Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis

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$3.6 Million to Fund Personalized 3-D Brain Maps to Guide Neurosurgeries

Press Release | Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis | April 4, 2017

Neurosurgeons must avoid cutting into parts of the brain responsible for key functions such as language (orange) and vision (green), but individuals vary in where such functions are located (each of the top images compared with the bottom images above). Researchers are creating a software program that uses data from MRI scans to create personalized anatomic and functional brain maps and integrate them into a navigational system to guide physicians during neurosurgery. Removing a brain tumor requires walking a fine line: Remove too little, and the disease remains; remove too much, and sight, speech or movement may be impaired...

2017 Massry Prize Honors Microbiome Research Pioneers

Press Release | UC San Diego | August 9, 2017

Microbiome researchers Rob Knight, PhD, University of California San Diego, Jeffrey Gordon, MD, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, and Norman Pace, PhD, University of Colorado Boulder, will share this year’s Massry Prize, splitting the $200,000 honorarium. These researchers lead a field that works to produce a detailed understanding of microbiomes — distinct constellations of bacteria, viruses and other microorganisms that live within and around us — and methods for manipulating microbiomes for the benefit of human and environmental health.

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Popular Heartburn Drugs May Cause Serious Kidney Damage

Kristina Sauerwein | the Source | May 5, 2016

Extended use of drugs to treat heartburn, ulcers and acid reflux may lead to serious kidney damage, including kidney failure, according to a study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care System. More than 15 million Americans have prescriptions for so-called proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), which decrease gastric acid production and generally have been considered safe...

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Study Unveils New Way to Starve Tumors to Death

Press Release | Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis | January 24, 2017

For decades, scientists have tried to halt cancer by blocking nutrients from reaching tumor cells, in essence starving tumor cells of the fuel needed to grow and proliferate. Such attempts often have disappointed because cancer cells are nimble, relying on numerous backup routes to continue growing. Now, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have exploited a common weak point in cancer cell metabolism, forcing tumor cells to reveal the backup fuel supply routes they rely on when this weak point is compromised. Mapping these secondary routes, the researchers also identified drugs that block them. They now are planning a small clinical trial in cancer patients to evaluate this treatment strategy...

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When Evidence Says No, but Doctors Say Yes

David Epstein and Propublica | The Atlantic | February 22, 2017

Fiirst, listen to the story with the happy ending: At 61, the executive was in excellent health. His blood pressure was a bit high, but everything else looked good, and he exercised regularly. Then he had a scare. He went for a brisk post-lunch walk on a cool winter day, and his chest began to hurt. Back inside his office, he sat down, and the pain disappeared as quickly as it had come...

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