Latest news from Van Andel Institute on Newswise en-us Copyright 2024 Newswise 115 31 / /images/newswise-logo-rss.gif /articles/combining-epigenetic-cancer-medications-may-have-benefit-for-colorectal-cancers-and-other-tumor-types/?sc=rsin /articles/combining-epigenetic-cancer-medications-may-have-benefit-for-colorectal-cancers-and-other-tumor-types/?sc=rsin Wed, 27 Mar 2024 14:00:00 EST A pair of medications that make malignant cells act as if they have a virus could hold new promise for treating colorectal cancers and other solid tumors, reports a study published today in Science Advances. Van Andel Institute /articles/inflammation-and-loss-of-protective-mechanisms-in-the-brain-linked-to-suicide-risk/?sc=rsin /articles/inflammation-and-loss-of-protective-mechanisms-in-the-brain-linked-to-suicide-risk/?sc=rsin Tue, 14 Nov 2023 11:05:25 EST A first-of-its-kind study has identified overactive inflammation and loss of critical protection mechanisms in the brain as potential contributors to suicide risk. Van Andel Institute /articles/van-andel-institute-scientist-awarded-2-9-million-to-tackle-insulin-resistance-a-driver-of-type-2-diabetes/?sc=rsin /articles/van-andel-institute-scientist-awarded-2-9-million-to-tackle-insulin-resistance-a-driver-of-type-2-diabetes/?sc=rsin Tue, 03 Oct 2023 10:05:59 EST Nick Burton, Ph.D., has earned a five-year, nearly $2.9 million New Innovator Award from the National Institutes of Health Common Fund to find new ways to fix or prevent insulin resistance, a key driver of Type 2 diabetes. Van Andel Institute /articles/van-andel-institute-chief-scientist-earns-7-9-million-outstanding-investigator-award-to-support-cancer-research/?sc=rsin /articles/van-andel-institute-chief-scientist-earns-7-9-million-outstanding-investigator-award-to-support-cancer-research/?sc=rsin Thu, 28 Sep 2023 13:05:43 EST Van Andel Institute Chief Scientific Officer Peter A. Jones, Ph.D., D.Sc. (hon), has received a seven-year, nearly $7.9 million grant from the National Cancer Institute's Outstanding Investigator Award program. Van Andel Institute /articles/van-andel-institute-appoints-new-graduate-school-dean-and-chief-academic-officer/?sc=rsin /articles/van-andel-institute-appoints-new-graduate-school-dean-and-chief-academic-officer/?sc=rsin Tue, 26 Sep 2023 16:05:32 EST Van Andel Institute has appointed Eric Swindell, Ph.D., as dean and chief academic officer of Van Andel Institute Graduate School, effective Dec. 4, 2023. Van Andel Institute /articles/study-illuminates-mechanism-that-annotates-genetic-information-passed-from-fathers-to-offspring/?sc=rsin /articles/study-illuminates-mechanism-that-annotates-genetic-information-passed-from-fathers-to-offspring/?sc=rsin Wed, 06 Sep 2023 14:30:00 EST Van Andel Institute scientists and collaborators have identified a key part of a mechanism that annotates genetic information before it is passed from fathers to their offspring. Van Andel Institute /articles/van-andel-institute-scientist-nets-2-4-million-award-to-study-cellular-powerhouses2/?sc=rsin /articles/van-andel-institute-scientist-nets-2-4-million-award-to-study-cellular-powerhouses2/?sc=rsin Wed, 30 Aug 2023 14:05:56 EST Our cells are powered by tiny "powerplants" called mitochondria, which transform nutrients into fuel that sustains life. But there's more to the story of mitochondria, says Van Andel Institute Assistant Professor Sara Nowinski, Ph.D. Van Andel Institute /articles/repairing-broken-brain-circuits-may-offer-path-to-new-parkinson-s-treatments/?sc=rsin /articles/repairing-broken-brain-circuits-may-offer-path-to-new-parkinson-s-treatments/?sc=rsin Thu, 24 Aug 2023 11:05:05 EST Scientists have identified a series of processes that help the brain adapt to damage caused by breakdowns in circuits that govern movement, cognition and sensory perception. Van Andel Institute /articles/alternative-cellular-fuels-boost-immunity/?sc=rsin /articles/alternative-cellular-fuels-boost-immunity/?sc=rsin Fri, 28 Jul 2023 11:05:11 EST A metabolic by-product that is more prevalent during fasting may supercharge immune cells as they fight infection and disease, reports an early stage study by Van Andel Institute scientists and collaborators. Van Andel Institute /articles/breakdown-of-protective-mechanisms-can-drive-lung-cancer-development/?sc=rsin /articles/breakdown-of-protective-mechanisms-can-drive-lung-cancer-development/?sc=rsin Thu, 22 Jun 2023 10:45:05 EST Loss of two key "protector" proteins initiates epigenetic changes that transform healthy lung cells into cancerous ones, according to new research from Van Andel Institute scientists. Van Andel Institute /articles/targeting-uncontrolled-inflammation-may-hold-the-key-to-treating-therapy-resistant-cancers/?sc=rsin /articles/targeting-uncontrolled-inflammation-may-hold-the-key-to-treating-therapy-resistant-cancers/?sc=rsin Thu, 11 May 2023 13:15:51 EST Van Andel Institute scientists have pinpointed how a specific gene mutation triggers an inflammatory cascade that may drive development of treatment-resistant cancers. Van Andel Institute /articles/van-andel-institute-washington-university-school-of-medicine-in-st-louis-to-lead-genome-center-under-140m-nih-initiative/?sc=rsin /articles/van-andel-institute-washington-university-school-of-medicine-in-st-louis-to-lead-genome-center-under-140m-nih-initiative/?sc=rsin Thu, 11 May 2023 13:10:57 EST Van Andel Institute's Hui Shen, Ph.D., and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis's Ting Wang, Ph.D., will co-lead a collaborative project supported by the Somatic Mosaicism across Human Tissues (SMaHT) Network, a new $140 million National Institutes of Health-led effort to better understand the genetic differences between individual cells and tissues in the body. Van Andel Institute /articles/osteoporosis-treatments-may-benefit-from-discovery-of-key-driver-of-low-bone-density/?sc=rsin /articles/osteoporosis-treatments-may-benefit-from-discovery-of-key-driver-of-low-bone-density/?sc=rsin Wed, 19 Apr 2023 11:05:45 EST Scientists have pinpointed a key driver of low bone density, a discovery that may lead to improved treatments with fewer side effects for women with osteoporosis. Van Andel Institute /articles/researchers-discover-two-subtypes-of-insulin-producing-cells/?sc=rsin /articles/researchers-discover-two-subtypes-of-insulin-producing-cells/?sc=rsin Tue, 28 Mar 2023 11:30:03 EST Researchers have identified two distinct subtypes of insulin-producing beta cells, or (beta) cells, each with crucial characteristics that may be leveraged to better understand and treat Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. Van Andel Institute /articles/van-andel-institute-awarded-7-9-million-to-continue-role-as-cancer-moonshot-sm-biobank-biorepository/?sc=rsin /articles/van-andel-institute-awarded-7-9-million-to-continue-role-as-cancer-moonshot-sm-biobank-biorepository/?sc=rsin Fri, 16 Sep 2022 13:25:43 EST Van Andel Institute's Biorepository has been awarded a $7.9 million, five-year contract from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, to continue serving as the biorepository for the Cancer MoonshotSM Biobank study. The Institute has served as the Cancer MoonshotSM Biobank Biorepository since 2020, when it was awarded a two-year subcontract to develop the framework and protocols for this part of the initiative. Van Andel Institute /articles/scientists-redefine-obesity-with-discovery-of-two-major-subtypes/?sc=rsin /articles/scientists-redefine-obesity-with-discovery-of-two-major-subtypes/?sc=rsin Wed, 14 Sep 2022 10:40:14 EST A team led by Van Andel Institute scientists has identified two distinct types of obesity with physiological and molecular differences that may have lifelong consequences for health, disease and response to medication. Van Andel Institute /articles/cellular-waste-may-supercharge-immune-cell-function/?sc=rsin /articles/cellular-waste-may-supercharge-immune-cell-function/?sc=rsin Wed, 17 Aug 2022 11:00:48 EST The immune cells that protect us from infection and cancer seek out a wide array of fuel sources to power their function -- including some long thought to be cellular waste products. The findings, published in Cell Metabolism, lay the foundation for future personalized dietary recommendations designed to supercharge the immune system and augment therapies for cancer and other diseases. Van Andel Institute /articles/new-technique-helps-scientists-run-circles-around-cancer-by-revealing-roots-of-esophagus-and-stomach-cancers/?sc=rsin /articles/new-technique-helps-scientists-run-circles-around-cancer-by-revealing-roots-of-esophagus-and-stomach-cancers/?sc=rsin Tue, 07 Jun 2022 13:05:40 EST Rampant inflammation has long been linked to cancer but exactly how it pushes healthy cells to transform into malignant ones has remained a mystery. Now, scientists at Van Andel Institute have found one culprit behind this connection. Van Andel Institute /articles/molecular-blueprint-illuminates-how-plants-perceive-light/?sc=rsin /articles/molecular-blueprint-illuminates-how-plants-perceive-light/?sc=rsin Thu, 31 Mar 2022 10:40:19 EST GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (March 30, 2022) -- Plants rely on their ability to sense light for survival. But unlike animals, plants don't have eyes full of photoreceptors to capture and convey messages from visual stimuli. Instead, plants are coated with a network of light-sensing photoreceptors that detect different wavelengths of light, allowing them to regulate their lifecycles and adjust to environmental conditions. Van Andel Institute /articles/cryo-em-reveals-how-911-molecule-helps-fix-damaged-dna/?sc=rsin /articles/cryo-em-reveals-how-911-molecule-helps-fix-damaged-dna/?sc=rsin Fri, 25 Mar 2022 13:15:48 EST GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (March 21, 2022) -- When something goes wrong during DNA replication, cells call their own version of 911 to pause the process and fix the problem -- a failsafe that is critical to maintaining health and staving off disease. Van Andel Institute