immunology

April 30, 2026

Disease-causing pathogen rewires gut metabolism to secure nutrients for growth: Study

The findings suggest that disease-associated microbes can actively drive intestinal inflammation by reshaping host metabolism, suggesting new therapeutic possibilities to prevent or disrupt diseases like infectious diarrhea and colorectal cancer.

April 23, 2026

Gut microbiota impacts resistance to bacterial pneumonia: Study

The findings suggest the gut microbiota — microorganisms that live in the intestines — could be a therapeutic target to prevent hospital-acquired lung infections.

The team studying how to control sepsis in the lungs and kidneys includes, from left, Huan Qiao, MD, PhD Jacek Hawiger, MD, PhD, Jozef Zienkiewicz, PhD, and Yan Liu, MD, MS. (photo by Erin O. Smith)
October 22, 2025

New sepsis therapy developed at VUMC edges closer to the clinic

Jacek Hawiger and his colleagues report that a “peptide genomic therapy” given in combination with an antibiotic nearly doubles survival rates from sepsis in an animal model, compared to treatment with antibiotic alone.

Henrique Serezani, PhD
August 11, 2025

Henrique Serezani named director of Vanderbilt Center for Immunobiology

Since its founding in 2015, VCI has served as a hub of research focused on fundamental human immune system regulation.

November 26, 2024

What’s all the tuft about?

Vanderbilt researchers used advanced imaging techniques to detail the microscopic structure of intestinal tuft cells, highlighting their unique organization of the structural protein actin.

November 15, 2024

Zinc deficiency promotes Acinetobacter lung infection: Study

The study findings point to the potential of interleukin-13 antibodies — approved for use in humans — as a treatment to protect against bacterial pneumonia in patients with zinc deficiency.