Reporter March 4 2016

A new animal model can be used to “dissect” the inflammatory response to infection. Read More

The hormone leptin regulates glucose balance, but not fat stores, in zebrafish. Read More

Actin and microtubule cytoskeletons are coordinated during cytokinesis – the process that separates one cell into two and is linked to events underlying cancer. Read More

Melanoma-specific expression of a certain protein identifies tumors that are more responsive to an immune therapy. Read More

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have relieved symptoms in a mouse model of Rett syndrome with a drug-like compound that works like the dimmer switch in an electrical circuit. Read More

For the first time, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) investigators have used a cancer patient’s own re-engineered immune cells to treat a form of blood cancer by stimulating the immune system. Read More

Mother-to-child transmission of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which causes AIDS, is still a major problem in resource-limited, rural areas of the world where health care providers are scarce. Read More

Joe Don Rooney of the group Rascal Flatts came the closest to a hole-in-one at the inaugural Million Dollar Hole-in-One for Charity event at Pebble Beach Golf Links on Feb. 11 in California. Rooney chose Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt as the beneficiary of his $50,000 prize. Read More

The Vanderbilt Anesthesiology and Perioperative Informatics Research (VAPIR) Division has launched a novel system that connects clinicians in the Department of Anesthesiology to their patients’ outcomes. Read More

Leaders of social media programs at 15 major hospitals and health systems gathered in Nashville last week as Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) hosted the “founders meeting” of a new national organization. Read More

A special event was held last week celebrating the 25th anniversary of Vanderbilt’s liver transplant program. Read More

Joseph Coyle, M.D., an expert in the neurobiology of serious mental illness, will deliver the next Flexner Discovery Lecture on Thursday, March 10. Read More

Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston recently collaborated on a study analysis to determine the effect of a tailored, pharmacist-delivered health literacy intervention on unplanned hospital readmission or emergency department visit following discharge. Read More

Warren Sandberg, M.D., Ph.D., chair of Vanderbilt’s Department of Anesthesiology and professor of Biomedical Informatics and Surgery, has been elected president-elect of the Tennessee Society of Anesthesiologists. Read More

Vanderbilt researcher Eduard Chekmenev, Ph.D., has been elected to the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) for his efforts to develop imaging markers for cancer and lung disease using hyperpolarized magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Read More

Nitin Jain, M.D., MSPH, received the 2016 Young Academician Award at the recent annual meeting of the Association of Academic Physiatrists. Read More

For many years, patients who came to Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) for care would receive a survey asking, among other things, about how they rated the experience — including the professionalism and friendliness of the physician or other health care provider. Read More

Test after test failed to reveal why Denny Majano wasn’t gaining weight or why he suffered from severe, chronic diarrhea. At 5 weeks old, instead of gaining weight as newborns should, Denny had lost a pound since birth. Read More

Aron Parekh, Ph.D., assistant professor of Otolaryngology, has received a four-year, $790,000 Research Scholar Grant from the American Cancer Society to further his research into the mechanical and biological properties of cancer cells and the methods by which they leave the initial tumor and spread or metastasize to other parts of the body. Read More

Vanderbilt IT has compiled the following information about what a phish looks like, common techniques used by attackers after an account is compromised, and best practices to protect yourself from becoming a victim of phishing. Read More