Afsaneh Khetrapal

Feature Writer

B.Sc.

Biomedical Sciences, Biotechnology

Afsaneh graduated from Warwick University with a First class honours degree in Biomedical science. During her time here her love for neuroscience and scientific journalism only grew and have now steered her into a career with the journal, Scientific Reports under Springer Nature. Of course, she isn’t always immersed in all things science and literary; her free time involves a lot of oil painting and beach-side walks too.

Articles from Afsaneh

Genetics of Hitchhiker's Thumb

Hitchhiker's thumb is otherwise known as distal hyperextensibility of the thumb. This is because of the genetic traits that make a person bend his thumb backward while stretching.

18 Jul 2017

Genetics of Asparagus Smell in Urine

The urine of people who have recently eaten asparagus is known to have an unpleasant odor.

17 Jul 2017

Non-Targeted Metabolomics

The non-targeted metabolomics approach aims to study both known and unknown metabolites. To comprehend the huge chunks of data this may yield, one must couple it with advanced chemometric methods such as multivariate analysis, so that these can be grouped into smaller manageable chunks. The latter may then be studied further either with computer simulation or by experimental investigation, using analytical methods of measurement. This approach can help us discover new target analytes, limited only by the sensitivity and specificity of the techniques used.

6 Jul 2017

Newborn Hearing Screening

Newborn children were not usually screened for hearing deficiency in the past. This was primarily because the technology to do so did not exist as yet. This resulted in lifelong problems with speech and language skills, usually translating to poor performance in school, inability to interact well socially with peers and elders, and a number of emotional problems related to this issue.

6 Jul 2017

How do Contact Lenses Work?

Contact lenses are explicitly designed optical devices that can be worn directly on the cornea of the eye. People with poor eyesight wear contact lenses, which helps to refocus oncoming light rays on the retina to achieve a clear vision. Contact lenses increase or decrease the focusing potential of the cornea, and thereby directly project light onto the retina and aid in treating refractive errors.

6 Jul 2017

Genetics of Tongue Twisting

The term tongue-twisting comprises rolling, folding, rotating, adjusting, and turning of the tongue.

6 Jul 2017

Causes of Webbed Fingers and Toes

Syndactyly, an infrequent condition in human beings, is a state where fingers or toes are joined together. The existence of such condition is normal (connected only by skin) in terrestrial mammals such as kangaroos, dogs, and cats, in many water-habitat birds, like ducks, and in amphibians like frogs. However, the similar condition is rare in human beings and it is even rarer for the fingers or toes to be connected by bones. In only 1 among around 3000 children, this condition occurs.

6 Jul 2017