Innovative UW Undiagnosed Genetic Disease Clinic seeks to identify rare genetic conditions
The UW Center for Human Genomics and Precision Medicine at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health recently opened its first patient clinic, the UW Undiagnosed Genetic Disease Clinic at the Waisman Center. The clinic, one of 11 specialty clinics at the Waisman Center, is for people with undiagnosed genetic diseases, creating a vital local hub in a global community of experts dedicated to solving medical mysteries with state-of-the-art technologies for people whose conditions remain undiagnosed despite an extensive prior clinical workup.
July 19, 2021
A new computational pipeline connects disease and discovery at the cellular level
Could Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia be biologically connected? A new computational model, scGRNom (single-cell Gene Regulatory Network prediction from multi- omics), developed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, harnesses the power of multi-omics and …
July 1, 2021
UCEDD project to address health equity for Latino families of children with developmental disabilities
Español Padres e Hijos en Acción and the Waisman Center University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD), University of Wisconsin-Madison announced a $330,000 grant to improve local health care responsiveness to the needs of …
June 14, 2021
Second seat in Waisman cluster hire filled by neuroscientist André Sousa
Sousa is the second hire in the cluster initiative that includes a biostatistician, a neuroscientist, and a geneticist. The cluster will serve as a nucleus to integrate research, training, and clinical services in the human genomics research area at the Waisman Center. Waisman director Qiang Chang says he is very happy to have Sousa join the Waisman team.
May 24, 2021
Schizophrenia: Illuminating a potential treatment and gene regulation
A new study from the lab of Waisman investigator Xinyu Zhao, PhD, brings us one step closer to identifying treatments for psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia (SCZ) and illuminates the role of a specific gene in regulating the disorder. “Regulation of Cav3.2 by schizophrenia risk gene FXR1 is critical for interneuron functions and social behaviors” was published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry in April. The study also identifies a specific gene as the regulator of a type of neurons that plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of certain psychiatric disorders.
April 29, 2021Cengiz receives Academic Staff Excellence Awards
Pelin Cengiz, MD, an associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics and a Waisman Center investigator, is among this year’s recipients. She received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research: Independent Investigator.
April 27, 2021
Building community connection: from feedmill to autism therapy center
In the shadow of the Fennimore water tower sits a nondescript metal building. The once-abandoned former feed mill has now become The Learning Center, a unique resource for youth with autism and their families. Therapy …
April 25, 2021
Fetal tissue research carries on at UW after Biden team reverses Trump limits
The Biden administration’s loosening of restrictions on the use of fetal tissue in research will allow UW-Madison scientists to continue such studies, which opponents have tried several times to ban in Wisconsin.
April 22, 2021
The identities of enzymes: study further defines the function of a potential target for Alzheimer’s therapy
A new study from the lab of UW-Madison professor of medicine Luigi Puglielli, MD, PhD, opens a door to potential treatments for diseases of age, such as Alzheimer’s disease, by defining the roles of two enzymes that are imperative to protein production. “Endoplasmic reticulum acetyltransferases Atase1 and Atase2 differentially regulate reticulophagy, macroautophagy and cellular acetyl-CoA metabolism” was published in April in the journal Communications Biology.
April 20, 2021
Susan Ellis Weismer receives 2021 Hilldale Award
Ellis Weismer is an expert on language learning disorders in children. She has contributed new insights into three major language-associated disorders: autism spectrum disorder, developmental language disorder, and children who are late to talk.
April 13, 2021
Guggenheim Fellowship awarded to Waisman Investigator Seth Pollak
Dr. Seth Pollak, the College of Letters & Science Distinguished Professor of Psychology, has been named a Fellow of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, one of 184 artists, writers, scholars, and scientists selected through a rigorous peer-review process from more than 3,000 applicants.
April 13, 2021
Artificial intelligence can accelerate clinical diagnosis of fragile X syndrome
An analysis of electronic health records for 1.7 million Wisconsin patients revealed a variety of health problems newly associated with fragile X syndrome, the most common inherited cause of intellectual disability and autism, and may help identify cases years in advance of the typical clinical diagnosis.
April 9, 2021
Waisman CP Clinic strikes a balance
Twins Sebastian and Charlotte Sundly are quite the contrasting pair, yet they balance one another out perfectly in some interesting and unexpected ways.
March 29, 2021
Illuminating the brain through a new channel
As scientists seek to understand more about the brain and how it functions, neuroimaging modalities such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provide integral tools in this pursuit. However, an MRI is not possible for all …
March 16, 2021
A stimulating environment: Waisman Center acquires neuromodulation lab for infants and children
The adaptability of children with disabilities has inspired Bernadette Gillick, PhD, MSPT, PT for the majority of her career. A physical therapist and neuroscientist, her research focuses on recovery and development in infants who have suffered a stroke between the third trimester in utero and the first month of life.
March 9, 2021
Individualized brain cell grafts reverse Parkinson’s symptoms in monkeys
Grafting neurons grown from monkeys’ own cells into their brains relieved the debilitating movement and depression symptoms associated with Parkinson’s disease, researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison reported today.
March 1, 2021
Thoughts of gratitude: the Willis family
On August 13, 2003, a coach bus pulled up to the Waisman Center. The 21 passengers – all children and grandchildren of the visit’s organizers, Bill and Doris Willis – were coming from Milwaukee to …
February 14, 2021
UW vision researchers partner with U.S. Department of Defense to develop stem cell therapy for combat-related eye injuries
The new project, titled Outer Retina Reconstruction for Combat Afflictions or ORRCA, is a collaboration between the McPherson Eye Research Insitute at UW‒Madison, the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, the UW College of Engineering, the University of Birmingham (UK) and British Ministry of Defence and the National Eye Institute. It is funded by a grant for more than $5 million from the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD).
January 11, 2021When research goes remote: adapting studies in the face of COVID-19
By Peter Jurich, Waisman Science Writer With every challenge comes new opportunities. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S. in March 2020, much of the country went on lock-down with only essential services and operations …
January 10, 2021Transformative gift supports scholars
The Morse Society, a group of Waisman graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, is getting a surprisingly early financial boost from its founders. Founded by Dick Morse, MD, a UW alum and retired child psychiatrist, and his lifelong partner, Lawrence M. Connor, MSW, a retired social worker, the Morse Society is focused on training and research in childhood mental health and developmental disabilities.
January 6, 2021Covering faces around kids won’t mask emotions
By Chris Barncard, UW Communications MADISON — The proliferation of face coverings to keep COVID-19 in check isn’t keeping kids from understanding facial expressions, according to a new study by University of Wisconsin–Madison psychologists. It’s …
December 28, 2020Former Waisman Center Director, Terrence “Terry” Dolan, dies at 80
Terrence “Terry” R. Dolan, PhD, former director of the Waisman Center passed away on December 11, 2020. He was 80 and is survived by his wife Mary Ann and their four grown children and their …
December 28, 2020- More News posts
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