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Summertime is beach time, swimming pool time and gardening time. Most of us spend a lot more time in the sun during the summer months than during the rest of the year, and Washington University dermatologists say it’s very important to protect ourselves from the sun’s damaging rays.

U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Wesley FarnsworthAirmen load the MRI machine onto a C-17 Globemaster.Members of the 375th Logistics Readiness Squadron at Scott Air Force Base recently loaded the 26,000-pound heart of a Magnetic Resonance Imaging machine onto a C-17 ultimately bound for Argentina. The MRI equipment was donated to a hospital in Salta, Argentina, by the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

For years, scientists have known that red wine can provide certain health benefits. Regular red wine drinkers often have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, as well as other disorders associated with aging. Now researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are studying the active ingredient in red wine to see whether it might enhance longevity in some people.

The School of Medicine Commencement Recognition Ceremony May 15 at the Ferrara Theater at America’s Center recognized the academic achievements of 109 students: 80 students earned the doctor of medicine degree; 16 earned a dual doctor of medicine/doctor of philosophy degree (M.D./Ph.D.); and 13 earned the doctor of medicine/master of arts degree (M.D./M.A). Michael V. Drake, M.D., chancellor of University of California-Irvine, spoke at the ceremony about “The Privilege of Practice.”

Researchers at the School of Medicine are collecting blood samples, mammograms and other medical data to populate a unique new women’s health repository. This wealth of information will be used to support future research projects focused on breast cancer and breast cancer treatments.

If you’ve regularly been coughing, wheezing or short of breath, you may want to get tested for asthma at the Saint Louis Science Center on Saturday, May 16, 2009. As part of a nationwide program, Washington University School of Medicine physicians will be at the Science Center to test lung function and answer questions about asthma. The screenings are free.

Forget your keys recently, can’t remember where you put your reading glasses and feeling a little blue? It could be that you’re not getting enough vitamin D. Researchers at the School of Medicine studying the effects of vitamin D deficiency on the elderly have found a correlation of mild depression and forgetfulness with low levels of vitamin D.

School of Medicine clinical faculty and staff recently collected more than 1,500 medical textbooks to be donated to the Lui Hospital in Sudan, located in the war zone of southern Sudan. The staff who work there rely on outdated medical references, some dating back to the 1930s.

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are studying military-like techniques to detect and destroy deadly pathogens, including cancerous tumors. Nanoparticles, invisible to the human eye, operate much like a laser-guided missile within the body. They are able to locate and even deliver medication directly to diseased areas with great accuracy in the laboratory. The researchers will soon begin testing the nanoparticles in human clinical trials.

Photo by Robert Cohen/St. Louis Post-DispatchKathy and Natalie Ferrara prepare dinner. The Ferraras will be interviewed Friday by StoryCorps about Kathy surviving colon cancer.Three years ago, Kathy Ferrara was faced with the heartbreaking task of telling her children she had cancer. She carefully planned her message. Next week, Ferrara and her daughter Natalie will sit in a quiet room at the Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and talk in-depth about when mom found out she had Stage 2 colon cancer and cellular tests revealed a high risk for recurrence. The conversation will be recorded by StoryCorps, a nonprofit organization in Brooklyn that’s constructing one of the largest oral history projects of its kind.