Reporter Oct 2 2015

Structural and molecular details of an anti-fungal target's interaction with inhibitors suggest ways to design better treatments for fungal infections. Read More

The glutamine transporter protein appears to contribute to the survival of lung cancer cells, suggesting it may be a useful diagnostic biomarker and target for therapies. Read More

New findings add to the understanding of how the enzyme COX-2 works, which is critical to the development of COX-2-targeted anti-inflammatory drugs. Read More

Vanderbilt University has received a contract from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for up to $28 million over four years to help more than 4,000 clinicians in the Southeast transform their clinical practices in ways that improve quality of patient care and hold down costs. Read More

La Jolla Pharmaceutical Co. and Vanderbilt University have signed a research and license agreement covering Vanderbilt’s research program and intellectual property rights related to compounds that block bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) type-I receptors. The compounds have therapeutic potential in a broad range of diseases, including rare genetic disorders. Read More

A few thousand families in the Metro Nashville Public Schools system will now have computers at home, thanks to Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s donation of 3,800 lightly used computers. Read More

A new genetic model has generated new strategies for promoting tolerance to transplants – and improving long-term transplant outcomes – in the background of autoimmune disease. Read More

Animal Research Information Enterprise System (ARIES), a new online system for submitting animal research protocols, will be launched at Vanderbilt University on Oct. 12. Read More

Infants diagnosed with drug withdrawal symptoms at birth, also known as neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), are nearly 2.5 times as likely to be readmitted to the hospital in the first month after being discharged compared with full-term infants born without complications, according to new Vanderbilt research released in the journal Hospital Pediatrics. Read More

After months transitioning clinics across Vanderbilt University Medical Center and training clinicians and staff, the move to the new medical coding and reporting system is complete. Read More

Two Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) investigators — Jennifer Pietenpol, Ph.D., B.F. Byrd Jr. Professor of Oncology and director of VICC, and Valerie Jansen, M.D., Ph.D., medical oncology fellow — have received new cancer research grants awarded by Susan G. Komen, the world’s largest nonprofit funder of breast cancer research. Read More

Woodrow Myers Jr., M.D., chief executive officer of Corizon Health, will be the keynote speaker at the 14th annual Levi Watkins Jr. Lecture. Read More

Declining use of prescription painkillers among preoperative patients seeking joint replacements indicates efforts by the state of Tennessee to tighten the spigot on opioids are beginning to have an impact, according to a study by Vanderbilt’s Andrew Shinar, M.D. Read More

The co-creator of the world’s first microelectronic multi-channel cochlear implant — a device that provides sound signals to the brain in deaf individuals — will deliver the next Flexner Discovery Lecture. Read More

Vanderbilt’s Thomas Wang, M.D., left, Nancy Brown, M.D., and David Bader, Ph.D., explored the human determinants of cardiovascular disease and treatment at last week’s Flexner Discovery Lecture. Read More

The eighth annual Conte Center Symposium will be held from noon to 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9, in room 1220, Medical Research Building III. Read More

Their wedding date was just weeks away when Caleb Hanby and his fiancée Bethany Davidson rushed to Vanderbilt University Medical Center last Thursday. Read More

Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) is introducing a host of customer-focused digital tools to increase access and help patients better manage their health. Read More

Reduced-nicotine cigarettes were beneficial in reducing nicotine exposure and dependence, and also the number of cigarettes smoked per day, when compared with standard-nicotine cigarettes in a six-week study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Read More

Children with autism who participated in a 10-week, 40-hour, theatre-based program showed significant differences in social ability compared to a group of children with autism who did not participate, according to a Vanderbilt study published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. Read More