News & Events

What if a simple metabolic byproduct could sharpen memory? Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine have discovered that acetate, a ubiquitous metabolite, can significantly enhance long-term memory in female mice by reshaping the epigenetic and transcriptional landscape of key learning centers. The findings, published in Science Signaling, reveal that memory enhancement can arise from subtle metabolic byproducts that interact with chromatin in sex- and context-specific ways.

Despite decades of study, the genetic, molecular and environmental influences that drive extended health span and delayed onset of age-related disease are not fully understood. A multidisciplinary team of researchers plans to address this gap by creating interpretable graph neural network models capable of integrating large, multi-omic datasets collected from centenarians and other long-lived individuals with a three-year, $1.53 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop transparent artificial intelligence (AI) models that may reveal the biological underpinnings of exceptional human longevity.

A collaborative research effort between laboratories at Washington University School of Medicine has identified molecular and cellular mechanisms by which a ketogenic diet (KD) alters synaptic communication in the brain — revealing how metabolic state can reshape neuronal networks at the transcriptional, epigenetic, and physiological levels. Spearheaded by first authors Marion Stunault, PhD, Pan-Yue Deng, PhD and Anjali Yadav, PhD, the study, “Ketogenic diet dampens excitatory neurotransmission by shrinking synaptic vesicle pools,” was recently published in Cell Reports and provides foundational insight into how diet-induced metabolic changes influence excitatory circuits in the hippocampus.

Frederick Arnold, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Genetics at Washington University School of Medicine, has been awarded a 2025 Research Innovation Grant from the ALS Network and ALS United. The award provides $150,000 in funding over one year to support his research in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Purva Patel, a third-year graduate student in the Jin lab, has been awarded a full scholarship to attend the 2026 St. Jude National Graduate Student Symposium, a highly selective national meeting for outstanding biomedical science trainees.