Viruses exist in a constant arms race with the host's immune system. As the immune system fights off a virus, the pressure will force the virus to either adapt or disappear. Typos, or mutations, made in the genetic code as viruses replicate enable these adaptations. Many of these mutations are bad for the virus or have little effect, but what if one of these mutations makes the virus better at replicating? In that case, the descendants of that virus will carry the change forward as they spread, and those new viruses will have an advantage over others that lack that particular mutation. We are watching this process unfold right now as new variants of SARS-CoV-2 threaten our current public health efforts. As the virus changes, we may need to adapt our strategies to remain ahead of SARS-CoV-2... Click the image to continue reading.

Reduced Lymphatic Reserve in Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction. Rossitto G, et al. in Journal of the American College of Cardiology, December 15, 2020 Intracellular immune sensing promotes inflammation via gasdermin D–driven release of a lectin alarmin. Russo A, et al.

Darian is originally from Spartanburg, South Carolina. She received her Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from Clemson University in 2018. She is a graduate student in the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program (IGP). Darian is part of the Maureen Gannon lab where she investigates how maternal diet and metformin intake influence pancreatic beta cell development in offspring. They work in a multi-institutional non human primate consortium that investigates the impact of in utero exposure to diet on fetal development... Click the image on the left to continue reading.

Steven D. Townsend is an Assistant Professor of Organic Chemistry at Vanderbilt University. Dr. Townsend is an expert in the chemical synthesis of biologically important molecules. A major topic of interest for his lab is the synthesis of homogeneous human milk oligosaccharides and related constructs to investigate their use as prebiotics in infant formula. He has numerous publications in premier international journals, including Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (USA), Angewandte Chemie International Edition and Journal of the American Chemical Society. Before being appointed to Vanderbilt in 2014, Townsend earned his PhD at Vanderbilt and then completed a postdoctoral research fellowship with Samuel J. Danishefsky at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Columbia University... Click Dr. Townsend's photo to continue reading.

Fusobacterium nucleatum adheres to Clostridioides difficile via the RadD adhesin to enhance biofilm formation in intestinal mucus. Engevik M, et al. in Gastroenterology, November 20, 2020 Regulatory T Cell-Derived TGF-β1 Controls Multiple Checkpoints Governing Allergy and Autoimmunity. Turner J, et al.

Paulo Henrique de Melo, Ph.D. completed his undergraduate degree at Centro Universitário de Araraquara.  He did his Ph.D. at Universidade de São Paulo in Immunology. Paulo is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the lab of Carlos Henrique Serezani, Ph.D.... Click the image on the left to continue reading.

Dr. Ann Tate is an Assistant Professor in the Vanderbilt University Department of Biological Sciences. Her research focuses on understanding reciprocal ecological and evolutionary feedbacks between hosts and parasites, using a combination of theoretical and empirical approaches to zoom back and forth between the molecular details and the population level processes. Before moving to Vanderbilt Dr. Tate was a USDA NIFA postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Biology and Biochemistry at the University of Houston, mentored by Tim Cooper. She completed her Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Princeton University, and received her B.S. from Rice University.... Click Dr. Tate's photo to continue reading.

Mammalian lipid droplets are innate immune hubs integrating cell metabolism and host defense. Bosch M, et al. in Science, October 16, 2020 Developmental Relationships of Four Exhausted CD8+ T Cell Subsets Reveals Underlying Transcriptional and Epigenetic Landscape Control Mechanisms. Beltra JC, et al.

Grace is originally from Northern Virginia, but she earned her BS in Biotechnology and Molecular Bioscience from Rochester Institute of Technology in New York in 2018. Grace worked under Dr. Andre Hudson while in school. She then immediately joined Vanderbilt University in 2018 through the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program (IGP), and joined the Microbe-Host Interactions (MHI) Ph.D. graduate program. In the Schmitz and Hadjifrangiskou labs, Grace works on defining a molecular signature for uropathogenic E. coli. She utilizes bioinformatics and bacterial genetics techniques... Click the image on the left to continue reading.

In today’s COVID-19-centric world, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by headlines constantly broadcasting differing timelines of just how long this pandemic could last. One main determinant of the duration of lockdowns and social distancing is the development of a vaccine. The goal is “to create a vaccine that is safe and with good immunogenicity, meaning it stimulates a strong immune response.” Recent developments of COVID-19 vaccine design have promised ≥90% effectiveness, however, we are still missing the second half of the story. It is one achievement to instill COVID-19 immunity in the majority of vaccine recipients, but another to maintain this protection... Click the image to continue reading.