Research, News & Discoveries

By Coleman Harris Caption: “Scanning electron micrograph of S. aureus bacteria escaping destruction by human white blood cells” by NIAID licensed under CC BY 2.0. Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a pathogen that often causes the typical “staph infections” that form abscesses or boils.  The pathogen maximizes its ability to… Read More

By Amanda N. John­­­son Reprinted with permission from ACS Nano2019, 13, 10, 10939-10960. Copyright 2019 American Chemical Society. A recent study reported in ACS Nano adds vaccination to the list of human activities where the means to an end are just as important as the end itself. Read More

Oct. 17, 2019, 12:00 PM by Leigh MacMillan Dendritic “spines” — small protrusions on the receiving side of the connection (synapse) between two nerve cells — are recognized as key functional components of neuronal circuits in mammals. The shapes and numbers of spines are regulated by neuronal activity and correlate… Read More

Oct. 17, 2019, 8:50 AM   by Doug Campbell Nancy Brown, MD, Hugh J. Morgan Professor and chair of Vanderbilt’s Department of Medicine, was recently elected a Master of the American College of Physicians. Nancy Brown, MD Brown is stepping down from her role as the department’s leader to become… Read More

Sep. 29, 2019, 8:23 PM MyVU is spotlighting a select group of new faculty for 2019-20. Read more profiles in the series. By Lorena Infante Lara Nancy Carrasco knows how enriching an experience living abroad can be. Originally from Mexico City, she earned an… Read More

New faculty Houra Merrikh: On a collision course with antibiotic resistance Sep. 29, 2019, 8:59 PM MyVU is spotlighting a select group of new faculty for 2019-20. Read more profiles in the series. By Lorena Infante Lara Houra Merrikh distinctly remembers the day the… Read More

By Lorena Infante Lara DNA replication is an intensely complicated process that relies on the actions and interactions of many, many proteins. At least 593, to be precise. Using iPOND (isolation of proteins on nascent DNA), a tool that was first developed in his lab, David… Read More

Oct. 3, 2019, 10:09 AM by Tom Wilemon The recipients of the 2019 Louisa Nelson Awards include a poet, a community activist and Vanderbilt cancer researcher Kimryn Rathmell, MD, PhD, Cornelius Abernathy Craig Professor of Medicine. Kimryn Rathmell, MD, PhD Each year, Nelson’s Green… Read More

Oct. 3, 2019, 10:09 AM by Bill Snyder Mutations in a subunit of a receptor that binds the major inhibitory neurotransmitter GABAA in the brain have been linked, through a common mechanism, to epilepsy, autism and intellectual disability, researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and colleagues report. The team’s discovery,… Read More

Oct. 3, 2019, 10:09 AM by Leigh MacMillan Maintenance of genome integrity — and prevention of diseases such as cancer — requires complete and faithful replication of the genome every cell division cycle. To fully understand how genome integrity is maintained, David Cortez, PhD, and colleagues have… Read More