Washington University in St. Louis

A new study suggests that a common genetic signature may increase a person’s risk of developing substance use disorders, regardless of whether the addiction is to alcohol, tobacco, cannabis or opioids. The research, led by Washington…

One of the more intriguing paradoxes emerging from the rubble of the COVID-19 pandemic is new evidence suggesting that older adults — those at the greatest risk of severe illness and death from the virus — fared much better than their…

A decathlon … in gymnastics?That’s what some members of the WashU Club Gymnastics (WUCG) team have set out to do this season: compete in all four events in women’s artistic gymnastics (vault, bars, beam and floor) and all six events in…

The risk of long-term health problems, hospitalization and death after a COVID-19 infection diminishes among those who take the antiviral drug Paxlovid within five days after testing positive, according to an analysis of federal health…

Researchers in child psychiatry and pediatric neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have been named recipients of a prestigious MERIT award from the National Institute of Mental Health of the National…

Intrigued by reports of recent volcanic eruptions on Venus? WashU planetary scientists Paul Byrne and Rebecca Hahn want you to use their new map of 85,000 volcanoes on Venus to help locate the next active lava flow.Their study was posted…

What if a vaccine could protect people against all potentially deadly coronaviruses before one of them started the next pandemic?Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are working to reduce the risk of…

Jumping genes are short sections of DNA that have been incorporated randomly into the human genome over the long course of evolution. Also called transposable elements, these pieces of DNA have been implicated in the development of…

A heartbeat is a carefully coordinated series of electrical signals led by sodium ion channels, which tell the heart when to contract and to relax. Any disruption to these signals may lead to cardiac diseases such as an irregular…

Between natural infection and a global vaccination campaign, most people now have some immunity against the virus that causes COVID-19. This widespread immunity hasn’t stopped people from getting infected, but it has dampened the massive…