Waisman Center Postdoctoral Training Program
With support from the National Institutes of Health, the Waisman Center Postdoctoral Training Program in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities prepares the next generation of scientists who will investigate the causes, consequences and treatments of some of human health’s most complex conditions.
December 30, 2014Waisman Center staff receive professional development grants
Congratulations to the Waisman Center’s Marcella Andrews and Parul Trivedi, two recipients of UW-Madison’s spring 2015 Academic Staff Professional Development grants. In all, seven grants will be awarded to UW-Madison academic staff members.
December 23, 20142014: The Waisman Center’s year-end round up
We have much to celebrate in 2014— a year that marked exciting advancements and important innovations in the Waisman Center’s research and treatment of developmental disabilities and neurodegenerative diseases. Here are some highlights from the …
December 10, 2014Video: Commemorating Kennedy’s Waisman connection
Fifty-one years ago today, President John F. Kennedy sent a telegram to Harry Waisman congratulating him on the dedication of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Laboratories. Two days later, the president was dead. Marsha Mailick recounts the connection between the Kennedys and what would become the Waisman Center.
November 20, 2014Mei Baker receives national newborn screening award
Mei Baker, MD, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene (WSLH) Newborn Screening Laboratory co-director and University of Wisconsin associate professor of pediatrics, received the Harry Hannon Laboratory Improvement Award in Newborn Screening from the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) earlier this …
November 13, 2014
Holiday cards for autism 2014
Giizhik Klawiter has autism and began drawing at six years old as a therapeutic outlet. For the last five years, Giizhik and his brother Mino have designed holiday greeting cards and sold them in their …
November 13, 2014Family supports UW-Madison research on eye disease
When Madison attorney David Walsh learned 17 years ago that his sons have a genetic disorder that causes blindness, he went into action mode.
November 10, 2014
Community outreach in action: Living Our Visions (LOV)-Dane
Living Our Visions (LOV)-Dane, based at the Waisman Center’s satellite community outreach office in Madison, is a grassroots organization of individuals with disabilities, their families and community members who strive to create fulfilling, community-centered lives …
November 7, 2014Prematurity awareness month
Variation among preterm infants is the norm One in 10 infants in the United States is born preterm—less than 36 weeks gestation—each year. Infants born early are at a higher risk for long-term health problems …
November 5, 2014Stem cell advance
A recent issue of The Why Files features stem advances at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, including several scientists at the Waisman Center.
November 1, 2014Event on human development is Waisman Center at its best
The UW Madison’s Waisman Center maintains its status as a world class center dedicated to advancing knowledge about human development, developmental disabilities and neurodegenerative diseases through research, teaching and service. It is exceedingly successful in …
October 27, 2014Rare disease research and treatment
A rare disease can be isolating when few people have it and there is no cure.
October 1, 2014
Genome editing takes research one step closer to a cure for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease
John Svaren, PhD’s paper “Genome editing-enabled HTS assays expand drug target pathways for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease,” examines how the use of genome editing places his research one step closer to a potential cure for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.
September 18, 2014Down syndrome helps researchers understand Alzheimer’s disease
The link between a protein typically associated with Alzheimer’s disease and its impact on memory and cognition may not be as clear as once thought, according to a new study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s …
September 18, 2014ALS community suddenly awash in awareness
If you hadn’t heard of ALS before this summer, you’re not alone. If you haven’t heard of it by now, you must be living under a rock. Not only did the ubiquitous ALS Ice Bucket Challenge raise about $100 million from late July to late August, it boosted awareness of ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
September 15, 2014Rep. Mark Pocan announces bill to support research funding during Waisman Center visit
U.S. Representative Mark Pocan (WI-02) visited the Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison on September 3 to discuss the Next Generation Research Act and federal funding to support early career researchers from the National Institutes of …
September 3, 2014Childhood stress can reconfigure biology, UW-Madison research says
Abused children tend to develop lifelong emotional and physical problems, and now UW-Madison scientists may have found a biological reason: Maltreatment appears to turn off a gene that regulates stress.
July 24, 2014
PKU pioneer Dr. Harry Waisman’s work still impacts the world
Kay Emerson, one of the first patients treated successfully for the PKU disorder in the United States, talks about researcher Dr. Harry Waisman.
July 9, 2014Early life stress can leave lasting impacts on the brain
For children, stress can go a long way. A little bit provides a platform for learning, adapting and coping. But a lot of it — chronic, toxic stress like poverty, neglect and physical abuse — can have lasting negative impacts.
June 27, 2014Stanley and Durkin: The cost of autism care
Maria Stanley, MD, Waisman Center Clinics Medical Director and clinical associate professor of pediatrics and Maureen Durkin, PhD, DrPH, a Waisman Center investigator and professor of population health sciences and pediatrics, were featured on Wisconsin Public Radio’s The Joy Cardin Show on June 12 to discuss the cost of supporting an individual with autism throughout the lifespan.
June 12, 2014
Seeing results: Genetic counseling services at Waisman
The expanding ability to decipher human DNA has made genetic testing widely available. But it takes a pro to translate the information.
June 5, 2014
Evjue Foundation distributes $1.1 million to UW and area nonprofts
The Waisman Center’s Transitioning Together program is the recipient of a $10,000 grant from The Evjue Foundation, the charitable arm of The Capital Times. Transitioning Together offers family-centered group therapy designed to reduce family distress, reduce adolescent behavior problems, and promote community involvement.
May 28, 2014Albee Messing, VMD, PhD to serve as interim Waisman Center director
On September 1, Albee Messing, VMD, PhD will step in as the Interim Director of the Waisman Center, while Marsha R. Mailick, PhD serves as the Interim Vice Chancellor for Research at the Graduate School. …
May 23, 2014Autism is growing up: Living with autism as an adult
As the world's leading autism researchers and advocates gathered at the International Meeting for Autism Research last weekend to share the latest discoveries about autism spectrum disorder, a strong theme emerged: Autism is growing up.
May 21, 2014Adults with autism find new source for job interview advice
Knowing what an employer wants to hear can make all the difference during a job interview. For adults with an autism-spectrum disorder, those answers can be harder to come by. And without work, they face the prospect of a much less independent life.
May 21, 2014
William E. MacLean, Jr., PhD joins Waisman Center
In August 2014, Bill MacLean, PhD, will join the Waisman Center as the associate director of the University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD)
May 7, 2014Mailick to join graduate school
MADISON – Marsha Mailick, a long time University of Wisconsin-Madison faculty member and veteran of research leadership roles at the university, has been selected by Chancellor Rebecca Blank as interim successor to Martin Cadwallader, who …
April 28, 2014Waisman Center helps adolescents with autism transition into adulthood
The Adolescents and Adults with Autism study began at the Waisman Center after the realization that little research had been done on the transition from adolescence to adulthood for individuals with autism and their families, according to the center’s website.
April 17, 2014Fulbright award sends Litovsky to Australia for hearing research
Ruth Litovsky, professor of communication sciences and disorders, has been named a 2014-15 Fulbright Scholar for the East-Asia Pacific Region. Litovsky will collaborate with colleagues in the Bionics Institute in Melbourne, Australia, on the use …
April 8, 2014Study helps unravel the tangled origin of ALS
By studying nerve cells that originated in patients with a severe neurological disease, a University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher has pinpointed an error in protein formation that could be the root of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
April 3, 2014Autism rates now 1 in 68 U.S. children
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 1 in 68 children (or 14.7 per 1,000 eight-year-olds) in multiple communities in the United States has been identified with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This …
March 28, 2014Autism may be linked to faulty prenatal brain growth in at least some kids, small study says
March 28, 2014 Lindsey Tanner, Associated Press A small study that examined brains from children who died found abnormal patterns of cell growth in autistic children. The research bolsters evidence that something before birth might …
March 28, 2014Recap: Waisman Center Day with the Experts: Cerebral Palsy
To kick off March, Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month, the Waisman Center hosted its first Waisman Center Day with the Experts: Cerebral Palsy on Saturday, March 1. Nearly 200 people attended the outreach event, which was a partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
March 21, 2014Historic video: Harry Waisman advocates for PKU screening
In a rare look back in time, we’re given a glimpse into the early research and community outreach of Harry A. Waisman, MD, PhD, one of the lead researchers of Phenylketonuria (PKU), an inherited condition caused by an accumulation of the amino acid phenylalanine.
March 17, 2014Aaron Bishop named commissioner of the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Former Waisman Center Project Coordinator and trainee Aaron Bishop named Commissioner of the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
March 7, 2014Coming of age
Liam Canavan-Randall is sixteen. He likes working with his hands — making things out of metal or wood — and he knows what he wants for his future: a job, his own place to live, and a girlfriend.
February 28, 2014Cerebral palsy awareness and activities at the Waisman Center
From the research lab to the patient’s bedside, research and clinical care focused on cerebral palsy (CP) encompass the essence of the Waisman Center’s mission: scientists and clinicians using an interdisciplinary approach to improve the lives of children and adults with developmental disabilities.
February 14, 2014From the Midwest to Davos, Richard Davidson is starting conversations on mindfulness, happiness, and the power of giving
Are we in the throes of a "zeitgeist" moment, when world leaders and CEOs embrace the role that mindfulness plays in cultivating health, compassion and happiness?
January 23, 2014Employment may lead to improvement in autism symptoms
Jennifer Wetzel, Vanderbilt University More independent work environments may lead to reductions in autism symptoms and improve daily living in adults with the disorder, according to a new study released in the Journal of Autism …
January 15, 2014Waisman Biomanufacturing plays key role in prostate cancer vaccine development
A spinoff business launched by a University of Wisconsin-Madison cancer researcher is attempting to harness the human immune system to fight prostate cancer.
January 14, 2014Forward motion – A different kind of hat trick
The sight of Mike Eaves changing a diaper, rubbing the back of a sleepy toddler and dancing with preschoolers might shock those who don’t really know the University of Wisconsin men’s hockey coach. Those images, …
January 6, 2014- More 2014 posts
Advancing knowledge of human development, developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases.