School Of Medicine Basic Sciences

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered that a protein called SGK1 in immune cells is activated by sodium, leading to the development of salt-sensitive hypertension. Read More

Understanding the dynamic regulation of cytoskeletal microtubules may suggest new ways to treat disorders ranging from Alzheimer's disease to cancer. Read More

Jason MacGurn and colleagues have characterized a “rheostat” that sets WNT pathway signaling in breast cancer cells. Read More

Vanderbilt’s Bruce Carter and colleagues have discovered how genetic changes in the protein PMP22 may contribute to a disease of peripheral nerves. Read More

Inflammation synergizes with a cell’s intrinsic genetic program to promote the development of pancreatic cancer. Read More

Engineered bacteria that produce beneficial compounds — and that could potentially be administered in foods like yogurt — may be a future treatment for obesity and other chronic diseases. Read More

A previously unrecognized role for a cell surface receptor may open new therapeutic options for the treatment of fibrotic diseases. Read More

Microtubules, part of the cell's cytoskeleton, regulate the secretion of insulin, suggesting that they may be a new target for treating diabetes. Read More

A first-of-its-kind mouse model may help reveal mechanistic underpinnings for the altered behaviors of autism spectrum disorder. Read More

Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center scientists have discovered a role for a tumor suppressor protein in skin wound healing. Read More

Vanderbilt Eye Institute researchers have discovered that an imbalance in the ionic environment of retinal ganglion cells may contribute to functional impairments in glaucoma. Read More

A new imaging method makes it possible to directly measure cell division and changes in metabolism in atherosclerotic plaques. Read More

Larry Marnett and colleagues have developed what may become the first agent for targeted PET imaging of cancer tissues, such as ovarian cancer, that express high levels of the COX-1 enzyme. Read More

Understanding how a steroid-metabolizing enzyme binds to its substrates may aid in designing drugs to treat sexual dysfunction as well as prostate cancer. Read More

Scott Baldwin and colleagues have discovered early signaling events during heart development, findings that could guide cell replacement therapies for heart disease. Read More

Vsevolod Gurevich and colleagues have discovered new insights into arrestin proteins, which turn off a cell's environmental message "inbox." Read More

Stimulating the vagus nerve triggers certain epigenetic changes involving learning and memory. Read More

David Cortez and colleagues have discovered a new DNA repair mechanism. Read More

Danny Winder and colleagues have demonstrated how norepinephrine and a stress factor call CRF interact, which may lead to new treatments for stress-related disorders. Read More

Lawrence Marnett and colleagues have demonstrated how two enzymes cooperate to maintain even levels of an important cellular signaling molecule. Read More