Author: Leigh MacMillan
Evolution of a deadly virus
May. 23, 2018—Genomic sequences have revealed that Florida is a major source of a mosquito-borne virus that causes disease in horses and humans.
Shaping reward circuits
May. 18, 2018—Using techniques to control and monitor the activities of individual neurons, Vanderbilt investigators are probing the brain’s reward circuitry.
Discovery, innovation drive Biomedical Sciences graduates
May. 17, 2018—A highly accomplished group of 83 students earned doctoral degrees in the biomedical sciences from Vanderbilt during the 2017-2018 academic year.
Putting the brakes on sepsis
May. 9, 2018—An enzyme called PTEN reduces inflammatory signaling and mortality in sepsis, suggesting it may be a good therapeutic target for this life-threatening complication of infection.
Understanding HDL structure
May. 3, 2018—Structural features of newly formed HDL particles will help guide understanding of “good cholesterol” and its function.
Gene expression in mitral valve disease
Apr. 25, 2018—A protease gene family may be new targets for treating mitral valve disease, which causes blood to flow backwards in the heart.
Toxin floats on lipid rafts
Apr. 23, 2018—The bacterium H. pylori is a leading cause of stomach cancer, and Vanderbilt researchers are studying how one of its toxins gets into cells.
Disease-fighting antibody production
Apr. 20, 2018—New research links nutrient-responsive cellular signaling to the antibody-mediated immune response.
MIT’s Orr-Weaver wraps up spring Discovery Lecture series April 26
Apr. 19, 2018—The spring Flexner Discovery Lecture series wraps up on Thursday, April 26, with a presentation by Terry Orr-Weaver, PhD, professor of Biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Nobel laureate Kobilka’s talk explores receptor activation
Apr. 12, 2018—Brian Kobilka, MD, who received the 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his studies of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), shared his team’s progress in understanding receptor activation — and how that might guide drug development — at last week’s Flexner Discovery Lecture.
Aqueous humor, microRNAs and glaucoma
Apr. 10, 2018—New findings highlight microRNAs — molecules that regulate gene expression — that are differentially expressed in glaucoma and could be candidate biomarkers or targets for therapy.
Study reveals frogs bouncing back in Panama
Apr. 5, 2018—A new study reports that some Central American frog species are recovering from a deadly fungal epidemic, perhaps because they have better defenses against the pathogen.