Health And Medicine

New research by Andrea Page-McCaw shows that a membrane that wraps around most animal tissues can heal within 24 hours, but does leave a scar. Read More

David Cortez and colleagues have found that a protein called RADX helps modulate a protein called RAD51 in order to make sure exactly the correct amount of DNA repair occurs. Read More

The computer-aided design and engineering of antibodies and vaccine candidates that can neutralize viral scourges like influenza and Ebola will be the topic of an Aug. 17 poster session presented by the Vanderbilt Center for Structural Biology and the Vanderbilt Vaccine Center. Read More

The process, discovered in the axons of neurons, is implicated in Alzheimer’s, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, traumatic brain injury and other diseases or injuries to the nervous system. Read More

An international team of researchers led by Eric Gamazon has integrated gene expression and disease association data to better understand the biological mechanisms of complex human diseases. Read More

Robert Freundlich and colleagues analyzed records for nearly 1.2 million patients and found that, among patients who died within 30 days of surgery, one in five had a complication independently associated with mortality. Read More

In new research, Hassane Mchaourab and colleagues have uncovered new insights into drug resistance that could lead to the development of new anti-cancer and antibacterial drugs. Read More

Disruption of the integrity of the intestinal lining or epithelium contributes to a “leaky” gut and is a common feature of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Yash Choksi, Christopher Williams and colleagues found that low levels of a certain protein exacerbated the condition. Read More

Researchers led by James Crowe Jr. are a step closer to developing a broadly effective antibody treatment against the three major Ebola viruses that cause lethal disease in humans. The hope is that the antibodies — like heat-seeking missiles — would seek out and destroy the viruses before they can wreak havoc in the body. Read More

In areas of the country disproportionately affected by the opioid crisis, treatment programs are less likely to accept patients paying through insurance of any type or accept pregnant women, a new Vanderbilt study found. Read More

A drug used to treat diabetes, liraglutide, may point to new therapies for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) bronchiolitis — inflammation and obstruction of the lungs’ small airways. Read More

One of the first studies to examine the health impacts of legal marriage for LGBT individuals has found gay men were more likely to receive routine medical care following marriage legalization. Read More

New findings by Jörn-Hendrik Weitkamp and colleagues provide the first account of bacterial signatures in mammalian fetal intestinal tissue. The results suggest that bacterial DNA moves from the mother’s microbiome into the fetal intestine, which may be a critical stimulus for normal mucosal immune development. Read More

Chronic inflammation is a predisposing condition for colorectal cancer, the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Anna Means, Ph.D., and colleagues have now linked inflammation-driven carcinogenesis in the colon to loss of an important signaling protein called SMAD4. Read More

Vanderbilt and Oak Ridge National Laboratory are combining their expertise in biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics and computation to tackle some of the most pressing problems in biology. Read More

Lipid molecules that bind to HDL can modify its function — and blocking that modification can protect HDL and potentially lower the risk of atherosclerosis and heart disease. Read More

The new factor, an enzyme involved in host-pathogen interactions, may be a viable target for treating staph infections. Read More

Symptoms of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, including psychosis, depression and manic behavior, have both shared and distinguishing genetic factors, an international consortium led by researchers from Vanderbilt University and Virginia Commonwealth University is reporting. Read More

A drug in use clinically to help make vaccines more effective may be a powerful new tool for fighting antibiotic-resistant infections. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers describe how certain tuberculosis treatments work and suggest these medications may overcome the threat of drug-resistant tuberculosis. Read More