biological sciences
Sponsored Research grants for March
Apr. 22, 2011—The Division of Sponsored Research received notification in March that the following grants in excess of $25,000 had been awarded: Julie A. Adams, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, has received an award in the amount of $25,000 by the Department of Defense for “Expeditionary Capabilities Consortium: Urban Operations Laboratory.” Theodore A. Bapty, Electrical Engineering and...
Sleep strategy used by night nurses throws off their circadian clocks
Apr. 14, 2011—As many as 25 percent of hospital nurses use sleep deprivation to adjust to working on the night shift, the poorest strategy for adapting their internal, circadian clocks to a night-time schedule.
Worm grunting on NPR
Mar. 11, 2011—“What is worm grunting?” That is one of the questions that moderator Richard Sher asked panelists last weekend in a rerun of a pre-recorded edition of “Says You!” – the popular radio game show that airs on National Public Radio. After all the guessing and wise-cracking, Sher explained that worm grunting was the practice of...
New model to test how antidepressants work
Feb. 18, 2011—A new mouse model offers the ability to better test how selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) work and could lead to the development of new classes of anti-depressants.
Kennedy Center celebrates Science Day 2011
Feb. 16, 2011—A record crowd of students and presenters turned out for the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development's 2011 Science Day Feb. 15.
Discovery of jumping gene cluster tangles tree of life
Feb. 4, 2011—Since the days of Darwin, the “tree of life” has been the preeminent metaphor for the process of evolution, reflecting the gradual branching and changing of individual species. The discovery that a large cluster of genes appears to have jumped directly from one species of fungus to another, however, significantly strengthens the argument that a...
Scientists of the future
Feb. 1, 2011—Report after report, it seems, warns that the United States is falling behind other countries in science and technology. Where will the scientists of the future come from? Some of them will come from the School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt. Launched in 2007 as a project of the Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach,...
Mental health research fund lauds VU scientists
Jan. 31, 2011—Eight Vanderbilt University scientists have won 2010 Young Investigator Awards from NARSAD, the world’s leading mental health research charity. Each scientist will receive up to $60,000 over two years for innovative brain and behavioral studies of serious psychiatric disorders. The grants allow promising new researchers, typically postdoctoral fellows and assistant professors, to generate the pilot...
Scripps Research and Vanderbilt launch joint institute to advance science at interface of chemistry and medicine
Jan. 13, 2011—The Scripps Research Institute and Vanderbilt University have formed a partnership to advance science at the interface of chemistry and medicine, the institutions announced today. The Human Chemical Sciences Institute will encompass research and training activities at Scripps Research on its San Diego, California, and Jupiter, Florida, campuses, and at the Vanderbilt Institute for Chemical...
Babies’ biological clocks dramatically affected by birth light cycle
Dec. 6, 2010—The season in which babies are born can have a dramatic and persistent effect on how their biological clocks function. That is the conclusion of a new study published online on Dec. 5 by the journal Nature Neuroscience. The experiment provides the first evidence for seasonal imprinting of biological clocks in mammals and was conducted...
Image of mosquito’s heart wins first place in Nikon’s ‘Small World’ photomicrography competition
Oct. 15, 2010—Jonas King, a member of the research group of Julián Hillyer, assistant professor of biological sciences, captured the image as part of the group's research on the circulatory system of Anopheles gambiae, a mosquito that spreads malaria.
Mosquitoes use several different kinds of odor sensors to track human prey
Aug. 31, 2010—Origin of DEET’s repellent effect confirmed It now appears that the malaria mosquito needs more than one family of odor sensors to sniff out its human prey. That is the implication of new research into the mosquito’s sense of smell published in the Aug. 31 issue of the online, open-access journal Public Library of Science...