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Nine Vanderbilt University faculty members named to endowed chairs were honored during a celebration at the Student Life Center on Feb. 28. Among them were Basic Sciences faculty Dai H. Chung (Carolyn Perot Rathjen Chair), Björn C. Knollmann (William Stokes Chair in Experimental Therapeutics), and Dan M. Roden, Sam L. Clark, M.D., Ph.D. Chair. Susan… Read More

Flavin-containing cofactors play an important role in many enzymatic biochemical reactions that involve electron and/or group transfer. In some, but not all flavin-containing enzymes, the cofactor is covalently bound. This is not a trivial distinction, because covalent binding alters the redox potential of the flavin, a change frequently required… Read More

Targeting Topoisomerase II Inhibitors Topoisomerases are critical enzymes during DNA replication and transcription, as they are responsible for untangling the knots and twists that can form as DNA is unwound and rewound during these processes. Type II topoisomerases accomplish this task by making a temporary double stranded break… Read More

Targeting Topoisomerase II Inhibitors Topoisomerases are critical enzymes during DNA replication and transcription, as they are responsible for untangling the knots and twists that can form as DNA is unwound and rewound during these processes. Type II topoisomerases accomplish this task by making a temporary double stranded break… Read More

Sandra Rosenthal, the Jack and Pamela Egan Professor of Chemistry and director of the Vanderbilt Institute for Nanoscale Science and Engineering, has been named the winner of this year’s Charles H. Herty Medal by the Georgia Section of the American Chemical Society. The award is given to recognize outstanding chemists in the… Read More

Research on circadian rhythms, longevity and the brain’s pleasure system will be featured during this year’s Brain Awareness events sponsored by the Vanderbilt Brain Institute. The Vanderbilt Brain Institute’s Rebecca Ihrie, PhD, assistant professor of Cell and Developmental Biology and Neurological Surgery, has organized a course for this year’s Osher Lifelong… Read More

Mitochondria are cellular organelles with their own DNA. Their role in power generation makes them susceptible to oxidative damage, including the formation of DNA-damaging chemical complexes called adducts. While one such adduct, M1dG, is normally excised by cells from the genomic DNA, mitochondria apparently lack this repair mechanism. This month in… Read More

Focus on Mitochondrial DNA Damage DNA damage occurs constantly as a result of physical and chemical insults. Such insults include direct oxidation of the DNA or attack by reactive species generated by the oxidation of lipids. These reactions produce many forms of damage, among them an exocyclic adduct of… Read More

Linda Sealy, associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion for basic sciences in the School of Medicine, has been recognized by the American Association for the Advancement of Science for her career-long commitment to increasing the number of underrepresented minority students in science and engineering doctoral programs. Sealy will be honored with the AAAS… Read More

Linking Cell Differentiation, Death, and Mitochondrial Function We are only now beginning to understand the complex regulatory processes that control the differentiation of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs), and we know even less about how the differentiation process alters the structure and function of cellular organelles. Of particular interest in… Read More