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Data science training program lands AAMC education award
Sep. 13, 2019—Sep. 12, 2019, 10:06 AM by Bill Snyder A course that provides biomedical scientists-in-training at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine with the essentials of data science has won second place in the 2019 Innovations in Research and Research Education Award program sponsored by the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC). Data Science Essentials is a...
Aspirnaut education program reaches decade mark
Sep. 6, 2019—Aspirnaut education program reaches decade mark Aug. 29, 2019, 9:06 AM by Bill Snyder Ten years on, a unique summer research program at Vanderbilt University Medical Center designed primarily for rural high school students with limited resources is achieving its goal of increasing the diversity of the nation’s scientists and engineers. All 119 “aspiring voyagers”...
The plus and minus of microtubules
Sep. 6, 2019—The plus and minus of microtubules Sep. 5, 2019, 9:00 AM by Bill Snyder The September issue of the Journal of Cell Biology featured the research of Marija Zanic and colleagues on the cover. The image is a montage of dynamic microtubule extensions (teal) grown in vitro from stabilized microtubule seeds (red). Microtubules are protein...
Zebrafish aid effort to regenerate damaged retinas
Sep. 6, 2019—Zebrafish aid effort to regenerate damaged retinas Sep. 5, 2019, 8:59 AM by Bill Snyder The tiny zebrafish may hold the secret to regenerating damaged retinas in humans, Vanderbilt University researchers reported last week in the journal Cell Reports. Currently there are few effective treatments for retinal degenerative diseases such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD),...
Doctoral students receive 2019 Gilliam Fellowships to support diversity and inclusion in science
Sep. 5, 2019—by Kara Furlong Sep. 3, 2019, 9:00 PM (courtesy of Howard Hughes Medical Institute) The Howard Hughes Medical Institute has awarded Gilliam Fellowships for Advanced Study to three Vanderbilt University doctoral students and their advisers. The grants are designed to support new scientific leaders and foster diversity and inclusion in the sciences, as well as...
A “rheostat” for cancer signals
Aug. 30, 2019—Aug. 27, 2019, 8:30 AM by Sanjay Mishra WNT signaling pathways play important roles in cell growth, development and cancer.The classical or “canonical” WNT pathway and its atypical, “non-canonical” counterpart share a protein called DVL2 that “transduces” or converts one kind of signal to another. Now Jason MacGurn, PhD, and colleagues have shown that two other...
Colorectal cancer researchers receive SPORE funding
Aug. 29, 2019—Aug. 26, 2019, 4:07 PM Jordan Berlin, MD, left, and Robert Coffey, MD, lead the Gastrointestinal Specialized Program of Research Excellence. (photo by Susan Urmy) by Tom Wilemon Colorectal cancer researchers from Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) have been awarded a Specialized Program of Research Excellence grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The Gastrointestinal SPORE...
New appointees bring experience and vision to QCB Program
Aug. 28, 2019—Tina Iverson (Pharmacology) and Vito Quaranta (Biochemistry) are stepping up to bat for students in the Quantitative and Chemical Biology (QCB) Program. They have recently been named Director and Associate Director, respectively, of the QCB, and will be taking over from Hassane Mchaourab (Molecular Physiology and Biophysics), who served as director since 2015.
The Slow Road to Avoid Catastrophe
Aug. 26, 2019—Microtubules – protein polymers consisting of heterodimers of α- and β-tubulin – play a critical role in cell division, morphology, and intracellular transport. During microtubule polymerization, the tubulin heterodimers, each monomer of which contains a bound GTP molecule, align themselves head-to-tail into a multi-stranded structure containing two distinct ends: a plus-end exposing β-tubulin, and a...
How nerves may lose their insulation
Aug. 23, 2019—Aug. 22, 2019, 11:00 AM by Bill Snyder Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease is the most common inherited disorder of the peripheral nerves in humans, affecting 1 in every 2,500 people. There is no cure for the disease, which causes severe disability due to disruptions in myelin, the protective insulation that covers nerve fibers. The most common...