Vanderbilt University researchers next month will launch a major initiative to acquire “dense genotypes” from 100,000 individuals whose medical histories are known.

Russell Rothman, M.D., MPP, professor of Medicine, Pediatrics and Health Policy, chief of the Section of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics and director of the Vanderbilt Center for Health Services Research, has been named assistant vice chancellor for Population Health Research.

The gut has its own built-in pacemakers, populations of specialized cells that control smooth muscle contraction in the stomach, small intestine and colon.

Vanderbilt investigators demonstrate that a certain eye lens protein is evolutionarily conserved between zebrafish and rat, suggesting that zebrafish can be used as a model system to understand eye lens disorders such as cataracts.

An antioxidant protein may protect against colon cancer that develops in patients with inflammatory bowel disease, suggesting new strategies for reducing colon cancer risk in these patients.

Carrie Kitko, M.D., has joined Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt as associate professor of Pediatrics and director of the Pediatric Stem Cell Transplant Program in the Division of Hematology/Oncology.

A new mouse model demonstrates that the Hhex gene – which is linked to blood cancers – is critical for normal blood cell production.