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Aparna Nathan, PhD

Aparna Nathan, PhD

Aparna is a freelance science writer with a PhD in bioinformatics and genomics from Harvard University. She uses her multidisciplinary training to find both the cutting-edge science and the human stories in everything from genetic testing to space expeditions. She was a 2021 AAAS Mass Media Fellow at the Philadelphia Inquirer. Her writing has also appeared in Popular Science, PBS NOVA, and The Open Notebook.

Articles by Aparna Nathan, PhD
Six tubes, each with black dots representing flies, each fly encircled in blue, green, or red.
Combating Age-Related Motor Decline
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Aug 23, 2024 | 4 min read
Increasing levels of the protein Trio preserved synaptic function and motor abilities in aging flies.
A woman and a child sitting on a couch blowing their noses. 
A Better Mucus Model
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Aug 20, 2024 | 4 min read
A more realistic model of the mucus layer that lines the lungs and gut could provide important insights into the function of this critical defensive barrier.
Cartoon image of floating transparent spheres with smaller blue spheres inside them.
Study Reveals a Cell-Eat-Cell World
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Aug 13, 2024 | 3 min read
From normal vertebrate development to tumor cell cannibalism, cell-in-cell events occur in many different contexts across the tree of life
Artistic rendering of a tumor cell as a misshapen purple blob, surrounded by spiky pink blobs representing NK cells.
Maintaining NK Cells’ Killer Instincts
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Aug 9, 2024 | 4 min read
A protein in natural killer cells keeps them from turning into more docile counterparts.
Cells colored in fluorescent green and blue are shown oriented in parallel with each other.
A Recipe for Hydrogel Noodles to Improve Tissue Engineering
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Jul 25, 2024 | 4 min read
A new way of making aligned hydrogels better mimics materials in the body.
Circular probes surrounding a cartoon of a human brain.
An Epigenetic Brain Scan
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Jul 16, 2024 | 4 min read
A lower-resolution spatial epigenomics method offers a cost-effective alternative to traditional single-cell approaches.
A hand pulling out bases from DNA using forceps.
MOBE: A Base Editor That Multitasks without Mix-ups
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Jul 5, 2024 | 3 min read
A new system for simultaneous genomic edits could unlock better models of complex diseases.
Microscopy image of hepatocytes stained in pink with purple nuclei.
Liver Proteins Keep T Cells Out of Tumors
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Jun 21, 2024 | 4 min read
A new study finds an unexpected role for hepatocytes in anticancer immunity.
Fluorescent microscopy image with a black background and blue, green, and red colors marking different cells.
A Safe-Haven for Intestinal Viruses
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Jun 11, 2024 | 4 min read
A rare gut cell puzzles researchers by avoiding immune cells.
Graphic depicting the microbiota consisting of various blue and red bacterial cells
Boosting Bacterial Genomes to Better Explore the Microbiome
Aparna Nathan, PhD | Jun 7, 2024 | 4 min read
Gang Fang’s new metagenomics method helps sequence rare bacteria.
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