Eric Skaar

Infectious diseases pose a significant global health challenge, accounting for a substantial proportion of deaths worldwide, according to recent data from the World Health Organization. Vanderbilt’s Life Science Showcase: Advancing Innovation in Infectious Diseases held on July 18 emphasized the vital importance of advancing research and innovation to combat these persistent threats. Read More

The “Molecular Muse” art exhibit on display in Light Hall is a sampling of pieces from the Vanderbilt Institute for Infection, Immunology, and Inflammation Artist-in-Residence (VI4-AiR) program, which brings together scientists and artists to create and promote art as a visual science communication tool. Read More

Vanderbilt research discovers that iron storage “spheres” inside the bacterium C. diff — the leading cause of hospital-acquired infections — are important for infection in an animal model and could offer new targets for antibacterial drugs. Read More

The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, in partnership with the Vanderbilt Postdoctoral Association, announced the 2023 award winners at the Spring Postdoc Awards Ceremony on May 23. Read More

Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs C. Cybele Raver has appointed a committee to conduct a national search for the next dean of Vanderbilt University’s College of Arts and Science. The committee consists of a range of faculty from Arts and Science and collaborating colleges, as well as non-faculty peers. Read More

A team led by Vanderbilt researchers has described and characterized the first zinc metallochaperone: a protein that puts zinc into other “client” proteins. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers are studying a bacterial pathogen that can survive on hospital surfaces — without water — for months, an ability that has helped it become a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have identified a critical regulatory factor in the bacterium that causes the disease anthrax and has been used as a biological weapon. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers help answer the question of why patients with autoimmune diseases like lupus are more susceptible to bacterial infections: their neutrophils have impaired antibacterial activity. Read More

Seth Bordenstein, Centennial Professor of Biological Sciences and director of the Vanderbilt Microbiome Initiative, has been elected to fellowship in the American Academy of Microbiology. Read More

Valeria Reyes Ruiz, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, has been selected as a 2020 Hanna Gray Fellow by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). Read More

An innovative Vanderbilt program that brings together scientists and artists with the shared goal of scientific communication is set to expand with support from a three-year grant from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund. Read More

Understanding how bacteria evolve resistance to antibiotics and host stresses could guide the development of more effective antimicrobial therapeutics. Read More

The Vanderbilt Institute for Infection, Immunology and Inflammation (VI4) recently moved into its new research and administrative home. Read More

Vanderbilt University Medical Center scientists have identified a C. diff protein system that senses and captures heme (part of hemoglobin) to build a protective shield that fends off threats from our immune system and antibiotics. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers discover how anthrax bacterium defends itself against structural damage and resists the toxicity of the antimicrobial drug targocil. Read More

The increasingly antibiotic-resistant bacterium Acinetobacter baumannii requires zinc to cause infection, and Vanderbilt researchers have identified the zinc uptake system it uses. Read More

An unprecedented view of bacterial products within infected tissues opens new opportunities to explore infection biology and devise novel therapeutic strategies. Read More

Vanderbilt University Board of Trust Chairman Bruce R. Evans has appointed a Chancellor Search Advisory Committee to assist in the search for the university’s ninth chancellor. Read More

Eric Skaar and colleagues have figured out how a common bug responsible for ventilator-associated pneumonia responds when starved of zinc, a metal it needs to survive, which may lead to new therapeutic targets for the dangerous infection. Read More