that was developed by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has been approved for reimbursement by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The test, known as GatewaySeq, identifies mutations that can be targeted with available drugs, helping advance […]

Jeffrey I. Gordon, MD, of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has received the 2024 Mechthild Esser Nemmers Prize in Medical Science from Northwestern University. Gordon was selected for the prize by a jury of distinguished U.S. scientists for transforming the understanding of human health and how it is shaped by the gut […]

Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found passageways that connect the brain to vessels that carry fluid waste out of and away from the brain. The newly discovered anatomical structures, found in mice and people, are like tiny gates, allowing waste to leave the brain and enter lymphatic vessels, where […]

Cold and flu season is upon us, and thanks to a new report developed by a team in the Department of Pathology and Immunology, individuals in the BJC hospital system and School of Medicine can better track pathogens causing common illnesses.  A collaborative team including members of the BJH Molecular Infectious Disease Laboratory and P&I […]

The Department of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine is pleased to announce 18 physicians have been named Castle Connolly Top Doctors in 2024. “The recognition of these physicians is a testament to the high quality of our entire faculty, whose work benefits patients across our entire region,” said Richard J. Cote, […]

Millions of children in under-resourced parts of the world suffer from malnutrition and, consequently, stunted growth. Protein-based therapeutic foods designed to restore health are lifesavers for many, but a significant number of malnourished children do not respond to available therapies. But now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that […]

An atomic-level investigation of how Eastern equine encephalitis virus binds to a key receptor and gets inside of cells also has enabled the discovery of a decoy molecule that protects against the potentially deadly brain infection, in mice. The study, from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, is published Jan. 3 […]

Rocky Giwa, a graduate student in the Brestoff Lab, and Wentong Jia, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher in the Brestoff Lab, have been awarded fellowships from the American Heart Association (AHA). The fellowships recognize the outstanding work Rocky and Dr. Jia contribute to the Brestoff Lab and their potential to become leaders in scientific research. “I’m […]

Three trainees in the Department of Pathology and Immunology have been awarded educational grants from the Association of Pathology Chairs (APC). Patricia Hernandez, MD, Resident in Clinical Pathology; Zita Hubler, MD, PhD, Resident in Clinical Pathology and the Physician Scientist Training Program; and Yanchun Lin, PhD, Clinical Chemistry Fellow, have all received funding for their […]

A clinical trial reported in 2021 and conducted by a team of researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research in Dhaka, Bangladesh, showed that a newly designed therapeutic food aimed at repairing malnourished children’s underdeveloped gut microbiomes was superior to a widely used standard […]

Alzheimer’s disease has plagued one large Colombian family for generations, striking down half of its members in the prime of life. But one member of that family evaded what had seemed would be fate: Despite inheriting the genetic defect that caused her relatives to develop dementia in their 40s, she stayed cognitively healthy into her […]

Researchers and clinicians at Washington University in St. Louis have found a way to improve the standard of care diagnostic accuracy of potentially cancerous lesions in the ovaries and adnexal regions, or the fallopian tubes, by incorporating functional biomarkers with photoacoustic imaging, a technique that illuminates tissue with near-infrared light at specific wavelengths that are […]

Robert D. Schreiber, PhD, an internationally recognized scientist in cancer immunology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been named the 2024 Senior Scientist Winner of the Innovators in Science Award in Cancer Immunology. The award is given by the New York Academy of Sciences and sponsored by Takeda Pharmaceuticals. Schreiber, the […]

Clarivate, an analytics company, has named more than 50 Washington University in St. Louis researchers to its Highly Cited Researchers 2023 list including several members of the Department of Pathology and Immunology. Researchers from Pathology and Immunology highlighted in Clarivate’s list include: Clarivate’s Highly Cited Researchers list, which was established in 2001, identifies scientists and […]

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found an innovative way to block infection by a variety of alphaviruses, a group of mosquito-borne viruses that can cause joint and brain infections in people. The study, led by Michael S. Diamond, MD, PhD, the Herbert S. Gasser Professor of Medicine, and Daved […]

 Sarah D. Ackerman, Gabor Egervari, MD, PhD and Tao Xie, all of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, have been named 2023 Young Investigator grantees by the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation. This year’s funding will support 150 promising early-career scientists across the field of neuropsychiatry with innovative ideas in mental health research. The two-year grant is expected […]

Hussein Sultan, PhD, Instructor in Pathology and Immunology, received a Presidential Travel Award from the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC). As part of the award, Dr. Sultan was one of four early-career investigators selected to give a presentation at the SITC 38th Annual Meeting in San Diego. Dr. Sultan’s talk showed that high dose […]

GatewaySeq, a cancer sequencing test developed at Washington University School of Medicine, has received approval from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). CMS approval for GatewaySeq marks a milestone for test developers, including Eric Duncavage, MD, Professor of Pathology and Immunology; Lulu Sun, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pathology and Immunology; Drew Hughes, […]

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have received a prestigious Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support research and clinical trials aimed at improving therapies for pancreatic cancer. The five-year grant will provide about $10.9 million […]

Malnutrition threatens the lives of millions of children under age 5, causing about 500,000 deaths per year in low- and middle-income countries. Short courses of antibiotics paired with a therapeutic peanut butter-based food are the standard of care for treating severe acute malnutrition in children — but using antibiotics in this vulnerable population is controversial; […]

Omar Ibrahim, PharmD, a graduate student in the DiPersio Lab at Washington University School of Medicine, has received a 2023 Minority Hematology Graduate Award (MHGA) from the American Society of Hematology (ASH). Dr. Ibrahim is one of two individuals from Washington University selected for this prestigious honor, which recognizes high-caliber early career scientists on a […]

Three faculty members in the Department of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine were recently honored by the Academy of Educators, an institutional collaboration of educators who foster a culture of educational excellence and an institutionally valued community of leaders in health science education at the School of Medicine. Ian Hagemann, MD, […]

Jeffrey I. Gordon, MD, the Dr. Robert J. Glaser Distinguished University Professor and director of the Edison Family Center for Genome Sciences & Systems Biology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been recognized with the 2023 Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research. Gordon shares this year’s award — given Thursday, Oct. […]

Louis P. Dehner, MD, Professor of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine, has received the Barnes Jewish Hospital Medical Staff Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Dr. Dehner, or “Pepper,” as he is fondly known by colleagues, is one of two individuals selected for the award, which is given to outstanding clinical faculty each […]

Ian Hagemann, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Pathology and Immunology and Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Lulu Sun, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pathology and Immunology, recently participated in Pedal the Cause, the annual cycling challenge where all funds raised go towards funding world-class research at Siteman Cancer Center. As members of team Gyn Onc Teal […]

Gwendalyn Randolph, PhD, Emil R. Unanue Professor of Pathology and Immunology in the Division of Immunobiology, was chosen to be a member of the newly formed National Commission for Lymphatic Diseases. The Commission, which is slated for an inaugural meeting in December 2023, will be convened by NHLBI leadership. In 2022, Congress directed the NIH to […]

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has awarded the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai a five-year, $13 million grant to bring together experts from multiple disciplines across five research institutions to create better vaccines against current as well as emerging coronaviruses. The “Programming Long-lasting Immunity to Coronaviruses” (PLUTO) project will be […]

Digesting a crunchy critter starts with the audible grinding of its rigid protective covering — the exoskeleton. Unpalatable as it may sound, the hard cover might be good for the metabolism, according to a new study, in mice, from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The researchers, led by Steven Van Dyken, PhD, an […]

Patricia Hernandez, MD, Clinical Pathology Resident in the Department of Pathology & Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine, and Homayemem Weli, MD, PhD, Clinical Pathology Resident in the Department of Pathology & Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine, were recently selected for the PROUD-MED program through the university. The program, which is an […]

Gaya K. Amarasinghe, PhD, Alumni Endowed Professor of Pathology and Immunology in the Department of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine, and a multi-institutional team of researchers were awarded a $16.8 million grant from NIH for their Ebola virus research. The grant from NIH’s National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) […]

Mai (Mike) He, MD, PhD, Professor of Pathology and Immunology and Section Head of Pediatric Pathology in the Department of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine, was recently named editor-in-chief of Fetal and Pediatric Pathology. Dr. He will oversee the journal effective January 1, 2024. “I am thrilled to accept the position […]

A new test for two blood cancers – developed by a team at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis – is the first whole-genome sequencing test for cancer to be approved for reimbursement by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The test, known as ChromoSeq, advances precision medicine approaches for treating blood […]

Ann Gronowski, PhD, Oree M. Carroll and Lillian B. Ladenson Professor in Clinical Chemistry, Pathology and Immunology and Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Division Co-Chief of Laboratory and Genomic Medicine, was recently named to The Pathologist‘s Power List for 2023. Dr. Gronowski was one of 25 individuals selected by a panel of experts for the list, […]

Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are among the leaders of a multi-institution research team that has built an atlas focused on the kidney’s myriad cells. The aim of the kidney tissue atlas is to further the understanding of kidney injury and disease. The study, funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and […]