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Celebrate the investiture weekend with Vanderbilt
On April 8–9, Vanderbilt will host a series of events in honor of Chancellor Daniel Diermeier’s investiture. An investiture ceremony is one of the oldest traditions in academia, an occasion for conferring new roles to university leaders and faculty. Surrounding the ceremony will be opportunities for the Vanderbilt community to learn more about Vanderbilt’s past and future and enjoy a family-friendly celebration. Please visit vu.edu/investiture for scheduling updates and to watch all streaming content. Sign up here if you would like to receive a reminder email one hour before each event. MORE
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Vanderbilt professional and graduate schools excel in 2023 ‘U.S. News’ rankings
Vanderbilt University’s graduate programs showed continued strength in the 2023 U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate Schools rankings, which were released today. Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development again ranked fifth, while its concentrations in special education and school administration placed first. Vanderbilt School of Medicine maintained its spot as 13th in the nation among research institutions. For the second year in a row, the Vanderbilt School of Nursing master of science in nursing program ranked eighth in the nation. Its doctor of nursing practice ranked seventh and its master’s adult-gerontology, acute care nurse practitioner program rose to a No. 1 ranking. Five of Vanderbilt’s graduate and professional schools fall within the top 25 of the U.S. News rankings. MORE
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FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH
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Vanderbilt ranks 12th in annual survey of NIH funding; 2021 awards topped $445M
Vanderbilt University again ranked among the nation’s top research institutions receiving funding from the National Institutes of Health, according to the latest data compiled by the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research. The total amount Vanderbilt scholars received across the School of Nursing, the School of Medicine Basic Sciences and 15 clinical sciences departments, which operate within the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, reached $445,537,839, reflecting a 31 percent increase over the past five years. Vanderbilt has ranked among the top 12 research universities receiving NIH funding in 14 of the past 15 years. The NIH is the nation’s medical research agency and the leading supporter of biomedical research in the world. MORE
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National Institutes of Health—Biologists discover signaling pathways potentially associated with pancreatic cancer
Kathleen DelGiorno, assistant professor of cell and developmental biology, her lab and collaborators at the Salk Institute have discovered some of the specific signaling molecules involved in tumor progression in pancreatic cancer. These molecules, called eicosanoids, play a role in inflammation and are known to have a role in cancer. According to DelGiorno, that role had not been completely evaluated in pancreatic tumors—until now. DelGiorno and her colleagues . . . used advanced basic science technologies, including mass spectrometry—technology to measure the weight and charge of molecules—RNA sequencing and tissue study techniques called histopathology. The combination of these techniques helped them identify which eicosanoids are relevant to disease progression in pancreatic cancer and which cell types produce these signals. Collectively, these data provide a road map for what pathways to target and may help identify new diagnostic strategies. [This research is supported in part by the National Institutes of Health.] MORE
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National Institutes of Health—Biochemical technique for finding small molecules discovered by Vanderbilt and University of Virginia researchers
Lipid rafts, a component of the plasma membranes that surround all cells in the human body, are essential in regulating the membranes’ structure, among other functions. But they are hard to study because traditional biochemical methods tend to destroy them. Chuck Sanders, associate dean for research, professor of biochemistry and medicine . . . collaborated with corresponding author Anne Kenworthy at the University of Virginia School of Medicine to develop new techniques for discovering the small molecules that regulate lipid rafts. Lipid rafts are composed of lipids and proteins that stick together as they move within the plasma membrane, like small rafts in the ocean. For example, the enzymes responsible for production of the amyloid-beta polypeptide closely associated with Alzheimer’s disease are thought to reside in lipid rafts. In addition to Alzheimer’s, alterations in lipid rafts have been associated with cancer cells that are resistant to chemotherapy. [This research was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health.] MORE
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James Lawson returns to Vanderbilt for launch of institute carrying forward his quest for justice and equality
Vanderbilt University will launch the James Lawson Institute for the Research and Study of Nonviolent Movements during a livestreamed celebration featuring the Rev. James Lawson and keynote speaker John M. Seigenthaler on April 7. Register for the livestream here. The celebration will be among the highlights of a multiday campus visit by Lawson, a pioneering civil rights leader who helped organize nonviolent protests in Nashville and across the South during the 1960s. One of the university’s most revered alumni, Lawson has taught at Vanderbilt as a distinguished university professor. The institute is a cross-disciplinary collaboration between the Divinity School and the College of Arts and Science that will nurture evidence-based research and education rooted in nonviolent strategies. In addition, the institute will promote relevant conversations and train the next generation in nonviolent interventions. MORE
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Famed writers, musicians and politicians among new advisory board for Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy
The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy has announced the formation of a 26-member advisory board spanning multiple backgrounds and fields—from former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and biographer Walter Isaacson to Grammy-winning artists Faith Hill and Tim McGraw—that is committed to the project’s mission to elevate facts and evidence-based reasoning in American political discourse. Today’s American democracy is struggling amid the nation’s deep polarization and eroding trust in foundational institutions. The Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy was founded just over one year ago in direct response to that dynamic, with the goals of exploring how higher education and other leading institutions can play a productive, active and meaningful role in healing our deepest divides and bridging our widest differences. The advisory board will help the project reach audiences far and wide with its core message . . . . MORE
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Data Science Institute to host ‘AI Summer’ to train researchers
Have a hard drive full of sequential data like audio, text, images or even DNA, but you can’t figure out how to make the most of it? Have an innovative research solution or business objective in mind, but you’re stuck in a quagmire of summarizing data into a few condensed features? Need broad solutions that cover a number of tasks—for example, generating conversational responses based on text or audio data? This summer, the Data Science Institute will host “AI Summer,” a four-week interactive, hands-on learning experience with live coding where anyone with an interest in advanced data science techniques can learn to use, train and share data models using any research or project data. DSI AI Summer is open to graduate students, postdocs, researchers, faculty, undergraduates, staff and the Nashville community. The sessions are free, and registration is required. MORE
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Musicians host tribute concert to reflect on loss during COVID-19 pandemic
The Vanderbilt University Symphony Orchestra and Vanderbilt’s collegiate choirs will host a musical tribute to remember those who’ve suffered a loss during the COVID-19 pandemic. Tucker Biddlecombe, associate professor and director of choral activities, will conduct performances of Ein Deutsches Requiem, Op. 45, by Johannes Brahms on April 8 at 7 p.m. on Alumni Lawn and April 10 at 2 p.m. at the Martha Rivers Ingram Center for the Performing Arts at Vanderbilt Blair School of Music. Biddlecombe said the music selection will allow audiences a time for reflection. Ein Deutsches Requiem is often called the Human Requiem or Requiem for the Living. Approximately 1,000 candles will be placed on Alumni Lawn for the April 8 performance, each marked with the name of someone lost or someone who has been left behind, as part of the event. Those who would like the name of a loved one included in the display are asked to place the request in the document at this link. The concert is free and open to the public. People are also invited to watch the performance on Blair’s livestreaming platform. MORE
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Michael King is chair-elect of AIMBE College of Fellows
Michael King, J. Lawrence Wilson Professor of Engineering and chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, has been elected chair-elect for the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering’s College of Fellows effective on March 25, 2022. Election to chair of AIMBE Fellows is a distinctive honor. As part of his duties as chair-elect, King will be responsible for directing the nomination, review, and election of new candidates to the AIMBE College of Fellows. King holds a joint appointment in radiology and radiological sciences and he is an internationally renowned researcher and scholar. He works at the interface among cellular engineering, drug delivery and nanotechnology. Among his recognitions are a National Science Foundation CAREER Award, a James D. Watson Investigator Award, a Whitaker Foundation Whitaker Investigator, and two teaching awards. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, the Biomedical Engineering Society, and the International Academy of Biological Engineering. MORE
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VUbrief summarizes Vanderbilt news items to inform our Congressional community of developments at the university. Visit our website for past issues of VUbrief. Vanderbilt University Office of Federal Relations (202) 216-4361
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