Stephen Doster

Many melanoma patients are treated with drugs called BRAF or MEK inhibitors that specifically target the mutant proteins created in cancerous tumors.  These inhibitors can block the tumors’ ability to grow and spread. According to Ann Richmond, Ingram Professor of Cancer Research and professor of pharmacology… Read More

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have made a fundamental discovery about how the heart compensates for genetic variations that otherwise could trigger abnormal and potentially fatal heart rhythms. Their findings, reported recently in the journal Circulation, add significantly to understanding what causes abnormal heart rhythms, or arrhythmias, and… Read More

Although targeted therapies have been developed for melanoma patients, tumor progression eventually results. Understanding characteristics of melanoma associated with treatment resistance is important for prolonging therapy effectiveness. In a retrospective study of patients treated with BRAF and/or MEK inhibitors, Chi Yan, PhD, Ann Richmond, PhD, and… Read More

Vanderbilt University has signed an exclusive, worldwide license and a research collaboration agreement with Neumora Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering precision medicines for brain diseases through the integration of data science and neuroscience.   The licensed program centers around the M4 muscarinic receptor positive allosteric modulator—including… Read More

Publicly available data sources help drive progress in science, especially complete and annotated data sources. As part of a student research project, corresponding author Anne Hatmaker, a Ph.D. student in the lab of Antonis Rokas, professor of biological sciences, and first author Miya Hugaboom, an undergraduate in the Rokas lab,… Read More

Stressful experiences can lead to adaptive or detrimental behaviors. Understanding how stress can affect our brains can help understand basic brain function and is also essential to discerning causes and treatments for some diseases. A group of researchers led by Jeffrey Conn, professor of pharmacology at… Read More

Richard Sando, assistant professor of pharmacology, has been selected to receive a 2022 Sloan Research Fellowship, one of the most competitive and prestigious awards available to early-career researchers. The fellowships, awarded annually by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, honor extraordinary U.S. and Canadian scientists and scholars… Read More

When considering pursuing an M.D., biomedical Ph.D., or M.D./Ph.D., what knowledge could undergraduate students obtain to prepare them to decide on a pathway aligned with their interests, personality, and goals? Do undergraduates grasp what this journey as a student will look like, and what professional life afterward will entail? Beth… Read More

The brain is constantly firing and controlling purposeful action potentials—electronic messages used by neurons to communicate with each other and allow the brain to function. Conversely, the way spontaneous neural communication happens in the brain has been found to make use of a different process. Ege Kavalali, William Stokes Chair in Experimental… Read More

Jennifer Pietenpol, PhD, director of the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC), Benjamin F. Byrd Jr. Professor of Oncology and Executive Vice President for Research for Vanderbilt University Medical Center, is stepping down on June 30 from her long-held role as the Cancer Center’s director to focus on a combined leadership role… Read More