NIGMS

brain and lightning
November 10, 2016

Protein structure and epilepsy severity

Understanding how mutations affect the structure and function of inhibitory neurotransmitter receptors will shed light on the mechanisms underlying some types of epilepsy.

By VUMC News and Communications
tug-of-rope pair
November 3, 2016

VUMC investigators find pathogens work together to infect host

Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus — two pathogens that frequently co-infect the lungs of patients with cystic fibrosis — appear to cooperate with each other, Vanderbilt investigators have discovered. When pseudomonas is starved for metal by the host, it shuts down the production of factors that would normally kill staph, promoting a co-infection.

By Leigh MacMillan
October 21, 2016

DNA damage response protein

Vanderbilt researchers have determined that a previously uncharacterized protein responds to DNA replication stress and has an essential role in maintaining the integrity of the genome.

By Bill Snyder
zinc pill on spoon over white background
September 26, 2016

Study shows excess dietary zinc worsens C. diff infection

Too much dietary zinc increases susceptibility to infection by Clostridium difficile — “C. diff” — the most common cause of hospital-acquired infections.

By Leigh MacMillan
September 9, 2016

In search of new cancer targets

Vanderbilt researchers developed a new algorithm to find clinically targetable gene rearrangements in cancers.

By Leigh MacMillan
September 8, 2016

Going after the ‘heart attack gremlin’

A protein called Gremlin 2 controls the extent of inflammation after heart attack and may be a good therapeutic target.

By Sanjay Mishra
August 12, 2016

New culprit in nerve degeneration

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered that regulation of cell volume plays a role in nerve degeneration and peripheral neuropathies.
By Leigh MacMillan
July 14, 2016

Membrane fats impact drug transporter

New studies of a membrane transporter could explain antibiotic resistance – and lead to novel ways to combat it.
By Bill Snyder
May 12, 2016

COX-2 blocker could help PTSD

COX-2 inhibitors – used clinically to reduce inflammation and pain – may find new applications for treating PTSD and other stress-related psychiatric disorders like major depression.
By Bill Snyder
April 5, 2016

Immune defenses in asthma

Vanderbilt researchers show that a certain factor negatively impacts the first-line responder cells in the lungs, providing one explanation for why patients with asthma are at greater risk for invasive bacterial disease.
By Leigh MacMillan
March 7, 2016

A clue to cell cleavage

Actin and microtubule cytoskeletons are coordinated during cytokinesis – the process that separates one cell into two and is linked to events underlying cancer.
By Sanjay Mishra
February 5, 2016

Dynamics of a drug resistance transporter

Vanderbilt investigators are exploring the shape changes in a multidrug transporter to understand the mechanisms of antibacterial resistance.
By VUMC News and Communications
January 28, 2016

Findings offer new insight on how cell division proteins work

A family of proteins with critical roles in cell division, synaptic transmission and cell migration don’t all function the way scientists thought they did, according to two new studies led by Vanderbilt researchers.
By Leigh MacMillan
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