Research

Alexandra Sundermann, MD, PhD, poses for a photo with an ultrasound machine. (photo by Donn Jones)
August 29, 2025

Discrepancies in gestational dating can inform miscarriage risk: study

Investigators measured whether gestational dating determined by ultrasound lagged what the last menstrual period predicted. The bigger the lag, the higher risk of the pregnancy ending in a loss, they found.

By Bill Snyder
August 28, 2025

Vanderbilt imaging scientist awarded $3.5 million in federal research grants

Zhongliang Zu has advanced the application of molecular and functional magnetic resonance imaging to improve diagnosis of tumors, ischemic stroke, and neurological and muscular disorders.

By Bill Snyder
(iStock)
August 28, 2025

Genetic analysis of people with African ancestry reveals lung cancer susceptibilities  

Prior research has shown that Americans of African ancestry have a higher risk of lung cancer compared to white Americans despite smoking fewer cigarettes, but the reasons for this difference are not fully understood.

By Tom Wilemon
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.

By Leigh MacMillan
August 7, 2025

Healthy plant-based diets reduce risk of death in long-term VUMC study

The findings published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggest that efforts to promote diets high in healthy plant foods and low in animal foods could improve health outcomes.

By Guillermo Sanchez, PhD
Michelle Southard-Smith, PhD, and graduate student Joseph Benthal. (photo by Susan Urmy)
August 6, 2025

Clues offer new hope for treating GI tract disorders

Hirschsprung disease is a congenital disorder that occurs in approximately 1 in 5,000 babies. Caused by a lack of ENS neurons in the muscles of the colon, Hirschsprung disease disrupts gut motility, resulting in bowel obstruction.

By Bill Snyder
August 6, 2025

Study demonstrates burden of potentially preventable hospitalizations for pneumococcal pneumonias among adults in Tennessee and Georgia 

Community-acquired pneumonia refers to a case of the disease contracted without prior exposure to a health care setting.
By Evan Dorian
August 4, 2025

Researchers debunk long-standing concern about flu treatment in children

The findings demonstrated what many pediatricians have long suspected: that the flu, not the flu treatment (Tamiflu), is associated with neuropsychiatric events.
By Jessica Pasley
August 1, 2025

Study reports final clinical trial data for advanced kidney cancer treatment

The drug combo pembrolizumab plus axitinib had sustained and durable clinical benefit in more than five years of follow-up. It is a standard-of-care first-line treatment for advanced kidney cancer.
By Leigh MacMillan
July 31, 2025

High school researchers at VUMC glimpse the future

They were part of the Aspirnaut program, which prepares high school and college students, primarily from rural areas, for careers in the STEM fields.
By Bill Snyder
July 29, 2025

A fast daily walk could extend your life: study

Just 15 minutes per day of fast walking reduced the risk of premature death in a low-income and predominantly Black U.S. population.
By Leigh MacMillan
July 28, 2025

Large-scale study uncovers 57 genetic hotspots into stuttering origins

The video is produced by the research team to explain the results of the study. Findings from the largest genetic analysis of stuttering are published in Nature Genetics; they point to 48 genes associated with stuttering and highlight neurological pathways of risk.
By Leigh MacMillan
July 25, 2025

Ravi Shah named to co-direct Vanderbilt Diabetes Center

The Center oversees the NIH-funded Diabetes Research and Training Center, now in its 52nd year of continual operation, which advances innovative investigations related to the cause, prevention, treatment and complications of diabetes and obesity.
By Jill Clendening