American Journal of Physiology

A Vanderbilt study shows that reducing consumption of simple sugars helped improve gastroesophageal reflux disease.
June 13, 2023

Maternal diet influences postnatal diabetes risk

Studies in a primate animal model suggest that islet hyperfunction — which in humans is associated with increased fat mass and Type 2 diabetes — is programmed in offspring by a maternal Western-style diet during pregnancy.

By Bill Snyder
May 23, 2023

Treating kidney injury before it happens

Pretreatment of an animal model with a novel compound called PHAD reduced kidney injury, suggesting it may be a good candidate for preventing kidney injury in surgical patients.

By Sarah E. Glass
November 7, 2022

Gene mutations impair gut barrier

Mutations in a cell membrane transporter protein impair the integrity of the gut lining, contributing to chronic gastrointestinal distress for people with the mutations, Vanderbilt researchers report.

By Kelsey Pinckard
December 16, 2019

Protein dynamics in the beating heart

To study the dynamics of structural proteins in the heart, Vanderbilt investigators generated a cellular tool they expect will be useful for screening drugs that affect heart muscle contraction.

By Leigh MacMillan
July 15, 2019

Potassium balance and glaucoma

Vanderbilt Eye Institute researchers have discovered that an imbalance in the ionic environment of retinal ganglion cells may contribute to functional impairments in glaucoma.

By Sanjay Mishra
September 27, 2018

Fat tissue’s “iron sink”

Alyssa Hasty and colleagues demonstrated that immune cells called macrophages act in fat tissue to store iron and prevent iron toxicity.

By Sanjay Mishra
February 23, 2017

A target to heal tiny lungs

The protein beta-catenin may be a good target for therapies to treat lung disease that is a common complication of preterm birth.
By Leigh MacMillan
December 8, 2016

Making human beta cells reproduce

A new method developed at Vanderbilt will speed the search for potential therapeutics for diabetes: compounds that stimulate the replication of insulin-producing beta cells.
By VUMC News and Communications
August 15, 2016

In search of new asthma therapies

A peptide molecule relaxes airway smooth muscle and may be a potential therapeutic for asthma that has become resistant to standard therapies.
By Leigh MacMillan
August 3, 2016

Fetal impact of antidepressants

Antidepressant use during pregnancy is common. Fetal exposure to the class of antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) is associated with the life-threatening condition PPHN (persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn), but a causal link has not been established.
By Leigh MacMillan
February 20, 2015

Tiny model of diabetes

Vanderbilt University researchers have created a zebrafish model of skeletal muscle insulin resistance that could help improve diabetes treatment.
By Bill Snyder
October 15, 2014

Antibiotics, fetal vessel defect linked

Certain antibiotics increase the risk of a congenital heart disorder called patency of the ductus arteriosis.
By VUMC News and Communications
September 16, 2014

Patient-derived stem cells shed light on pulmonary hypertension

Stem cells derived from patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension provide a unique resource for studying the molecular defects that cause the disease and testing potential therapies.
By Leigh MacMillan
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