Discoveries

By Francisco Rodriguez Cells detect the nutrients that are in their environment and can adapt depending on what they sense. The class of signaling molecules known as inositol diphosphates or PP-IPs affects cellular shape, nutrient sensing and many other biological processes among organisms as simple as yeast and… Read More

By Sohini Roy The WHO reports that the Marburg virus has an average fatality rate of 50 percent, but fatality rate can be of up to 88 percent depending on the strain and the outbreak. Marburg viruses cause a hemorrhagic fever in humans, with a fatality rate of up to… Read More

By Wendy Bindeman https://cdn.vanderbilt.edu/t2-main/medschool-prd/wp-content/uploads/sites/101/2020/08/Discovery_Richmond-SMWeb-1.mp4   Melanoma is the most common of all cancers. The American Cancer Society estimates that over 100,000 new melanomas will be diagnosed in the U.S. in 2020. While 60 percent of people with metastatic melanoma, an aggressive type of skin cancer, have multiple treatment options… Read More

By Sohini Roy Neuro-2a cells after treatment with STING-NP. (Wang-Bishop et al. Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer, through a CC BY-NC 4.0 license) Neuroblastoma, an aggressive pediatric brain cancer with a high mortality rate, boasts a unique microenvironment that puts the brakes on infiltrating… Read More

https://cdn.vanderbilt.edu/t2-main/medschool-prd/wp-content/uploads/sites/101/2020/07/Discovery_Weaver-SM-Web-1.mp4   By Sarah Glass Cells use exosomes as pathfinding tools during migration-related processes, such as embryonic development, wound healing, and cancer metastasis. © Christoph Burgstedt, stock.adobe.com Scientists once dismissed the small, membrane-bound particles packed with proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids that are expelled by cells as mere cellular… Read More

By Heather Caslin Approximately 30 million Americans have type 2 diabetes. The majority are over 45 years old. © Vitalii Vodolazskyi, stock.adobe.com Within the pancreas, β-cells produce insulin that delivers energy to tissues through glucose. People with type 2 diabetes have smaller, less functional β-cells; however, the mechanisms that drive… Read More

https://cdn.vanderbilt.edu/t2-main/medschool-prd/wp-content/uploads/sites/101/2020/05/Tansey_website.mp4   By Suneethi Sivakumaran WDR5 has different moonlighting roles in the body, including in chromatin regulation and in chromatin-independent processes such as cell division. © Ian Dyball, stock.adobe.com The human body is a complicated network of interdependent cellular processes regulated by gene-encoded proteins. Proteins… Read More

https://cdn.vanderbilt.edu/t2-main/medschool-prd/wp-content/uploads/sites/101/2020/04/Lacy_Website.mp4   By Sara Eaton C. diff is responsible for 50% of gastrointestinal infections in hospitals but cause over 90% of GI tract infection-related deaths. © Kateryna_Kon, stock.adobe.com Gastrointestinal infections often cause damage to the stem cells in the colon’s epithelium, a thin layer of… Read More

https://cdn.vanderbilt.edu/t2-main/medschool-prd/wp-content/uploads/sites/101/2020/04/Goldenring_Website-1.mp4   By Sarah Glass Gastric cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer death in the U.S. © Crystal light, stock.adobe.com Clocking in at two pounds, the stomach is one of the body’s heaviest internal organs and can become afflicted with one of the leading causes of… Read More

https://cdn.vanderbilt.edu/t2-main/medschool-prd/wp-content/uploads/sites/101/2020/04/Winder_website.mp4   By Sohini Roy Despite stringent regulation under the Controlled Substances Act, cocaine use disorder is widespread throughout the United States. © Bits and Splits, stock.adobe.com Cocaine is a highly addictive stimulant that is frequently abused in the United States despite stringent regulation under the Controlled Substances Act. Read More