Department of Cell and Developmental Biology

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered that microvilli – finger-like projections from cells in the intestine – respond to the shear stress of fluid flow to drive a cellular pathway that regulates nutrient balance.

By VUMC News and Communications

October 17, 2017

Researchers find novel mechanism of resistance to anti-cancer drugs

Vanderbilt investigators have discovered a novel non-genetic cause of resistance to the targeted anti-cancer therapy cetuximab. Their findings, reported this week in Nature Medicine, suggest a strategy for overcoming this resistance.

By Leigh MacMillan

Pediatric health conditions, their treatments and the related stress hinder the prefrontal cortex, which is the region of the brain associated with learning, memory and behavior. (istock)

September 20, 2017

Goal of new tissue-chip research is to assess efficacy of novel epilepsy drugs

An interdisciplinary team of Vanderbilt University researchers has received a two-year, $2-million federal grant to develop an “organ-on-chip” model for two genetic forms of epilepsy.

By VUMC News and Communications

August 31, 2017

Epigenetics expert Allis set for Sept. 7 Discovery Lecture

Internationally known epigeneticist C. David Allis, Ph.D., will deliver the first Flexner Discovery Lecture of the academic year at 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7, in room 208 Light Hall.

By Bill Snyder

colored representation of cells and glia

August 17, 2017

Discovery sheds light on protein key to nerve cells’ myelin sheath

Genetic mutations in PMP22 (peripheral myelin protein 22) cause a variety of peripheral neuropathies, underscoring the importance of the protein to a healthy peripheral nervous system. But the precise function of PMP22, a major component of the myelin sheath that surrounds and insulates peripheral nerve cell axons, has been unclear.