Eric Skaar Archives
Study identifies first cellular “chaperone” for zinc, sheds light on worldwide public health problem of zinc deficiency
May. 17, 2022—A team led by Vanderbilt researchers has described and characterized the first zinc metallochaperone: a protein that puts zinc into other “client” proteins.
VUMC team discovers how bacterial pathogen survives without water
May. 5, 2022—Vanderbilt researchers are studying a bacterial pathogen that can survive on hospital surfaces — without water — for months, an ability that has helped it become a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections.
Study advances understanding of bacterial bioterrorism agent
Apr. 7, 2022—Vanderbilt researchers have identified a critical regulatory factor in the bacterium that causes the disease anthrax and has been used as a biological weapon.
Impaired neutrophils in autoimmunity
Jan. 27, 2022—Vanderbilt researchers help answer the question of why patients with autoimmune diseases like lupus are more susceptible to bacterial infections: their neutrophils have impaired antibacterial activity.
Molecular imaging of C. diff infection
Sep. 30, 2021—C. difficile — the leading cause of hospital-associated intestinal infections — induces a rapid influx of bile acids into the gut, which could provide a novel target for blocking infection.
Caught in a web: study reveals that immune cells cooperate to trap and kill bacteria
Sep. 10, 2021—Vanderbilt researchers have identified a new antibacterial mechanism that could inspire novel strategies for combating staph and other extracellular bacterial pathogens.
VUMC postdoctoral scientist named HHMI Hanna Gray Fellow
Feb. 18, 2021—Valeria Reyes Ruiz, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, has been selected as a 2020 Hanna Gray Fellow by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI).
Grant helps expand VI4’s Artist-in-Residence program
Oct. 29, 2020—An innovative Vanderbilt program that brings together scientists and artists with the shared goal of scientific communication is set to expand with support from a three-year grant from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund.
Probing pathogen antibiotic resistance
Sep. 17, 2020—Understanding how bacteria evolve resistance to antibiotics and host stresses could guide the development of more effective antimicrobial therapeutics.
New space bolsters infectious disease and immunology discovery
Jul. 9, 2020—The Vanderbilt Institute for Infection, Immunology and Inflammation (VI4) recently moved into its new research and administrative home.
C. diff captures blood cell cofactor to build defensive shield
Jun. 10, 2020—Vanderbilt University Medical Center scientists have identified a C. diff protein system that senses and captures heme (part of hemoglobin) to build a protective shield that fends off threats from our immune system and antibiotics.
The adaptable anthrax bacterium
May. 14, 2020—Vanderbilt researchers discover how anthrax bacterium defends itself against structural damage and resists the toxicity of the antimicrobial drug targocil.
