Newsletter

Department of Genetics

November 2025

Meers and his team are developing a novel time-lapse profiling method to monitor changes in how a cell’s genes are regulated as it goes through the reprogramming process. A better understanding of these changes could lead to the development of more precise and efficient cell conversion methods that are more suitable for human therapeutics.

Read more on WashU Medicine »

Jeff Milbrandt, MD, PhD, the James S. McDonnell Professor of Genetics and executive director of the McDonnell Genome Institute, and Aaron DiAntonio, MD, PhD, the Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Professor of Developmental Biology, received the Dean’s Medal for Innovation and Commercialization for their high-caliber scientific research and commercialization achievements.

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The Long Life Family Study project, led by Michael Province, PhD, was recently renewed by the National Institute on Aging for $80 Million dollars over 5 years, to perform sequencing effort as well as recruit new families. LLFS expects to begin sequencing in Q4 2025 at the McDonnell Genome Institute at WashU Medicine, with an initial tranche of ~5,500 samples, and the full ~7,800- sample program spanning five years.

Read the full press release »

Graduate student Kia Barclay of the Li Lab has been selected as a Graduate Student Recipient of the 2025 Provost’s Research Excellence Award, a prestigious university-wide honor recognizing outstanding research achievement. Barclay is one of only seven students across both the Danforth and Medical campuses to receive the award this year—and the sole honoree representing the School of Medicine, underscoring the exceptional impact of her scientific contributions.

Read more on our website »

Dr. Arnold brings a strong background in neurodegenerative disease research—having studied the cellular mechanisms of SBMA during his PhD work and gone on to investigate TDP-43 proteinopathies in ALS and FTD at Duke and UC Irvine. His lab will focus on understanding how TDP-43 mislocalization leads to neuronal loss, and on identifying biomarkers and therapeutic targets for these conditions. 

The Cremins lab is internationally recognized for its pioneering research on 3D genome architecture and its role in brain development, neural circuit function, and neurological disease. Welcome!

Dr. Susan Dutcher and her collaborators Steven Brody, MD and Moe Mahjoub, PhD, have renewed their long-standing R01 funding and received another R01 totaling $6.1 million over four years to continue advancing fundamental discoveries on how motile cilia are assembled and regulated in genetic lung disease. 

This grant will support the development of a human ES cell–based cranial neural crest differentiation protocol to study the function of variants associated with craniofacial birth defects.

Sample was awarded a Young Investigator Award and presented his work on how inflammatory epigenetic memory in malignant cells drives immune checkpoint blockade resistance.

The AWIS Spark Award highlights a student or early career leader in STEM who is a visible and vocal advocate for diversity and inclusive scientific practices. Sneha Michaela Chaturvedi, an MD/PhD student in the Dougherty lab, investigates molecular sex variation in early neurodevelopment while leading national initiatives in sex and gender–based health education, advancing inclusive and ethical research practices, and dedicating extensive service to outreach and advocacy for marginalized communities.

Posters include:

"Whole-Genome Sequencing Uncovers New Insights into Chromosome 9p Syndromes" as a Late-Breaking Poster
Presenter: Tychele Turner, Ph.D. (first author Isabelle Wang joined as well)

"CNPI - a Computational Toolkit for Rapid Copy Number Analysis of Whole-Genome Sequencing Data"
Presenter: Sydney Collins, Turner Lab

"A Multiplatform, High-Throughput De Novo Variant Caller Run on Over 50,000 Phenotypically Heterogeneous Trios" Presenter: Jeffrey Ng, Turner Lab

Huma Naz's talk titled “Core Activation Program and Selective Regional Responsiveness of Microglia in Aging and Parabiosis,” showcased recent findings on microglial heterogeneity and age-related neuroimmune dynamics. The presentation highlighted region-specific transcriptional responses and systemic influences revealed through parabiosis, contributing to emerging frameworks for understanding microglia role in aging.

NICE brings together junior investigators in the chromatin and epigenetics fields to provide a gathering space for them to share their newest and most exciting unpublished ideas, discuss issues and challenges relevant to junior investigators, and forge new connections and foster peer mentorship that can make the field a more welcoming, productive, and mutually supportive place to do science. This was the third year that this conference has been held, and it was a a highly successful edition.

The afternoon was filled with great food, fun games, and plenty of opportunities to connect with colleagues. It was a wonderful way to meet fellow lab members and make new friends!

“Whole-genome sequencing reveals individual and cohort level insights into chromosome 9p syndromes” in Genome Medicine, Turner lab

"Generation and characterization of a knockout mouse of an enhancer of EBF3" in Biology Open, Turner lab

"In2O3 Nanoribbon-Based Field-Effect Transistor Biosensors for Ultrasensitive Detection of Exosomal Circulating microRNA with Peptide Nucleic Acid Probes" in ACS Nano, White lab

"Microglial ADGRG1: AD glial resilience generator" in Neuron, Li lab (Preview)

"Inducible Calling Cards: Developing Mouse Reagents for Experimentally Controlled Transposon Insertion in vivo", preprint, Dougherty and Mitra labs

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St. Louis, MO 63130

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