Faculty Spotlight: Chandravanu Dash, Ph.D.

Dr. Dash is a faculty member in the Meharry Medical College Center for AIDS Health Disparities Research (CAHDR) and the Department of Biochemistry, Cancer Biology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience. His research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of HIV-1 infection and probing the effects of drugs of abuse on HIV pathogenesis.

Graduate Student Spotlight: Ireti Eni-aganga

Ireti Eni-aganga received her Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from Arizona State University in 2014. She's currently a PhD candidate at Meharry Medical College in the laboratory of Dr. Jui Pandhare. Her work is part of the Center for AIDS Health Disparities Research (CAHDR)... Click the image on the left to continue reading.

Faculty Spotlight: Matt Alexander, M.D., Ph.D.

Dr. Alexander earned his undergraduate degree from Duke University and his M.D./Ph.D. from the University of Virginia School of Medicine. He's an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Molecular Physiology & Biophysics at Vanderbilt researching the role of adaptive immunity in the pathogenesis of hypertension and associated cardiovascular disease... Click Dr. Alexander's photo to continue reading.

Nick Markham, M.D., Ph.D.

Nick
Markham, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor in Medicine
Assistant Professor in Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology

The Markham Lab investigates C. difficile bacterial toxin pathogenesis and the mechanisms of microbially influenced colorectal cancer tumorigenesis. Our long-term goal is to understand how changes in the human microbiome affect epithelial cell signaling events and inflammatory responses in colorectal cancer. Because our interests are grounded in defining microbiological and immunological mechanisms associated with tumorigenesis and cancer progression, the VI4 is an excellent fit for our program. We recently obtained a fundable impact score on an award from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The title of this proposal is “Gastrointestinal cell type-specific signaling and C. difficile toxin pathogenesis.” A second project has gained momentum and originated as part of the Vanderbilt Colon Molecular Atlas Project (ColonMAP). Our focus is to understand how the disrupted spatial organization of the gut microbiota known as invasive biofilm formation may accelerate colorectal cancer. We have recently obtained pilot funding from the VICC Gastrointestinal SPORE program to develop a novel single-cell RNA-sequencing technology. The method uses oligonucleotide barcodes conjugated to C. difficile toxins for determining how such toxins affect pro-tumorigenic transcriptional programs in the colon. These basic science research projects ideally will form the foundation for exciting opportunities to translate discoveries into therapeutic and diagnostic strategies.

Publications on PubMed.gov

nick.markham@vumc.org

Colorectal cancer, C. difficile, cancer biology, microbiome, transcriptomics, organoids, microbial toxin pathogenesis

Graduate Student Spotlight: Nicolas Gray Shealy

Nicolas grew up in Columbia, SC and attended the College of Charleston. After graduating in 2018, he participated in a post-baccalaureate experience program (PREP) at the Medical University of South Carolina, working in the lab of Amy D. Bradshaw Ph.D. He came to Vanderbilt University in the fall of 2019 via Interdisciplinary Graduate Program and ultimately joined the lab of Mariana Byndloss D.V.M, Ph.D. His thesis project is centered around understanding the mechanisms bacterial pathogens use to take full advantage both of the human host and the gut microbiota. He is specifically looking into the metabolism of short-chain fatty acids and amino acids... Click the image on the left to continue reading.

It took a weekend to design a COVID-19 vaccine, and why we might not be prepared next time.

On January 11th, 2020, scientists around the globe awoke to the public deposition of the entire genome for the novel coronavirus – later known as SARS-CoV-2. That weekend, researchers at the University of Texas at Austin designed a vaccine based on the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, which adorns the surface of the virus. Just two weeks later, scientists at the NIH's Vaccine Research Center started testing the vaccine in animals. This initial design was licensed for use in the first three FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccines. Many contributing factors lead to the expediency of this vaccine design, none of which compromised safety. But how could we rapidly develop a vaccine for a novel virus while other viral targets have remained elusive?... Click the image to the left to continue reading.

Faculty Spotlight: Dawn C. Newcomb, Ph.D.

Dr. Newcomb earned her undergraduate degree from North Carolina State University in 2002 and her Ph.D. from University of Michigan in 2007. She trained as a post-doctoral fellow in Dr. R. Stokes Peebles, Jr. M.D. laboratory at Vanderbilt University focusing on lung inflammation, viral infections, and T cell immune responses. In 2014, Dr. Newcomb started her laboratory at Vanderbilt to study how sex hormones regulate mechanisms of airway inflammation in asthma. Dr. Newcomb currently has 2 R01s to study these mechanisms...... Click Dr. Newcomb's photo to continue reading.