$37 million to extend regional biodefense and emerging infectious diseases research

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has extended funding for the Midwest Regional Center for Excellence in Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases (MRCE), anchored at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The center received a five-year, $37 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to continue to support basic and translational research in biodefense and emerging infectious diseases throughout the Midwest.

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$19 million to WU scientists to decode microbe DNA and explore links to disease

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis four grants totaling $19 million to explore the trillions of microbes that inhabit the human body and determine how they contribute to good health and disease.

Image courtesy of United States Department of Agriculture
The bacterium Enterococcus faecalis, which lives in the human gut, is just one type of microbe that will be studied as part of NIH's Human Microbiome Project.

To read more about the Grants, Click Here.

I Scream, You Scream, We all Scream for ICE CREAM

Ted Drewes, a local STL favorite, has been named one of America's Best Ice Creams by Traveler Magazine.
The article, written by Jennifer Murphy, praises Ted Drewes saying, "While not ice cream in the traditional sense, Ted Drewes is by far the most beloved frozen custard shop in Saint Louis, Mo., and its Route 66 stand stays open until midnight during the summer to feed comfort-seeking devotees. Unlike the Creamery, the only flavor available at Ted Drewes is vanilla, which is then mixed with fresh toppings like tiramisu and strawberries, and blended into mass so thick it’s charmingly referred to as “concrete.”

Read the full article here

Washington University opens Living Learning Center at Tyson

Washington University in St. Louis has opened what could be the first "living building" in North America. The Living Learning Center at Tyson Research Center is designed to be a net zero energy and net zero wastewater facility. Certification could come after the building is fully operational for 12 months and has met the Living Building Challenge requirements.



For a great article on the Living Learning Center at Tyson Research Center Click Here

2009 BioMedRAP and CD BioRAP Kicks Off With Welcome Dinner

The 2009 Summer Research Program has officially begun! Participants arrived yesterday amid torrential rains and damaging winds and checked safely into Olin Hall, their home away from home for the next 10 weeks.

The Welcome Dinner opened the Summer Program offically. Participtants mingled with current graduate students, faculty and DBBS staff.

To learn more about BioMedRAP and CD BioRAP, please visit: http://biomedrap.wustl.edu/

BioMed 21 Research Building

The largest building ever constructed on the campus of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis will be the home base for BioMed 21 — the University's innovative research initiative designed to speed scientific discovery and apply breakthroughs to patient care rapidly. The building is supported by a $30 million gift to Washington University's medical school from BJC HealthCare and will be named the BJC Institute of Health at Washington University.

Construction began in the summer of 2007 on the new building, which will house not only BioMed 21 laboratories and support facilities but also two academic departments of the School of Medicine as well as some support operations of Barnes-Jewish Hospital. The University will be adding 240,000 square feet of research space, and the estimated total cost of the building will be $235 million. As a hub for BioMed 21, the building will provide space for five newly created Interdisciplinary Research Centers (IRCs).

Over the next few weeks, we'll take a closer look at the BioMed 21 IRC's, so stay tuned!

Brain's organization switches as children become adults

Any child confronting an outraged parent demanding to know "What were you thinking?" now has a new response: "Scientists have discovered that my brain is organized differently than yours."
But all is not well for errant kids. The same new study also provides parents with a rejoinder: While the overarching organization scheme differs, one of the most important core principals of adult brain organization is present in the brains of children as young as 7.

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