2007 News Stories Featuring Vanderbilt Awarded $4.4 Million by the Michael J. Fox Foundation To Develop New Class of Parkinson's Disease Drugs: A drug discovery team at Vanderbilt University Medical Center led by Jeffrey Conn has been awarded a $4.4
million "LEAPS" grant by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research to jump-start development of a new class of Parkinson's disease drugs. Vanderbilt, St. Jude Form Scientist Training Program: The Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have established a joint training grant to help prepare scientists for the multi-disciplinary demands of today's workplace. The St. Jude/Vanderbilt Chemical Biology and Therapeutics Training Grant is open to Vanderbilt students who have completed one year of graduate work in the Department of Chemistry, the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program or the Chemical and Physical Biology Program. New Technique Measures Molecular Interactions: A new and deceptively simple technique has been developed by chemists at Vanderbilt that can measure the interactions between free-floating, unlabeled biological molecules including proteins, sugars, antibodies, DNA and RNA. “Pharmaceuticals depend on reactions between proteins and small molecules or between pairs of proteins or between interactions between RNA and DNA or pairs of DNA molecules,” said Darryl Bornhop, Ph.D., professor of Chemistry, who headed the 12-year development process. “So the ability to measure how that happens is very advantageous.” Fanning Elected AAAS Fellow: Ellen Fanning, Stevenson Professor of Molecular Biology, has been elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Researchers are chosen for this honor based on efforts to advance science or its applications that are considered scientifically or socially distinguished. Brown Serves As Editor of Lipidomics Series: H. Alex Brown, Ingram Associate Professor of Cancer Research and VICB member, recently completed a three volume series on Lipidomics for Methods in Enzymology. A number of VICB members contributed chapters to these volumes, which demonstrates the strength and diversity of the lipid biological and chemistry programs at Vanderbilt. The three volumes is the first comprehensive series on this emerging field (432, 433, 434 - published by Elsevier and available online) and will be a great resource for the lipid biochemistry and cell signaling communities. Creating Life in the Laboratory: Scientists are aiming to craft a "minimal genome"--the smallest group of genes an organism needs to survive and function--and insert it into an empty cell. Anthony Forster, assistant professor of pharmacology, is quoted. Nobel Laureate Speaks at Discovery Lecture Series: Guest lecturer, Bengt Samuelsson, MD, Nobel Laureate in Physiology/Medicine Dean of the Medical Faculty, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, spoke to an overflow crowd on October 11, 2007. His topic was "From Biochemical Mechanisms to Novel Drug Targets: The 5-Lipoxygenase Pathway." Pharmacology Graduate Student Wins Award: Thomas Bridges, representing the Lindsley Lab and supported by the Integrative Training in Therapeutic Discovery training grant, won an award for Best Poster at the ACS-EFMC Frontiers in CNS and Oncology Medicinal Chemistry conference which took place in Siena Italy, October 7-9, 2007. Bridges won one of three prizes awarded for best poster presentation for his submission titled "Subtype-selective Allosteric Modulation of the M1 and M4 Muscarinic Receptors: Novel Agonists and Potentiators Relevant to Alzheimer's Disease and Schizophrenia." Awards were based on the research impact and significance presented in the poster, how well the presenter conveyed the information, and how well the presenter dealt with questions about the information. Chemist Eva Harth Is Developing a New Flexible Type of Drug Delivery System: There are two aspects to creating an effective drug: finding a chemical compound that has the desired biological effect and minimal side effects, and then delivering it to the right place in the body for it to do its job. With support from a $478,000, five-year grant from the National Science Foundation, Eva Harth is tackling the second part of this problem. Bornhop Paper Published in Science: Darryl Borhbop, Vanderbilt Department of Chemistry, Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology, has published "Free-solution, label-free molecular interactions studied by back-scattering interferometry" in the September 2007 issue of Science. Free-solution, label-free molecular interactions were investigated with back-scattering interferometry in a simple optical train composed of a helium-neon laser, a microfluidic channel, and a position sensor. Program promotes greater diversity in molecular sciences: More than 170 prospective students and their faculty mentors representing nearly 40 nearby institutions got an inside look at Vanderbilt graduate programs during an open house held last week. "A major goal of the program is recruiting underrepresented minority students into molecular science graduate programs," said Jens Meiler, Ph.D., assistant professor of Chemistry, Pharmacology and Biomedical Informatics, and organizer of the program. Hamm On NIH Peer Review Committee: Heidi Hamm, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Pharmacol-ogy, has been appointed to the Peer Review Advisory Committee of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The committee advises the NIH director and other top NIH officials on the evaluation of NIH grant applications. Scientists Find Weak Link In “Earth's Most Dangerous Animal”: Vanderbilt researchers have discovered an important clue to how mosquitoes find their prey, which could help develop malaria prevention measures in the future. Researcher Laurence Zwiebel, professor of biology, is quoted. F. Pete Guengerich - Enzyme Tolerates Mistakes In DNA: DNA is littered with "mistakes"-bases damaged by normal cellular processes or by an outside insult. These mistakes can signal for the cell to self-destruct. To survive, a cell may need to bypass such damage during replication. Why Proteins Contain Proline: A new study published by Anthony Forster and colleagues, "Specificity of Translation for N-Alkyl Amino Acids," was published online on August 25 by the top chemistry journal, Journal of the American Chemical Society. Aspirnaut Initiative Connects Rural Students With Web: A pilot program in Grapevine, Arkansas outfits school buses with Internet-connected laptops and iPods loaded with educational programming to divert children on long bus rides. The project was started by Billy Hudson, Elliot V. Newman Professor of biochemistry, and his wife, Julie Hudson, director of the Center for Evidence-Based Anesthesia & Legislative Affairs. Vitamin E Helps Heart Only in High Doses: John A. McLean, assistant professor of chemistry, organized a symposium titled “Ion Mobility Spectrometry: New Developments in Biomolecular Applications” for the 55th Annual Conference of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry held in Indianapolis. McLean also presented an invited lecture at a workshop devoted to the emerging field of gas-phase biomolecular separations on the basis of ion structure. Radiology Society Honors Hallahan: The American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology has named Vanderbilt's Dennis Hallahan, M.D., to its 2007 class of ASTRO Fellows. Hallahan, professor and chair of Radiation Oncology, and 39 other new fellows will receive their awards at a special ceremony during the 49th Annual Meeting, to be held Oct. 28-Nov. 1 in Los Angeles. Countdown To A Synthetic Lifeform: Synthetic life could be just around the corner - depending on what you mean by "synthetic". This article mentions Tony Forster, assistant professor of Pharmacology, who co-published a detailed blueprint for assembling a synthetic cell from scratch. Quest To Create Synthetic Cell: Vanderbilt's Tony Forster, assistant professor of Pharmacology, is out to create a synthetic cell. His goal is to discover the remaining essential ingredients for protein synthesis, self-replication and basic life. Self-replication can be used to improve biopolymer syntheses and to evolve small molecule drugs in a manner analogous to monoclonal antibody technology. Read Article Faculty Honored For Research: Several VICB members recently received recognition by the Vanderbilt School of Medicine for "Outstanding Contributions to Research. Daniel Liebler, Ph.D., professor of Biochemistry, Pharmacology and Bioinformatics — Sidney P. Colowick Award For Research that Serves as a Platform for Discovery in Diverse Areas Louis De Felice, Ph.D., professor of Pharmacology and Neuroscience — John H. Exton Award For Research Leading to Innovative Biological Concepts P. Jeffrey Conn, Ph.D., professor of Pharmacology; director, Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology Drug Discovery Program — Charles R. Park Award For Basic Research Revealing Insights into Physiology and Pathophysiology Researcher's Math & Science Education Plan Honors His Rural Roots: Billy Hudson, Ph.D., is an internationally known scientist who helped discover the molecular underpinnings of autoimmune and hereditary kidney diseases. Now, he has returned to his roots — rural Grapevine, Arkansas — with a bold plan to enrich math and science education for students at risk of being left out of the latest technological advances, educational opportunities and jobs. Balser, Morrow Inducted Into Association of American Physicians: Two physicians from Vanderbilt University Medical Center have been inducted into one of the oldest and most storied medical societies — the Association of American Physicians (AAP), established in 1885 for the advancement of scientific and practical medicine. Members are recognized for their pursuit of medical knowledge and the advancement through experimentation and discovery of basic and clinical science and its application to clinical medicine. Eva Harth Receives Career Award: The National Science Foundation recently awarded Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Eva Harth, with an NSF CAREER Award in the amount of $478,000 for "The design and utilization of nanoscale objects for applications in medicine and materials science. Molecular Mechanisms Of A Biological Clock: After finding three proteins in blue-green algae that develop a 24-hour cycle, a new study was done to find out more about biological clocks. Carl Johnson, professor of biological sciences, heads the study which is published in PLoS Biology. Read Entire Article Vanderbilt - St. Jude Host Retreat: Larry Marnett, Director of the Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology, and Kip Guy, Chair, Chemical Biology & Therapeutics at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, recently co-hosted a retreat that included speaker presenstations and student posters. View Retreat Web Page Scientist Reinvents One-Room Schoolhouse For Rural Students: VICB member Billy Hudson wants to bring back the one-room schoolhouse. Not the 19th-century version, but a virtual schoolhouse with laptops and webcasts that can connect students even in remote areas to 21st-century learning. Rural students are at risk of being left out of the latest technological advances, educational opportunities and jobs, said Hudson, a biochemist who directs the Center for Matrix Biology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Read Entire Article VICB's High-Throughput Screening Facility Is Mentioned In NIH Funding Article: Three Nashville universities that collectively receive hundreds of millions of dollars in federal research grants each year fear a continued "flattening" of the health agency's budget could thwart medical research and ultimately harm the region's economy. At issue is funding from the National Institutes of Health, which has been stagnating for the past four years after nearly doubling between 1998 and 2003. During that five-year period, Meharry Medical College, Tennessee State University and especially Vanderbilt University began fueling significant expansions in Nashville with federal dollars paying for faculty, staff, grad students and the equipment and buildings they work in. Read Entire Article Pietenpol Talks About New Cancer Center Role: Jennifer Pietenpol, Ph.D., was recently selected to lead the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center as interim director while a national search is under way for a successor to Ray DuBois, M.D., Ph.D., who is leaving Vanderbilt later this year to become provost and executive vice president at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Pietenpol recently discussed her new role with the Reporter's Cynthia Manley and Heather Newman. Read Entire Article Drug Discovery Efforts Land Conn Two Awards: Jeff Conn, Ph.D., Vanderbilt University Medical Center's drug discovery guru, has achieved the scientific equivalent of a grand slam. He is the first person to receive two major awards in the same year from the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET), one of the oldest and most prestigious science organizations: The 2007 Pharmacia-ASPET Award for Experimental Therapeutics; and An ASPET-Astellas Award in Translational Pharmacology. Read Entire Article Pietenpol Interim VICC Director: Jennifer Pietenpol, Ph.D., has been selected to lead the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center as interim director. Pietenpol, Ingram Professor of Cancer Research and professor of Biochemistry, will guide the center while a national search is under way for a successor to Ray DuBois, M.D., Ph.D. DuBois will leave Vanderbilt later this year to become provost and executive vice president at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. VUMC officials expect a successor to be identified by summer. Read Entire Article Clinic Is Key to Speed New Drug Discovery: The pipeline of truly new medications has been dwindling, despite massive investment by the pharmaceutical industry, said Jeff Conn, who directs the Pharmacology Department's Program in Translational Neuropharmacology and the Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology's Program in Drug Discovery. He has helped pioneer this new era of target identification and is an established leader in the field of metabotropic glutamate receptors, which play important roles in cognition, memory and movement, and in disorders such as schizophrenia, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Read Entire Article Hunt For Cold Clues Crosses Disciplines: The culprit behind that head cold could be human metapneumovirus (MPV) — a relative newcomer to the world of known respiratory viruses. John Williams, M.D. and Vanderbilt colleagues including chemist David Wright, Ph.D., reported in two separate studies this month in the Journal of Virology that an MPV protein responsible for helping the virus infect cells could be both a good target for anti-viral drugs and a candidate vaccine. Read Entire Article Roberts Honors Instructor Who Sparked His Interest In Science: When Jack Roberts, M.D., started his undergraduate studies at Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, he expected to learn some things about business and return home to run his family's three auto parts companies. But instead of going home, he went on to medical school and beyond to a career as a renowned scientist. The turning point, he said, was a physiology course taught by T. Edwin Rogers, Ph.D., a biology professor everyone called “Doc.” Read Entire Article Industry Influx Helps Boost Drug Discovery Capabilities: Vanderbilt University Medical Center is fast becoming an “engine” of drug discovery. About a dozen new faculty members have been recruited during the past four years by the departments of Pharmacology, Chemistry and Biochemistry, and by the Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology (VICB). Half of them were recruited from industry. One of them, Craig Lindsley, Ph.D., arrived from Merck this fall. The young chemist has accumulated an impressive resume since earning his doctorate from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1996. Read entire article Vanderbilt’s Faculty Productivity Among Nation’s Best According To Survey: Six doctoral programs at Vanderbilt University Medical Center ranked among the top 10 in scholarly output in 2005, according to the latest Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index released by Academic Analytics. The index calculates the scholarly productivity in terms of faculty publications, citations, awards and grants. Read entire article Professor Indulges His Passion For Synthetic Organic Chemistry: There were a number of factors involved in his decision to come to Vanderbilt. Johnston, who has joined the Institute of Chemical Biology, was particularly impressed by Vanderbilt’s approach to interdisciplinary research. In particular, he likes the way the campus has maintained support for traditional disciplines while adding a series of trans-institutional centers designed to make it easier for campus scientists to participate in efforts converting their basic research into applications. Read entire article 10th International Conference on the Chemistry of Antibiotics and other Bioactive Compounds to be held at Vanderbilt University: The ICCA-10 conference will be held at the Student Life Center on the campus of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. It will begin Sunday evening, August 12, 2007 and end on Wednesday afternoon, August 15, 2007. The objective of the ICCA-10 is to bring together academic and industrial scientists to discuss all aspects of the chemistry and biology of bioactive compounds with a focus on antibiotics research and its future. ICCA-10 Website 2007 Grant Announcements June Grants: March Grants: February Grants: January Grants:
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Articles Highlighting VICB Members Tricking The Mosquito's Nose: A Grand Challenge To Combat Malaria Surgery Hope For "Bone On Demand" Where Are The New Drugs? High-Throughput Screening Facility To Boost Drug Discovery Efforts Drug Discovery In The 21st Century Nanotechnology System Faster, More Sensitive In Detecting RSV Thinking Outside The Cell The Search For Better Drugs Tissue Imaging Determines Drug Metabolism Discovery Sheds Light On Neurotransmitter Release Mechanism Research Team Pieces Together DNA Replication In "Nature" Alcohol Drug's New Dose Shows Promise |
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