Department of Biochemistry

Probing innate immunity

Manuel Ascano team validates an inhibitor of the cGAS-STING signaling pathway, which is important for cellular innate immunity against bacteria, viruses, and our own damaged DNA.

New method captures early viral-host protein interactions

Researchers have developed a method to identify the primary interactions between incoming viral RNA genomes and host proteins.

A dual-purpose metabolic switch

John York and colleagues have demonstrated that the protein Vip1 is a rare type of bifunctional enzyme: it can both synthesize and destroy key cellular signaling molecules.

Cellular factor helps package flu genome

New insights on influenza genome packaging could guide strategies for interfering with the virus’s life cycle and ability to cause infection.

Triple-negative breast cancer drug therapy shows promise

Researchers from Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) discovered a role for MYCN in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), a particularly aggressive form of the disease, and identified a potential intervention for further clinical investigation.

By Tom Wilemon

March 10, 2020

Loss of ‘Jedi’ alters neuron activity

This is not the Jedi you’re thinking of. This Jedi is a receptor that helps clear away dead neurons during development, and its loss changes the activity of dorsal root ganglia neurons, which could have implications for treating chronic pain.