Research, News & Discoveries
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CISR Life Is Beautiful Image Contest returns to showcase spectacular scientific imagery
The Cell Imaging Shared Resource is hosting its second annual Life Is Beautiful Image Contest and will award cash prizes to winning images. The contest features stunning scientific imagery of life at the microscopic level and is open to anyone who has captured an image using a CISR microscope. Read MoreMay. 13, 2025
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Redefining synaptic architecture: Nanoblocks as key organizing units in the postsynaptic density
In a new paper postdoctoral fellow Rong Sun and members of the Qiangjun Zhou lab used cryo-electron tomography to better understand the precise structural arrangement of synapses of excitatory primary hippocampal neurons. Read MoreMay. 13, 2025
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Heidi Hamm, Eric Skaar elected members of the National Academy of Sciences
Heidi Hamm,, the Aileen M. Lange and Annie Mary Lyle Professor of Cardiovascular Research and former chair of the Department of Pharmacology, and Eric Skaar, the Ernest W. Goodpasture Professor of Pathology and director of the Vanderbilt Institute for Infection, Immunology and Inflammation have been elected members of the National Academy of Sciences in recognition of their “distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.” Read MoreMay. 12, 2025
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A package deal: Diagnosing and treating breast cancer with a single complex
Vanderbilt researchers have developed a nanoparticle complex that can both visualize and attack cancer cells by targeting the tumor microenvironment. Read MoreMay. 7, 2025
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Cracking the code: How studying single cells reveals the secrets of noncoding genes
In a recent study, Vanderbilt researchers address a significant gap in our understanding of how noncoding regions of the genome regulate important biological processes, such as X-chromosome inactivation. They use an innovative, single-cell approach to uncover new mechanistic insights into how specific long noncoding RNAs control critical gene regulation events. Read MoreMay. 7, 2025
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Vanderbilt Brain Institute marks 25 years of discovery with 2025 Brain Blast celebration
The Vanderbilt Brain Institute’s annual Brain Blast event, held March 26 at the downtown Nashville Public Library, celebrated 25 years of discovery with a day of hands-on neuroscience activities for K–8 students and families. Read MoreMay. 5, 2025
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Hodges, Plate named 2025 Chancellor Faculty Fellow
Eleven outstanding faculty members including Emily Hodges, associate professor of biochemistry, and Lar Plate, faculty affiliate of the Vanderbilt Institute for Chemical Biology, have been selected for the 2025 cohort of Chancellor Faculty Fellows. Each fellow holds the title of Chancellor Faculty Fellow and receives $80,000 over a multi-year period to support their work. They also meet with their cohort to exchange ideas on teaching and research, build a broader intellectual community that advances collaborative scholarship, and engage in academic leadership development to increase their leadership capacity. Read MoreMay. 1, 2025
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Witt, Kunnath, and Lake honored with prestigious P.E.O. Scholar Award
Graduate students Atlee Witt, Ansley Kunnath, and Allie Lake are three of 100 doctoral students from across the U.S. and Canada to receive the P.E.O. Scholar Award in recognition of their outstanding academic achievements. Read MoreApr. 30, 2025
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Vanderbilt basic science alum Q&A: Corey Hayford
Corey Hayford, PhD’21, sat down with us to discuss his experience studying basic science at Vanderbilt and how it played a role in his career. Hayford is now a principal data engineer at Cellarity. Read MoreApr. 30, 2025
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Winning the War on Bacteria
Crucial research by Neil Osheroff and his lab leads to approval of the first new class of antibacterial drugs in decades. Read MoreApr. 28, 2025