Matthew Tyska

The research team studying undiagnosed congenital diarrheas includes, from left, Matt Tyska, PhD, James Goldenring, MD, PhD, Joseph Roland, PhD, Sari Acra, MD, MPH, and Hernan Correa, MD.
October 24, 2019

Team set to study undiagnosed congenital diarrhea in infants

Researchers at four institutions, including Vanderbilt, have been awarded a five-year, $9.4 million federal grant to tackle undiagnosed congenital diarrheas caused by a single gene mutation.

By Christina Echegaray
September 19, 2019

Microvilli in motion

Live cell imaging studies have revealed that microvilli — finger-like protrusions on the surface of epithelial cells — move and collide as they form the brush border.

By Anivarya Kumar
February 14, 2019

Adhesion protein optimizes border

Matthew Tyska and colleagues have found that an adhesion protein plays a key role in building the intestinal brush border that is essential for absorbing nutrients.

By Leigh MacMillan
September 13, 2018

How microvilli form

A protein called IRTKS helps build the microvilli that form the border of cells in the intestines, explaining why the protein is a frequent target of gut pathogens.

By Sanjay Mishra
January 31, 2018

Cell skeleton and the brush border

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered a role for microtubules — part of the cellular “skeleton” — in organizing the unique sidedness of the epithelial cells that line organs like the intestines.

By Leigh MacMillan
October 6, 2016

Motoring to the tips of the brush border

New findings implicate a motor protein in the assembly of the brush border in the intestines and kidneys – a specialized surface that is critical for healthy organ function.

By Leigh MacMillan
February 8, 2016

Building intestinal brush borders

Studies of the molecular complex that helps build specialized cellular surfaces could shed light on the mechanisms underlying a genetic deaf-blindness syndrome accompanied by intestinal disease.
By Leigh MacMillan
April 17, 2014

Nutrient-absorbing surface’s assembly revealed: study

Vanderbilt University researchers have discovered how intestinal cells build the "brush border" -- a specialized surface structure that is critical for absorbing nutrients and defending against pathogens.
By Leigh MacMillan
July 11, 2013

New ‘super’ microscopes sharpen cellular imaging

Two new “super-resolution” optical microscopes have put Vanderbilt University Medical Center on the cutting edge of cellular imaging, and are giving researchers their first views of the cell at the molecular level.
By Bill Snyder
May 14, 2012

Intestinal artillery launches anti-bacterial attack

The epithelial cells that line the intestines have a newly discovered mechanism for protecting us against microbes: they fire anti-bacterial "bullets" into the gut.
By Leigh MacMillan