Navigating a Brighter Future for Youth with Disabilities and Their Families
Helping youth with disabilities pursue post-high school employment and education opportunities can mean piecing together services from a broad range of agencies and organizations. This can be a challenge for anyone, but for low-income families, …
January 7, 2020New Researcher Uses Machine Learning to Decode Genomic Information
Recent advances in genome sciences — the study of an organism’s complete set of DNA — present a golden opportunity to identify the genetic causes and underlying mechanisms of intellectual and developmental disabilities. These discoveries …
January 7, 2020
Mancheski Foundation Funds Next-Gen Research on Down Syndrome and Alzheimer’s
A gift from the Mancheski Foundation continues to provide integral support to doctoral student Matthew Zammit as he furthers his research on the progression of Alzheimer’s disease in individuals with Down syndrome. Zammit is beginning …
December 19, 2019Major Lifetime Gift Establishes Scholarly Society
It’s been seven years since Dick Morse, MD, a UW alum and retired child psychiatrist, and his lifelong partner, Lawrence M. Connor, MSW, a retired social worker, established an $11 million (now worth an estimated $17 million) planned estate gift for the Morse Society — a multidisciplinary graduate fellowship program at the Waisman Center.
December 19, 2019Low genetic risk for ADHD may protect against negative life experiences
A recent study shows that people at low genetic risk for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are not only less likely to have the disorder, they also have better than expected economic, health and behavioral outcomes in later life.
December 16, 2019Clinical trial for Ebola vaccine developed at UW–Madison underway in Japan
As of this week, a phase one clinical trial to test a potential new Ebola vaccine developed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison is underway in Japan. Fifteen healthy young men* will receive two doses of the experimental vaccine. If the first group tolerates the vaccine, an additional group of up to 20 volunteers will receive a higher dose of the vaccine.
December 13, 2019UW-Madison brain scan studies seek to pinpoint signs of Alzheimer’s
Waisman Center investigator Brad Christian and Waisman Center affiliates Sterling Johnson and Barbara Bendlin were featured in a Nov. 26 Wisconsin State Journal article this week about Alzheimer’s research. The article is a part of a series on Alzheimer’s called “Fading away: Wisconsin’s dementia crisis,” which chronicles the doubling rate of dementia patients in Wisconsin.
November 29, 2019Time-to-degree improves again, setting record
Undergraduates at the University of Wisconsin–Madison are taking less time to complete their degrees, setting a record on a key measure of student success. The average time-to-degree for 2018-19 bachelor’s degree recipients was 3.96 elapsed calendar years, the lowest since the university began actively tracking the measure in the 1980s and the first time the number has dropped below four years, according to the university’s Office of Academic Planning and Institutional Research.
November 5, 2019In Wisconsin, 3 in 5 people with Down syndrome diagnosed with dementia by age 55
Not so many years ago, people with Down syndrome rarely survived to middle age. Many died young due to heart problems associated with the congenital condition. Today, advances in treatment have allowed them to live longer, healthier lives.
October 28, 2019Leann Smith DaWalt, PhD, becomes UCEDD director
Leann Smith DaWalt, PhD, a longtime Waisman Center investigator, began her appointment as the director of the University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) on Oct. 14. She succeeds Bill MacLean, PhD, who retired …
October 20, 2019Whole Exome Sequencing Illuminates Genetic Condition
If you ask David Seamans what his favorite thing to do is, he’ll pause thoughtfully for a moment before responding, “Everything.” He really does mean everything
October 18, 201921st century medicine helps Amish deal with rare, inherited illnesses
There is no car in the driveway, neither phone nor electricity in the house. Handmade clothes dry on the line. It’s fall 2018, and La Farge physician James DeLine has brought us to talk with Barbara and Daniel Hochstetler, part of the large Amish population in Wisconsin’s Driftless Region.
October 18, 2019New funding for Down syndrome research and biobank
The Waisman Center is one of 25 recipients to receive funding through a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant that focuses on advancing research on Down syndrome. The grant is part of the NIH Investigation …
October 9, 2019Joan Ershler, PhD, longtime Waisman Early Childhood Program (WECP) director retires
After 27 years as the director of the Waisman Early Childhood Program (WECP), Joan Ershler, PhD, retired in early September 2019. The WECP is a model inclusive early childhood program with a developmentally diverse enrollment serving …
September 30, 2019Ann Marie Lauritzen, MMSW, MEd, named Waisman Early Childhood Program director
On September 23, the Waisman Center welcomed Ann Marie Lauritzen, MMSW, M.Ed, as the new director of the Waisman Early Childhood Program. She succeeds Joan Ershler, PhD, who retired at the beginning of September after …
September 24, 2019CMT advocate will not be sidelined
CMT is equally common among all ages, genders, and races and is one of the most common heritable neurological impairments. The symptoms present as neuropathy, foot drop, poor balance, difficulty with dexterity, or abnormal sensation – just to name a few.
September 23, 2019Electronic records pin broad set of health risks on genetic premutation
It was long believed the FMR1 premutation — an excessive number of trinucleotide repeats in the FMR1 gene — had no direct effect on the people who carry it. Until recently, the only recognized effect on the carriers of the flawed gene was the risk of having offspring with fragile X syndrome, a rare but serious form of developmental disability.
August 21, 2019Emotion-detection applications built on outdated science, report warns
Facial Movements Are Unreliable Signals of Emotion, Researchers Say Software that purportedly reads emotions in faces is being deployed or tested for a variety of purposes, including surveillance, hiring, clinical diagnosis, and market research. But …
July 24, 2019Archery event raises funds for autism research
The nonprofit Hononegah Archery is hosting the second annual Julie’s Archers for Autism and Rock River Music festival from noon-9 p.m. on Aug. 3 at Settlers Park in Rockton. Funds raised will support autism research …
July 22, 2019Athletes from Special Olympics add important perspectives to research
For many, a mention of Special Olympics invokes images of accomplished athletes, a community of inclusion and support, and the joy of athletic competition. But what many may not know is that Special Olympics is …
July 9, 2019Waisman Center Launches New Fund to Advance Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities Genomics Research
The Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, launched a new fund to support interdisciplinary research in the area of intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) genomics.
May 10, 2019- More News posts
Advancing knowledge of human development, developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases.