Nathan Seppa
Biomedical Writer (retired September 2015)
 
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All Stories by Nathan Seppa
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineClever Combo: Hybrid vaccine prevents West Nile virus in miceA vaccine fashioned from pieces of dengue virus and West Nile virus protects mice against West Nile fever, suggesting it might work in people. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineEight hours of sleep may not be so greatSleeping 8 to 9 hours a night doesn't necessarily translate into a longer life. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineGenetic Culprit: Mutation increases risk for uterine fibroidsAnalysis of DNA from families whose women have been beset by uterine growths reveals a mutation that can predispose women to these so-called fibroids. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineProtein Repair: New compounds may help cells fight off cancerResearchers have identified a compound that enables even defective p53 proteins to initiate anticancer chain reactions. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineHigh homocysteine tied to Alzheimer’sResearch has linked the incidence of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia to elevated blood concentrations of the amino acid homocysteine. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineChill Out: Mild hypothermia aids heart attack recoveryIcing down patients who have just had a heart stoppage may boost their survival chances and prevent brain damage in those who pull through. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineAntibody Warfare: Vaccine halts microbes in dialysis patientsA vaccine protects many kidney-dialysis patients from blood infection caused by the Staphylococcus aureus bacterium. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineLow birth weight matters later, tooPremature 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. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineSlowing lupus: Stifled inflammation limits kidney damageA new therapy for the autoimmune disease lupus works in mice by thwarting activation of immune-system proteins called complement. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineHeart recipients add their own cellsTransplanted hearts incorporate muscle and blood-vessel cells from their new host, suggesting that the heart may regenerate its own tissue. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineOminous signals: Genes may identify the worst breast cancersBy 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. 
- 			 Health & Medicine Health & MedicineAnthrax-toxin component decipheredScientists have figured out the molecular structure of edema factor, a component of the anthrax toxin.