Infectious Diseases

November 21, 2014

Host sequesters zinc to control stomach bug

Understanding how zinc and the host’s immune response control H. pylori’s cancer-causing potential could suggest new therapeutic strategies to reduce infection and cancer risk.

By Leigh MacMillan
staph colonies on red petri dish
October 16, 2014

Staph ‘gangs’ share nutrients during infection: study

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria can share resources to cause chronic infections, Vanderbilt investigators have discovered. The findings shed light on a long-standing question in infectious diseases and may inform new treatment strategies.

By Leigh MacMillan
April 15, 2014

Anthrax bacteria’s signaling systems

Vanderbilt researchers have identified a new signaling system that anthrax bacteria uses to infect its host.

By Leigh MacMillan
December 12, 2013

Proton transfer powers multidrug resistance: study

Vanderbilt University researchers and their Belgian colleagues have discovered the mechanism behind a multidrug transporter. Their findings, posted this week by Nature Chemical Biology, could lead to new treatments for multidrug resistant bacterial infections.

By VUMC News and Communications
September 12, 2013

‘Proofreader’ key to coronavirus growth

A coronavirus protein is required for replication of the viral genome and may be a good treatment target for SARS and other diseases caused by coronaviruses.

By Leigh MacMillan
August 22, 2013

Vaccine researchers ready as new flu strain evolves

A worrisome new avian influenza virus, called H7N9, emerged this spring in Eastern China.

By VUMC News and Communications
June 20, 2013

Studies outline new model for staph bone infections

Osteomyelitis, a debilitating bone infection most frequently caused by Staphylococcus aureus (“staph”) bacteria, is particularly challenging to treat.
By Leigh MacMillan
February 21, 2013

Antibacterial protein’s molecular workings revealed

Vanderbilt investigators report new insights to the workings of calprotectin, an immune system protein that “starves” bacterial pathogens of the metal nutrients they require.
By Leigh MacMillan
January 17, 2013

Zinc: a new antibiotic target?

It may be possible to fight hospital-acquired pathogens like Acinetobacter baumannii by targeting the bacterium’s need for the nutrient metal zinc.
By Leigh MacMillan
August 9, 2012

Team creates new view of body’s infection response

A new 3-D view of the body’s response to infection — and the ability to identify proteins involved in the response — could point to novel biomarkers and therapeutic agents for infectious diseases.
By Leigh MacMillan
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