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Proper cell division is a basic process critical to cell survival. A ring composed of actin filaments and myosin motor proteins pinches the cell apart, producing two daughter cells with equal amounts of cellular components. Reporting in the Journal of Cell Biology, Kathleen Gould, Ph.D., and colleagues characterized how this powerful contractile ring… Read More

For years, Kathleen Gould, Ph.D., and her colleagues have drawn models of the contractile ring — the molecular apparatus that physically divides cells — and its parts. They used genetic studies to probe how the protein parts fit together, but their models involved some educated guesses. “We drew things certain ways, but… Read More

Basic research underway at Vanderbilt University Medical Center is raising hopes that one day it will be possible to reverse memory loss in people with Alzheimer’s disease and stop a major driver of cancer in its tracks. During a Vanderbilt Cutting-Edge Discovery Lecture last week, David Sweatt, Ph.D., chair of the… Read More

Flow of fluids through the gut, such as milk from an infant’s diet, generates a shear stress on cells lining the intestine. Ken Lau, Ph.D., and colleagues have demonstrated that microvilli – finger-like membrane protrusions – are capable of sensing shear forces and subsequently drive an intracellular response called autophagy. Read More

A trio of Vanderbilt University scientists, including CDB's Marija Zanic, recently described their cutting-edge investigations of cellular dynamics and cancer treatment during a Flexner Discovery Lecture. Read More

Dylan Burnette won a top 20 (19th place) award in the Nikon small world photomicrography competition. Nilay Taneja won an image of distinction (top100) in the same competition. The competition invites images from scientists worldwide. Read More

Despite a tremendous amount of scientific study, many outstanding mysteries still surround the way in which cells in living tissue respond to and repair physical damage. One prominent mystery is exactly how wound-healing is triggered.Using an ultrafast, ultraprecise laser, a team of physicists and biologists at Vanderbilt University has taken an… Read More

The Department of Cell and Developmental Biology hosted David Allis on September 7th for the first Flexner Discovery Lecture Series of the year. David Allis' talk was titled, "Varying the terrain of epigenetic landscapes: implications for gene regulation, development and cancer" Dr. David Allis is the Joy and Jack Fishman Professor and Head of the Laboratory of Chromatin Biology and Epigenetics at The Rockefeller… Read More

Jason MacGurn received a 2017 Research Scholar Program Grants (RSG) Projects award to fund the Cell Dynamics Symposium!… Read More

On June 2nd the CDB hosted part of the Biomedical Research Education and Training (BRET) office's 25th Reunion. Approximately 170 Interdisciplinary Graduate Program (IGP) alumni attended, some of whom met with CDB faculty and toured our facilities, including the new Nikon Center of Excellence imaging lab. In the “Latest Discoveries from CDB… Read More