News
A new contributor to atherosclerosis
Jan. 30, 2020—Jan. 27, 2020, 9:00 AM by Leigh MacMillan Free radicals produced during oxidative stress react with membrane fatty acids to yield highly reactive lipid aldehydes, which can modify proteins and cause cellular or tissue damage. The aldehyde HNE has been shown to modify high-density lipoprotein (HDL, the so-called good cholesterol) and contribute to atherosclerosis. Another...
Protein research seeks to induce tumor regression
Jan. 30, 2020—Jan. 29, 2020, 2:23 PM by Bill Snyder MYC is a family of three related proteins that are overexpressed in cancer and which contribute to an estimated 100,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States. Efforts to block MYC directly have failed. Fortunately, these proteins have an Achilles’ heel — a chromosome-binding cofactor called WDR5....
Zinc uptake by a deadly pathogen
Jan. 17, 2020—Jan. 13, 2020, 8:30 AM by Leigh MacMillan The journal cover featured an artistic representation of Acinetobacter baumannii infecting the lung, which was created by undergraduate student Ayomide Sanusia. Acinetobacter baumannii — a cause of pneumonia, sepsis, wound and burn infections — is becoming more prevalent and resistant to antibiotics. Like other pathogens, A. baumannii...
Study sheds light on gastric cancer development
Jan. 17, 2020—Jan. 16, 2020, 11:03 AM by Bill Snyder Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have created the world’s first laboratory model of precancerous changes in the lining of the stomach, a scientific tour de force that is helping to unlock the mysteries of gastric cancer development. Their achievement, described recently in the journal Nature Communications,...
Jeff Conn Receives ASPET Julius Axelrod Award in Pharmacology
Jan. 13, 2020—ASPET is pleased to award Dr. P. Jeffrey Conn from the Vanderbilt Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery the 2020 Julius Axelrod Award in Pharmacology. The Axelrod Award was established in 1991 to honor the memory of the eminent American pharmacologist who shaped the fields of neuroscience, drug metabolism, and biochemistry and who served as a...
Structural views of a C. diff toxin
Jan. 10, 2020—Jan. 10, 2020, 8:30 AM by Leigh MacMillan Clostridioides difficile (C. diff) is a leading cause of hospital-acquired infection and diarrhea. C. diff infection requires the secretion of one or more bacterial toxins. Recent studies have suggested that the C. diff transferase toxin (CDT) increases the severity of infection. To explore how CDT functions, D....
Cell fate signaling
Dec. 19, 2019—Dec. 17, 2019, 8:30 AM by Leigh MacMillan The protein kinase MELK is thought to affect cell cycle regulation, proliferation and mitosis. Overexpression of MELK impacts survival and proliferation of multiple cancer types, including glioblastomas and breast cancer, but its molecular functions in cancer development are unclear. Tina Iverson, PhD, and colleagues have identified a...
Study examines HIV drug’s potential to treat Alzheimer’s
Dec. 13, 2019—Dec. 12, 2019, 10:51 AM by Bill Snyder A drug used to treat and prevent HIV/AIDS is showing promise as a potential therapy for Alzheimer’s disease, and Vanderbilt University biochemist F. Peter Guengerich, PhD, is aiding efforts to make this approach to improving memory and cognitive function even better. Last month in the Journal of...
Neil Osheroff Elected New IAMSE President
Nov. 2, 2019—IAMSE Officer Election Results Posted November 25, 2019 by Rachel Hewett According to IAMSE bylaws, nominations for the positions of President, President-Elect, Secretary and Treasurer were sought from the general membership. The Board of Directors then voted to elect the officers of the association whose two-year terms will commence on January 1, 2020. It is...