Cell And Developmental Biology

Christian de Caestecker, a Ph.D. student in the lab of Ian Macara, Louise B. McGavock Professor and chair of the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, has proposed and validated a mechanism that addresses a decades-old mystery surrounding epithelial cells. Read More

Research from the lab of Bill Tansey and other collaborators tested protein inhibitors called WINi against a panel of cancer cells and found that they have strong action against blood cancers and synergize with an FDA-approved cancer drug. Read More

Researchers from the School of Medicine Basic Sciences recently developed an analytical tool called EV Fingerprinting that could lead to the use of “liquid biopsies” as a substitute for traditional biopsies for certain patients or diseases. Read More

Ken Lau, professor of cell and developmental biology, and colleagues have laid out the principles governing the biology of early, precancerous lesions, which are different from the principles that govern cancers. Their authoritative perspective was published in Cancer Discovery in April 2024. Read More

Trans-institutional project connects Vanderbilt experts in drug delivery, stem cell engineering, biomanufacturing and cell biology to advance biomanufacturing of nanoparticles that can deliver precisely targeted drugs to the site of a disease. Read More

Co-sponsored by the Department of Biochemistry, this session of the School of Basic Medicine's Apex Lecture Series features developmental biologist Michael Rapé. Read More

Four Vanderbilt graduate students, faculty advisers named to Howard Hughes Medical Institute Gilliam Fellows Program for their leadership in science and commitment to advancing equity and inclusion in science. Read More

Vanderbilt and Bruker Daltonics are collaborating to establish a Mass Spectrometry Center of Excellence with four state-of-the-art mass spectrometers to advance biomedical research and discovery. Read More

The department of cell and developmental biology will continue its seminar series this May. On May 1, Dr. Pascal Kaeser presents: “Mechanisms and Roles of Fast Dopamine Signaling," and Dr. Jason Spence presents: “Interrogating stem cell niches during human development" on May 8. Read More

The Genetics Society of America has presented James O’Connor, a Ph.D. graduate from the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, the 2023 Larry Sandler Award. This international award recognizes the best Ph.D. dissertation on Drosophila—a fly genus that includes the fruit fly, a widely used model organism in biomedical research—from the previous year. Read More

The laboratories of Brian Bachmann and Jonathan Irish have developed a method to discover new small molecules that may kill cancer cells by working through the body’s immune system. Read More

Researchers in the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine have received three grants totaling $13.6 million from the National Institutes of Health to develop molecular “atlases” of the brain, kidney, eye and other tissues. Read More

Ethan Lee, professor of cell and developmental biology and pharmacology, has been named a 2022 Innovation Fund investigator by The Pew Charitable Trusts.   Read More

A collaborative project between the labs of Maulik Patel and Kris Burkewitz has identified a new molecular pathway that plays a key role in the ability of cells to sense and respond to stressed mitochondria. Read More

The lab of Kathy DelGiorno seeks to understand changes in the pancreas in response to injury and disease. In a recent project led by graduate student Leah Caplan, the lab investigated the formation of enteroendocrine cells throughout pancreatic tumor development. Read More

A collaborative project between William Tansey and Stephen Fesik has laid the foundation for pre-clinical and clinical trials for rare childhood tumors that are diagnosed in 25 children per year in the United States. Read More

Vanderbilt University again ranked among the nation’s top research institutions receiving funding from the National Institutes of Health, according to the latest data compiled by the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research. Read More

Distinguished psychology professor Jon Kaas has received the Ralph W. Gerard Prize in Neuroscience, the highest recognition from the Society for Neuroscience, for his pathbreaking work in illuminating the structure and function of the cerebral cortex and plasticity in the developing and adult brain. Read More

Kristopher Burkewitz, assistant professor of cell and developmental biology, has been awarded $100,000 from the American Federation for Aging Research and the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research to research the biological aging process. Read More