Email not displaying properly in your Outlook App? View this email in your browser.

The Department of Genetics is pleased to announce its 50th Anniversary Symposium to be held on April 24th, 2025. Join us as we celebrate the amazing history, people and scientific community here in the WashU Medicine Department of Genetics.

Past and current members of the department – including faculty, students and postdocs – will speak on the history of the department and their current work. Find the full list of speakers on our event page!

Wait no further and start registering now!

As part of our ongoing celebration of the history, contributions, and spirit of the Department of Genetics at Washington University in Saint Louis, we are excited to announce a special project: a mosaic image of Gregor Mendel, the father of modern genetics, composed of photos from our department members! 

Please submit a current photo of yourself. These images will collectively form a larger, inspiring mosaic portrait of Gregor Mendel.

Submission Guidelines:

Photo Quality: High resolution preferred.

Format: JPEG or PNG.

Click the button below to upload by December 31, 2024.

The Dean’s Fellow to Faculty Program in the Department of Genetics at Washington University School of Medicine rewards outstanding graduate student or early-stage postdoctoral researchers in genetics, genomics, bioinformatics, or computational biology with the opportunity to create an independent research agenda in anticipation of joining the Genetics Department as an Assistant Professor on the tenure-track. The program consists of a two-to-five-year Fellow phase followed by promotion to the Assistant Professor position. Juan Macias will start his new position on January 1st, 2025! 

Principal Investigators Drs. Joseph Dougherty, Harrison Gabel, Alexxai Kravitz, Susan Maloney, Robi Mitra and co-investigators Robert Fulton and Hysell Oviedo have recently received a $12.5 Million grant over the next 5 years from the NIH to further the study of neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders (NPDs) by assembling the Washington University Scalable Mouse Assay Center (WU-SMAC), an Assay and Data Generation Center (ADGC) for the SSPsyGene consortium.

The team of researchers have developed a key partnership leveraging the deep knowledgebase in NPDs, mouse genetics, and behavioral analysis of the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (IDDRC) and combining this with the world-class expertise in scalable scientific approaches of the McDonnell Genome Institute (MGI). The primary goal of the Washington University Scalable Mouse Assay Center (WU-SMAC) is to leverage >100 existing frozen mouse lines targeting high priority NPD genes to comprehensively assess the impact of NPD mutations on the molecular and spatial organization of the brain and define their downstream consequences on behavioral domains.

Investigators interested in collaborations with the new center (e.g., benefiting from spare mice, tissues, piloting new assays, or interesting re-analyses of the data), please keep an eye out for a center kick-off seminar coming in Spring semester to learn more.

Next semester we are reintroducing Genetics Department works-in-progress (WIP) talks, followed by a happy hour. The goal is to foster community and communication within the department by providing a regular forum for department labs to socialize and discuss current projects.

Key information:

- WIP event will be Wednesdays at 4-5 pm, Couch 6001B, beginning January 22.

- Speakers can be students, postdocs, and technicians/staff scientists from any lab with primary or dual appointment at Department of Genetics.

- Pizza will be provided immediately before the talks (3:45 pm).

- One speaker will present for 30 min (including time for questions/discussion)

- A happy hour will follow at 4:30.

Action item: PIs should nominate one lab member to speak by completing the survey at the link below by Friday Dec. 20. We will then contact speakers and arrange the schedule.

https://wustl.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0ww6dezxLLPkYU6

If your lab has a new publication, please send it to Eliza Gan (e.gan@wustl.edu) so we can add it to the digital displays and the department website!