Advancing knowledge of human development, developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases.
May is #ALSAwarenessMonth and Waisman investigator Su-Chun Zhang, MD, PhD, uses stem cells to uncover the cause of ALS with the hope of developing treatments and therapies.
Speaking with Spectrum News, Waisman Center investigator Maureen Durkin describes the connections between autism prevalence numbers, socioeconomic status and race, and what the connections means for research. To read the full video, visit the Spectrum News website.
A recent story on Channel 3000 highlights the efforts by the family of Kenzi Valentyn to raise money for vision research in their daughter’s name. Waisman investigator David Gamm focuses on using stem cells to fight vision diseases, including retinitis pigmentosa. To learn more about Kenzi’s story and David Gamm’s research, please visit: ‘This can be …
Maddie’s parents know that, although they wish to take her home, the hospital is still the safest place for her. Born in January, Maddie was diagnosed with severe combined immunodeficiency, or SCID, a rare condition that makes her highly susceptible to infection.
UW-Madison research published today (Feb. 11, 2019) reveals how one mutation causes fragile X, the most common inherited intellectual disability. “Fragile X syndrome has been studied as a model of intellectual disability because in theory it’s comparatively simple,” says senior author Xinyu Zhao, a professor of neuroscience in the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
David Gamm, director of the McPherson Eye Research Institute, and Forward Bio Institute director Bill Murphy explain how stem cell scientists at UW–Madison are working with industry to put scientific breakthroughs on the path to helping patients.
It’s not a cure for Down syndrome that Dave Witte and Cristina Delgadillo want for their 5-year-old daughter. “Olivia is our daughter and we love her, and we love her because of who she is. And part of who she is, is she has Down syndrome,” Witte says. But they would be happy if stem …
Winning a game of darts requires being accurate. A player who can pick a spot on the board, focus their mind, and execute the specific motor action needed to land the bullseye will win the game. And if they miss, well, practice makes perfect.
One of the goals of the study is to discover how genetic variations in young people with ASD are related to brain changes that lead to clinical symptoms of the disorder, such as impaired social interaction and repetitive behaviors.
“If you think about it, in between genes and clinical symptoms [of ASD] are changes in brain development,” says Lainhart. “Genes first impact brain development, and as a result of changes in how the brain develops, there are clinical manifestations of what we recognize as ASD.”
The Waisman Center hosted their annual poster fair on Thursday, Dec. 6. The well-attended event featured nearly fifty posters highlighting the interdisciplinary research of students, graduates and investigators working at the Waisman Center. This event gives researchers an opportunity to showcase what they have been working on and mingle over their findings with the public …
