NIAID

New findings from Vanderbilt suggest that blocking the migration of cells involved in asthma may represent a new approach for treating the respiratory condition. Read More

When chronic disease patients let their care lapse and fail to show for clinic appointments, it may behoove clinics to reach out and encourage a return to care. Read More

New mechanistic details about the DNA-unwinding activity of antibacterial protein targets could lead to the design of better antibiotic medicines. Read More

Too much dietary manganese — an essential trace mineral found in leafy green vegetables, fruits and nuts — promotes infection of the heart by the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus (“staph”). Read More

Vanderbilt researchers are discovering ways that host proteins block HIV-1 infection, which could suggest new avenues for treatment. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have found that non-coding regions of the genome appear to contribute to the risk of autoimmune diseases and may represent attractive therapeutic targets. Read More

New multicenter research that includes Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) investigators, could change treatment approaches to simple skin abscesses, infections often caused by Staphylococcus aureus (staph) bacteria. Read More

A new antiviral drug candidate inhibits a broad range of coronaviruses, including the SARS and MERS coronaviruses, a multi-institutional team of investigators reports this week in Science Translational Medicine. Read More

Vanderbilt investigators report that dysregulation of certain immune cells in the intestines may lead to inflammation and disease. Read More

RSV infection reduces the risk of infection with human rhinovirus, which could have implications for vaccine development and prevention strategies for viral respiratory tract infections in infants. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have identified a unique example of communication between bacterial signaling systems, which may have relevance for antibiotic resistance. Read More

High dose flu vaccine boosts the immune response in older adults by increasing activation of certain immune cells. Read More

Investigators in the Division of Allergy, Pulmonary, and Critical Care Medicine and the Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism recently received a $1.25 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Read More

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) are leading a multicenter clinical trial to evaluate whether a shorter course of antibiotics — five days instead of 10 — is effective at treating community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in children who show improvement after the first few days of taking antibiotics. Read More

Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus — two pathogens that frequently co-infect the lungs of patients with cystic fibrosis — appear to cooperate with each other, Vanderbilt investigators have discovered. When pseudomonas is starved for metal by the host, it shuts down the production of factors that would normally kill staph, promoting a co-infection. Read More

To prepare for the potential of a smallpox return, Vanderbilt researchers are isolating and studying naturally occurring antibodies from the blood of previously infected or immunized people. Read More

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the major cause of life-threatening viral pneumonia in infants worldwide, yet despite repeated efforts, scientists have been unable to develop an effective vaccine against it. Read More

New discoveries will guide efforts to develop vaccines or antiviral agents for norovirus, the most common cause of infectious diarrhea. Read More

Too much dietary zinc increases susceptibility to infection by Clostridium difficile — “C. diff” — the most common cause of hospital-acquired infections. Read More

A peptide molecule relaxes airway smooth muscle and may be a potential therapeutic for asthma that has become resistant to standard therapies. Read More