Nathan Seppa

Biomedical Writer (retired September 2015)

All Stories by Nathan Seppa

  1. Health & Medicine

    Pancreatic cancer years in the making

    A decade elapses from the first cancer-related mutation to tumor formation, and several more years pass until the disease spreads to other organs, a new study finds. The work raises the possibility that a usually deadly malignancy can be treated before it’s too late.

  2. Humans

    Should health care workers be required to get flu vaccinations?

    Mandatory policies increase participation at some hospitals, but are still disputed by unions and some staffers.

  3. Health & Medicine

    Pet frogs can transmit salmonella

    A CDC investigation adds a common aquarium species to the list of amphibians that can carry and spread bacteria.

  4. Health & Medicine

    Anticancer protein might combat HIV

    The tumor suppressor p21 shows up in abundance in some people who are impervious to developing AIDS despite being infected, a study shows.

  5. Health & Medicine

    Protein implicated in many cancers

    A hormone receptor that shows up in 11 tumor types might make a good target for drugs, a new study suggests.

  6. Health & Medicine

    Implants help heroin addicts kick habit

    Installing a slow-release drug under the skin enables some abusers of illicit and prescription drugs to get through withdrawal, a new study shows.

  7. Science & Society

    2010 Nobels recognize potential of basic science to shape the world

    Prizes go to IVF, graphene and ‘carbon chemistry at its best’

  8. Health & Medicine

    Getting to the bottom of diabetes and kidney disease

    Renal cells called podocytes may need insulin to maintain tissues’ blood-filtration role, a study in mice finds.

  9. Health & Medicine

    Medical Nobel goes to developer of IVF

    Robert Edwards receives prize for work that led to 4 million births.

  10. Health & Medicine

    Enzyme might underlie some stroke damage

    Inhibiting NOX4 in mice limits brain injury, tests show.

  11. Health & Medicine

    Scottish kids’ asthma declined after smoking ban

    Hospitals report a drop in asthma emergencies among children since a law prohibiting lighting up in public buildings went into effect in 2006.

  12. Health & Medicine

    Mutated gene cited in some ovarian cancers

    The finding may help researchers devise a way to screen women with endometriosis for cancer risk.