Health And Medicine

Cody Siciliano, PhD, assistant professor of Pharmacology in the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, has been selected to receive a one-year, $100,000 research award from the Stanley Cohen Innovation Fund to support his studies of the neural substrates of memory. Read More

Understanding immunity generated by smallpox vaccine may hold lessons for COVID-19 vaccine development. Read More

What users mention in online weight loss forum tracks with how much weight they lose. Read More

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

An international group of researchers including Vanderbilt epidemiologists has identified new DNA methylation biomarkers associated with prostate cancer risk. Read More

Eric Gamazon, PhD, assistant professor of Medicine, has been awarded a $1.5 million grant from the National Human Genome Research Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to develop novel computational tools that integrate functional genomic data and electronic health records. Read More

Angela Jefferson, PhD, professor of Neurology and director of the Vanderbilt Memory and Alzheimer’s Center, has been awarded a $3.7 million, three-year grant from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) to support establishment of a prospective NIA-funded Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC) at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Read More

Women with three or more uterine fibroids — non-cancerous growths — during pregnancy are more likely to have infants with reduced birthweight and may need additional surveillance. Read More

New findings demonstrate how genetic variations in the receptor that binds SARS-CoV-2 impact virus recognition and infectivity and offer insights to COVID-19 susceptibility and treatment. Read More

Combining studies of genetically diverse mouse populations and human data led to the identification of a gene associated with cognitive decline and brain changes in Alzheimer’s disease. Read More

Tina Iverson and colleagues provide a structural view into the assembly of a protein machine essential for cellular energy production. Read More

Physician-scientists at Vanderbilt University Medical Center are investigating whether SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, can be spread through aerosolized emissions (microscopic droplets and particles) during minimally invasive surgery in children. Read More

Combining two drugs reduced colorectal cancer cell growth in vitro and in an animal model, suggesting the combination may be a promising treatment for patients. Read More

Surgical patients are being given more opioids than they need for postsurgical pain management, raising the risk of addiction. Read More

Vanderbilt University Medical Center has been awarded a one-year, $34-million grant by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health, to conduct a nationwide study of “convalescent plasma” as a treatment for COVID-19. Read More

Excess dietary salt activates immune cells to induce inflammation and hypertension, supporting current recommendations for low sodium consumption. Read More

Vanderbilt scientists have discovered a new target for normalizing tumor blood vessels to improve cancer immunotherapies. Read More

A small-molecule “scavenger” that reduces inflammation and formation of atherosclerotic plaque in blood vessels in mice potentially could lead to a new approach for treating atherosclerosis in humans, according to researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Read More

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have identified antibodies that, in animals, block infection by alphaviruses, which can cause chronic and debilitating joint pain and arthritis and are an increasing global health concern. Read More

In laboratory experiments, a chemical compound found in the shell of the cashew nut promotes the repair of myelin, a team from Vanderbilt University Medical Center reported Aug. 17 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Read More