Two Experts. One Protein. And the Mission That Binds Them

A CDI resaerch team has embarked on a drug discovery journey that may lead to new treatment for pediatric nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NFLD. This serious condition is a troubling consequence of the rise in childhood obesity that can lead to diminished liver function later in life. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in five school-aged children (ages 6-19) is obese. ...Learn More

Molecules to Missiles

CDI funding tests the promise of nanomedicine in brain tumor treatment....Learn More

Works at Work to Find the Origins of Disease

When it comes to childhood diseases, lysosome storage diseases probably aren’t top of mind to most people, but, Abhinav Diwan, MD, medicine, would argue that they should be. ...Learn More

The Future of Augmented Reality is Here

The story of this Children’s Discovery Institute-funded grant started with a phone call. Washington University School of Medicine biomedical engineer Jon Silva, PhD, was at a Microsoft conference and had just seen a demonstration of the Microsoft Hololens, the first self-contained hologram computer. This technology enables its user, who is looking through specially designed goggles, to interact and engage with three-dimensional holograms in their three-dimensional space. They call it augmented reality....Learn More

Immune System: The Body's New Super Hero?

The journal Science Translational Medicine recently published a study showing promise for immunotherapy in treating recurrent acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in adults. The study’s lead author Rizwan Romee, MD, and senior author Todd Fehniger, MD, PhD, from the division of oncology of Washington University School of Medicine, barely let the ink dry before they were on to their next challenge. In collaboration with Jeffrey Bednarski, MD, PhD, pediatrics, they submitted a proposal to and received funding from the Children’s Discovery Institute to pursue the same study in children....Learn More

New Clues Found to Common Respiratory Virus Researchers funded by the CDI to study a common virus striking children, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), have found clues to how it causes disease. They mapped the molecular structure of an RSV protein that interferes with the body’s ability to fight off the virus. Knowing the structure of the protein will help them understand how the virus impedes the immune response, potentially leading to a vaccine or treatment for this common infection. ... CDI More Info

New Translational Research Underway The Children’s Discovery Institute board of managers recently approved more than $3.7 Million in new grant funding for 13 wide-ranging pediatric research studies, four of which take aim at childhood cancers, including two clinical trials. In four other studies, researchers will tackle serious disorders of the gastrointestinal tract in children, including a life-threatening condition call necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) that develops in in some babies born prematurely. Funding also was awarded to two studies investigating different aspects of pediatric heart disease, as well as one designed to learn more about the long-term effects the Zika virus has on an infant’s brain. ... CDI More Info

Just Add Water: Artificial Blood to the Rescue A study partly funded by the CDI brings the promise of artificial blood development closer to reality. Erythromer, a novel bood substitute developed by Washington University School of Medicine's Allan Doctor, MD, pediatrics, in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, has been shown to emulate vital functions of natural red blood cells.... CDI More Info

Protecting Childhood with Precision Medicine See how CDI supporters have put in motion a precision medicine revolution that will continue to spark innovation and deepen our understanding of the origins of pediatric disease for decades to come.... CDI More Info

Gordon Receives Beering Award CDI board of managers member,Jeffrey I. Gordon, MD, has been honored with the Steven C. Beering Award for his seminal contributions to establishing the field of human microbiome research. ... CDI More Info