Research

Heart illustration
April 2, 2014

Development and disease in the aorta

Smooth muscle cells that line the aorta differ in development but not in the adult, a finding that has implications for understanding aortic development and disease.

By Peng Xu
March 31, 2014

E-records shed light on drug response

Electronic medical records linked to DNA biobanks are a valid resource for defining and understanding the genetic factors that contribute to drug response.

By Leigh MacMillan
March 28, 2014

Mapping brain circuitry

Vanderbilt investigators have used two types of neuroimaging to establish a “map” of connections for a brain region important in anxiety and addiction.

By Leigh MacMillan
Tiny baby holding man's thumb
March 27, 2014

Gut woes of preemies focus of microbiome effort

A multidisciplinary team of microbiome researchers at Vanderbilt University is shedding light on necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a disease of prematurity that kills hundreds of babies and costs the U.S. health care system an estimated $5 billion a year.

By Bill Snyder
March 27, 2014

Grant bolsters patient-centered outcomes research

Patient-centered outcomes research is the focus of a $3.3 million, five-year, institutional K12 training grant awarded to Vanderbilt University Medical Center by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).

By Craig Boerner
March 27, 2014

Study links stem cell gene to prostate cancer susceptibility

A gene on chromosome 8 — in a region of the genome linked to risk for many types of cancer — is particularly associated with prostate cancer susceptibility, Vanderbilt University researchers have found.

By Leigh MacMillan
March 27, 2014

Flu boosts pneumococcal colonization

Influenza and parainfluenza infections – but not other respiratory viruses – increase the risk of acquiring pneumococcal bacteria, the most common cause of severe pneumonia.
By VUMC News and Communications
March 20, 2014

Study team able to disrupt ‘building blocks’ of behavior

Researchers at Vanderbilt have been able to alter mouse behavior by silencing gene expression in interneurons, distinct populations of nerve cells that are the main regulators of brain circuits.
By VUMC News and Communications
March 19, 2014

Small molecule protects kidney filter

A compound identified at Vanderbilt has therapeutic potential in protecting the kidney filter barrier.
By Bill Snyder
March 17, 2014

Delirium increases long-term disability

Patients who suffer a longer duration of delirium in the intensive care unit are more likely to experience long-term disability after discharge.
By Leigh MacMillan
March 14, 2014

Protein boosts retinal neuron survival

An ion channel protein called TRIPV1 helps retinal neurons survive the elevated eye pressure associated with glaucoma.
By Leigh MacMillan
March 13, 2014

‘Missing link’ may spur new brain disorder drugs

Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego and Vanderbilt University have discovered a “missing link” in the structure of a transmembrane receptor that could lead to new treatments for autism, schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.
By Bill Snyder
March 13, 2014

Viral illness may spur ‘standing up’ disorder

Circulating “autoantibodies” possibly triggered by a viral illness may contribute an abnormally rapid heart rate or tachycardia upon standing that affects 500,000 Americans, mostly young women, according to researchers at the University of Oklahoma and Vanderbilt University.
By Bill Snyder