Nathan Seppa

Biomedical Writer (retired September 2015)

All Stories by Nathan Seppa

  1. Health & Medicine

    Clever Combo: Hybrid vaccine prevents West Nile virus in mice

    A vaccine fashioned from pieces of dengue virus and West Nile virus protects mice against West Nile fever, suggesting it might work in people.

  2. Health & Medicine

    Eight hours of sleep may not be so great

    Sleeping 8 to 9 hours a night doesn't necessarily translate into a longer life.

  3. Health & Medicine

    Genetic Culprit: Mutation increases risk for uterine fibroids

    Analysis of DNA from families whose women have been beset by uterine growths reveals a mutation that can predispose women to these so-called fibroids.

  4. Health & Medicine

    Protein Repair: New compounds may help cells fight off cancer

    Researchers have identified a compound that enables even defective p53 proteins to initiate anticancer chain reactions.

  5. Health & Medicine

    High homocysteine tied to Alzheimer’s

    Research has linked the incidence of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia to elevated blood concentrations of the amino acid homocysteine.

  6. Health & Medicine

    Chill Out: Mild hypothermia aids heart attack recovery

    Icing down patients who have just had a heart stoppage may boost their survival chances and prevent brain damage in those who pull through.

  7. Health & Medicine

    Antibody Warfare: Vaccine halts microbes in dialysis patients

    A vaccine protects many kidney-dialysis patients from blood infection caused by the Staphylococcus aureus bacterium.

  8. Health & Medicine

    Low birth weight matters later, too

    Premature babies weighing less than 1.5 kilograms at birth grow up to have lower achievement scores on standard tests and are less likely to go to college than are full-term babies weighing more than twice as much.

  9. Health & Medicine

    Slowing lupus: Stifled inflammation limits kidney damage

    A new therapy for the autoimmune disease lupus works in mice by thwarting activation of immune-system proteins called complement.

  10. Health & Medicine

    Heart recipients add their own cells

    Transplanted hearts incorporate muscle and blood-vessel cells from their new host, suggesting that the heart may regenerate its own tissue.

  11. Health & Medicine

    Ominous signals: Genes may identify the worst breast cancers

    By using a technology that reveals patterns of gene activity in tumor cells, researchers can detect breast cancers that are likely to spread and become deadly.

  12. Health & Medicine

    Anthrax-toxin component deciphered

    Scientists have figured out the molecular structure of edema factor, a component of the anthrax toxin.