Research

Vanderbilt’s Social, Behavioral and Educational Research Institutional Review Board will enter phase two of its launch on July 1, expanding the scope of studies it reviews and continuing the university’s transition away from the VUMC IRB for social, behavioral and education studies involving human participants. Read More

In this episode of Quantum Potential, Craig Lindsley, William K. Warren, Jr. Professor of Medicine, University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry, Chemistry and Pharmacology and executive director of the Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, joins Provost C. Cybele Raver to discuss transformative research exploring how subtle tweaks to brain chemistry could change the way we treat neurodegenerative diseases and chronic pain. Read More

Vanderbilt University may submit one nominee for the Susan G. Komen Career Transition Award opportunity. Read More

Vanderbilt (VU + VUMC, collaboratively) may nominate one candidate each from the School of Medicine and the School of Nursing for the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation’s Faculty Scholars Program. Read More

Vanderbilt University may submit one nominee for the Susan G. Komen Career Catalyst Research grant opportunity. Read More

The trial, which is funded by a K23 Career Development Award from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, is expected to begin this summer and will assign peer-parent coaches to families to determine whether their having support to navigate the medical system and other challenges means their children will be healthier.   Read More

By Jennifer Kiilerich Marissa Tessier, Melanie Hundley and Elizabeth Seeker. Photo: Krystal Schmidt Convincing tweens and teens to read books can be an uphill battle. But a collaboration between two Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development students, their professor, and best-selling Disney Books author Jen Calonita is… Read More

By Jennifer Kiilerich Only a third of American students read proficiently, according to the 2024 National Assessment of Education Progress. Scores continue to lag behind those from 2019 and 2022, and there has been little overall improvement since the NAEP began tracking reading in 1992. Educators and policymakers have… Read More

Josh Clinton, Abby and Jon Winkelried Chair and professor of political science, and co-director of the Vanderbilt Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions, joins Provost C. Cybele Raver to discuss how transparency and increasing public literacy about statistics—including an awareness of limitations—can disrupt Americans’ mounting distrust in polling data. Read More

Vanderbilt may nominate up to two candidates for the 2026 Warren Alpert Distinguished Scholars Fellowship Award in translational immunology (non-cancer). Read More

Vanderbilt (VU + VUMC, collaboratively) may nominate up to two candidates (one per project type) for the Gabrielle’s Angel Foundation for Cancer Research opportunity. Read More

by Jenna Somers Jessika Boles After consulting with the palliative care team, Jessika Boles, MEd’08, found herself speaking with a mother about honoring her daughter’s legacy. “One of the ways we can do that is through handprint art, since handprints and fingerprints are unique to each person. Would you… Read More

By Jennifer Kiilerich When top special education researchers, a cutting-edge dyslexia academy and research center, and influential school leaders converge at Vanderbilt University, big ideas are bound to emerge. That is exactly what happened at the Tennessee Association of Independent Schools Neurodivergence-Informed Schools conference, hosted by the Roberts Academy… Read More

By Jennifer Kiilerich In rural Monroe County, Tennessee, the school district’s only teacher of students with visual impairments (TVI) is approaching retirement. But her daughter, Andrea Leatherwood, is almost ready to step into the role. Leatherwood is among the first cohort of teachers accepted last summer into the new Vanderbilt… Read More

Vanderbilt University has joined the Urban Humanities Network (UHN) as a consortium campus, solidifying the university’s place among leading institutions at the forefront of urban humanities scholarship. Established in 2022, UHN unites universities, organizations, and researchers dedicated to interdisciplinary study within the urban humanities, which operates at the nexus of humanities, urbanism, and design. Read More

Targeting ncRNAs with drugs presents a much larger therapeutic opportunity than targeting proteins, but the currently available drug discovery tools are slow and computationally intensive. Assistant Professor of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics and core member of the Center for Applied AI in Protein Dynamics Carlos Oliver is working with collaborators to unlock the untapped potential of ncRNAs, as they are a promising family of targets for the development of novel small-molecule therapeutics. Read More

Like anyone, it takes time for coders to reengage in their work, meaning interruptions from bosses, co-workers, and email and messaging notifications can lead to a loss of focus, decreased productivity, increased stress, and a longer time to complete tasks. But according to a new award-winning study by researchers in Vanderbilt’s Institute for Software Integrated Systems, not all interruptions are created equal. Read More

A new study by Vanderbilt investigators uncovered a previously unknown biological mechanism: how tissues detect and respond to damage in basement membranes, the thin layers of extracellular matrix that surround and support nearly every organ in the body. The research, published in Developmental Cell, is the first to show how local cells sense and respond to changes in basement membrane stiffness caused by damage—and how they activate a previously unknown set of “matrix mender” cells to repair the tissue. Read More

At a time of deep political divisions, registered Tennessee voters are united in their overwhelming support for key federal programs, according to the latest semiannual statewide Vanderbilt Poll. Concern about the U.S. economy and personal financial futures is also prevalent, while partisan divides are more apparent on issues such as immigration, tariffs and President Donald Trump’s response to court rulings against his actions and policies.   Read More

Vanderbilt University and its Center for Technology Transfer and Commercialization hosted the inaugural Southeast Venture Showcase, a first-of-its kind collaboration among top research universities and federal laboratories across the Southeast to highlight their most promising new technology-based ventures.  Read More