What Research Areas and Discoveries Does WashU Highlight?

WashU (Washington University in St. Louis) presents its research identity around a set of large, concrete questions—can ALS be reversed, can Alzheimer's be prevented, can depression be treated with psychedelics, can bystanders be turned into life savers—and frames them as work done by faculty, students, and alumni together. The homepage groups these under broad challenges such as global health and climate change, and its news section reports specific findings, including research on blocking immune cells' path into the brain to limit neurodegeneration.

The research questions WashU puts forward

The homepage poses its research agenda as a series of open questions rather than a list of departments:

• Can we reverse the cruelty of ALS?
• Can we turn bystanders into life savers?
• Can we end years of depression with psychedelics?
• Can we prevent Alzheimer's disease?
• Can we get comfortable with uncomfortable conversations?

These span neurodegenerative disease, mental health treatment, emergency response training, and social communication—an intentionally cross-disciplinary set rather than a single medical focus.

Where discoveries are reported

WashU surfaces research progress through its News & stories section. Examples visible on the homepage include:

The neurodegeneration item is the clearest example of a specific discovery highlighted on the page: it concerns immune-cell movement into the brain as a lever on neurodegenerative damage. The other entries show that the news feed mixes research findings with campus and policy-related stories, so readers looking specifically for research should filter by the newsroom or magazine labels.

The framing: global health, climate, and collaboration

WashU describes the scope of its research as running "from global health to climate change," and says the world "needs breakthroughs" in these areas. The stated mechanism is collaboration—uniting faculty, students, and alumni—rather than isolated labs. The homepage also ties this to St. Louis itself, saying the university confronts complex issues "starting right here in St. Louis," which signals that local conditions are treated as part of the research setting, not separate from it.

How to go further

If you want to follow research rather than admissions or campus life, the homepage offers direct paths: Learn about our latest research discoveries and Explore our schools and departments. The first leads to research coverage; the second is where discipline-specific work (medicine, engineering, social sciences) is organized. For prospective students, the same page links to Browse our degree programs, and for patients or community members, Find a WashU doctor.

One caution: the homepage is a promotional overview, not a research database. It names themes and headlines but does not give publication details, funding, or lab-level specifics—those require following the newsroom links or the relevant school's site.