Health and Medicine
Triple-negative breast cancer drug therapy shows promise
Mar. 12, 2020—Researchers from Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) discovered a role for MYCN in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), a particularly aggressive form of the disease, and identified a potential intervention for further clinical investigation.
Loss of ‘Jedi’ alters neuron activity
Mar. 10, 2020—This is not the Jedi you're thinking of. This Jedi is a receptor that helps clear away dead neurons during development, and its loss changes the activity of dorsal root ganglia neurons, which could have implications for treating chronic pain.
Clues to lung injury in preterm babies
Mar. 5, 2020—Jennifer Sucre and colleagues have discovered a factor that contributes to the pathological changes of bronchopulmonary dysplasia, the most common complication of preterm birth.
One-two punch for cancer
Mar. 5, 2020—A drug combination effectively killed aggressive blood cancers in cell and animal models; now it’s being tested in patients.
Study finds certain genetic test not useful in predicting heart disease risk
Feb. 27, 2020—A Polygenic Risk Score — a genetic assessment that doctors have hoped could predict coronary heart disease (CHD) in patients — has been found not to be a useful predictive biomarker for disease risk.
Breast cancer study may help predict treatment response
Feb. 27, 2020—Researchers at VUMC are reporting another advance in the understanding and treatment of triple-negative breast cancer, which is particularly aggressive and difficult to treat.
Grant bolsters research on subjective cognitive decline
Feb. 27, 2020—Katherine Gifford, PsyD, MS, assistant professor of Neurology, has been awarded a five-year, $4.3 million research grant from the National Institute on Aging to study what subjective cognitive decline can reveal about underlying pathology.
Potential new heartburn drug studied at VUMC
Feb. 26, 2020—An investigational drug that binds bile acids in the stomach can reduce the severity of heartburn symptoms in patients with treatment-resistant gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) when combined with a proton pump inhibitor (PPI), a new study suggests.
Looking through MudPIT for protein interactions
Feb. 25, 2020—The identification of novel protein interactions and sites of modification in proteins involved in mRNA translation adds to understanding of a process that is an important therapeutic target.
Reducing postoperative opioids
Feb. 24, 2020—An opioid-restrictive prescribing protocol reduced the number of postoperative opioid prescriptions and the oral morphine equivalent per prescription.
Protein interactions and brain function
Feb. 20, 2020—Roger Colbran and colleagues have discovered new molecular details about the function of an enzyme with a key role in shaping learning and memory.
Post-transplant diabetes may be reversible: study
Feb. 20, 2020—Post-transplantation diabetes mellitus (PTDM), a common complication of immunosuppressive drugs that are given to prevent transplant rejection, may be reversible and at least partially preventable, researchers at VUMC report.