University of Eastern Finland

Vitamin D Supplements Unlikely to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes in Healthy Seniors

6 months ago

• A new study found that vitamin D supplementation, even at high doses, does not reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in healthy older adults. • The research involved nearly 2,300 participants aged 60 or older who were given either a placebo or vitamin D3 supplements over five years. • No significant differences were observed in the rates of type 2 diabetes development among the placebo and vitamin D groups. • The findings suggest that increasing vitamin D intake does not alter the odds of diabetes or its risk factors for healthy, non-prediabetic individuals.

Semaglutide Shows Promise in Reducing Alcohol Consumption and Cravings

6 months ago

• A new study reveals that semaglutide, known as Ozempic and Wegovy, significantly reduces alcohol cravings and consumption in individuals with alcohol use disorder. • Participants on semaglutide experienced fewer heavy drinking days and decreased alcohol intake during lab tests compared to those on a placebo, indicating potential therapeutic benefits. • The research suggests semaglutide's effects on alcohol cravings may surpass existing treatments, offering a promising avenue for addressing the unmet needs in alcohol use disorder. • Further studies are warranted to explore semaglutide's long-term efficacy, optimal dosages, and safety, particularly for individuals without obesity or diabetes.

AI-Powered HASTEN Tool Accelerates Virtual Drug Screening 10-Fold

2 years ago

• Finnish researchers have developed an ML-powered tool called HASTEN that reduces virtual drug screening time from 6 months to under 10 days for 1.56 billion molecules. • The system successfully identified 90% of top-scoring drug candidates when screening just 1% of the compound library against bacterial and viral targets. • Orion Pharma and University of Eastern Finland researchers have made their datasets public to advance computational drug discovery research.