School of Medicine

Retinal diseases can make even the most mundane tasks—like cooking, driving and walking down the sidewalk—difficult or impossible, and they can’t be cured. WVU School of Medicine researchers Peter Stoilov and Visvanathan Ramamurthy are studying the role that specific proteins play in rapid retinal degeneration. What they learn may lead to new treatments that are more cost-effective and more widely applicable than the treatments available today.

Mountain State students pursuing a medical degree from the West Virginia University School of Medicine will benefit from a $250,000 scholarship gift made by a retired alumnus in memory of his late wife. Dr. Kent Webb, of Wilmington, North Carolina, established the Judy Forester Webb & Kent Webb School of Medicine Scholarship.

Despite the many challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, West Virginia University Health Sciences Center labs were largely able to stay open and functional, allowing critical research to continue. Not only were researchers able to continue their work during the pandemic, but there was actually an increase in research productivity.

A laudable spirit of perseverance that has sustained Mountaineers for generations was underscored in West Virginia University President Gordon Gee’s address to the August and December 2021 graduates during two commencement ceremonies today (Dec. 18) at the WVU Coliseum.

Viruses may have a bad reputation, but with a little help from scientists, some of them can do great things. Wen Tao Deng—a researcher with the WVU School of Medicine—is studying how engineered adeno-associated virus, or AAV, could be used in gene therapy for incurable eye disorders. Her work is relevant to a range of conditions that affect visual acuity and color vision, including red-green colorblindness, the most common form of color deficiency. The National Eye Institute has awarded her project $1.9 million.

As the COVID-19 pandemic persists, West Virginia University alumni and friends are providing financial support to help students facing financial challenges proceed with their education and achieve their dreams.

A sea of decorated mortarboards and the sounds of cheers from family and friends and tapping of the University mace will once again fill the West Virginia University Coliseum as December and August graduates gather on Saturday, Dec.18, for two commencement ceremonies, marking a return to Mountaineer tradition.

The amount in external funding for research and other sponsored programs at West Virginia University for fiscal year 2021 tops the previous year’s record by $8 million.

In a new study, Sunil Sharma, a researcher in WVU's School of Medicine, found that rural COVID patients who end up in an intensive care unit face a greater risk of death than their urban counterparts do. He also discovered that rural patients with COVID-linked acute respiratory distress syndrome are more likely to die than patients with ARDS that’s due to another cause.

West Virginia University will launch several projects and programs designed to address challenges facing rural Appalachia — everything from small-scale farming to supporting the state’s aging population.