Genetics

A person’s native language is often referred to as their “mother tongue.” But does a first language always come from your mother? In a new study conducted by Associate Professor of Biological Sciences Nicole Creanza, postdoctoral student Yakov Pichkar,... Read More

Nicole Creanza and Yakov Pichkar explore whether subtle cultural differences within a language mirror genetic structure within a population. The answer: Even small cultural differences like dialect can influence the spread of people and genes. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have found that children with a genetic makeup that predicts high blood pressure as adults are more likely to survive congenital heart defect repair surgery. Read More

Science’s influence on pop culture is undeniable, and the reverse is equally important. Research led by Jay Clayton, the first literature professor to ever receive funding from the NIH, shows that films portray genetic science as risky far more often than television shows. Read More

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have discovered a new genetic disease that causes a severe form of neurogenic orthostatic hypotension, a rapid drop in blood pressure upon standing that can cause fainting. Read More

Vanderbilt Genetics Institute investigators have added a new method to the computational genetics toolbox. Their approach, described in the journal Nature Genetics, integrates vast genomics datasets to predict gene expression and facilitate discovery of genetic mechanisms underlying human diseases. Read More

All-remote collaboration results in free animal susceptibility tool to help prioritize research and closer examination of at-risk species. Read More

When it comes to our differences from Neanderthals, most of what we know comes from comparing fossils. But fossils can only tell us about bones and not whole living organisms. That’s changing thanks to a new paper from a team of genomics researchers at Vanderbilt, who… 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

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 special genetic analysis has revealed candidate genes associated with increased risk of breast cancer. Read More

Patients diagnosed with heart failure, stroke, infertility and kidney failure could actually be suffering from rare and undiagnosed genetic diseases. Read More

Vanderbilt investigators have conducted the first systematic evaluation of cognitive function in children with a rare genetic disorder. Read More

Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) has expanded and relaunched genetic testing to predict patient responses to drugs. Read More

Vanderbilt investigators have discovered that oxidative damage may play an important role in the development of a rare cholesterol synthesis disease and in the behavioral changes of autism spectrum disorders. Read More

Geneticists have developed an effective new method for identifying the genes that produce the chemicals plants use to protect themselves from predators, which are an important natural drug source. Read More

A newly identified genetic risk factor for heart block after surgery may help guide the course of postoperative care. Read More

In a study in Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics, Vanderbilt University’s Jonathan Mosley, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues use genetic correlation to hitch together two unrelated sets of data, one from a longstanding epidemiological cohort and the other from electronic health records. Read More

Genetic variation in GABA-A receptors confers risk for inherited forms of epilepsy. Read More

The first study that directly compares Neanderthal DNA in the genomes of a significant population of adults of European ancestry with their clinical records confirms that this archaic genetic legacy has a subtle but significant impact on modern human biology. Read More