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New trial finds diabetes drug and nasal insulin improve brain health in  early Alzheimer's disease

A clinical trial from Wake Forest University School of Medicine shows that two widely available medications, the diabetes drug empagliflozin (Jardiance) and intranasal insulin, safely improve brain health in people with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer's disease. The study, published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia, the journal of the Alzheimer's Association, marks the first time empagliflozin has been tested in non-diabetic patients with Alzheimer's disease. The results show promising effects on memory, brain health and brain blood flow.

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Could cardamom seeds be a potential source of antiviral treatment?

Plant-based materials have traditionally been used to treat a variety of viral infections. Now, researchers have found that cardamom seed extract, as well as its main bioactive ingredient, 1,8-cineole, can have potent antiviral effects through its ability to enhance the production of antiviral molecules known as type I interferons via nucleic acid 'sensors' inside cells.

Plant-based treatments have traditionally been used to treat a wide range of diseases, including viral infections. Medicinal plants and herbs have been a rich source of 'bioactive' compounds (i.e. compounds that have a biological effect), which have been used by pharmaceutical companies in antiviral products.

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Acarbose degradation mechanism guides design of next-generation antidiabetic drug

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a chronic metabolic disorder marked by hyperglycemia. Acarbose is a potent glycosidase inhibitor widely used in the clinical treatment of T2DM. However, acarbose-preferred glucosidase (Apg) in K. grimontii TD1 degrades acarbose to acarviosine-glucose (M1) and acarviosine (M2), affecting its efficiency.

In a study published in Nature Communications, a research team led by GU Yang from the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (SIAT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with collaborators, revealed the detailed molecular mechanism of Apg hydrolyzing acarbose.

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Unlocking the blueprint for a powerful plant-based drug

Researchers at UBC Okanagan have uncovered how plants produce mitraphylline, a rare natural compound that may help fight cancer.

Mitraphylline belongs to a small group of plant molecules called spirooxindole alkaloids. These compounds have unusual "twisted" ring structures and are known for their strong effects, like fighting tumours and inflammation.

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Could slime mold microbes be a source of potent antimicrobials?

The cellular slime mold Dictyostelium discoideum is a soil microbe that produces diverse natural products with potential antibiotic activity. Previously, three chlorinated compounds had been detected in Dictyostelium, but only the most abundant compound (CDF-1) was identified and shown to be almost as effective an antimicrobial as ampicillin. In research published in FEBS Open Bio, investigators optimized lab culture conditions of Dictyostelium cells to boost the levels of low-abundance chlorinated compounds and to characterize their antimicrobial properties.

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Widely prescribed opioid painkiller tramadol not that effective for easing chronic pain

The strong opioid painkiller, tramadol, is not that effective at easing chronic pain for which it’s widely prescribed, finds a pooled data analysis of the available research, published online in BMJ Evidence Based Medicine.

And it likely increases the risk of serious side effects, including heart disease, the findings indicate, prompting the researchers to conclude that the potential harms of tramadol probably outweigh its benefits, and that its use should be minimised.

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Microbiome and nanoparticle discoveries hold promise for treating gut pain

Abdominal pain is a hallmark of many digestive disorders, including inflammatory bowel disease and irritable bowel syndrome. In an effort to develop targeted treatments for gut pain, scientists have discovered a new enzyme in gut bacteria and are using nanoparticles to deliver drugs inside cells.

Currently, there are no treatments specifically for gut pain, and existing painkillers are often insufficient at managing symptoms.

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New antibiotic targets IBD - and AI predicted how it would work before scientists could prove it

Researchers at McMaster University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have made two scientific breakthroughs at once: they not only discovered a brand-new antibiotic that targets inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), but also successfully used a new type of AI to predict exactly how the drug works. To their knowledge, this a global first for the AI.

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Combination of two drugs that fight cardiovascular risk could also help treat the most common liver disease

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease is the most common liver disease in the world, affecting about one third of the adult population. This disorder is characterized by the accumulation of fat in liver cells, which has severe liver consequences and is also associated with a high mortality rate from cardiovascular disease.​​​​​

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The 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has decided to award the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine to:

Mary E. Brunkow
Institute for Systems Biology,
Seattle, USA

Fred Ramsdell
Sonoma Biotherapeutics,
San Francisco, USA

Shimon Sakaguchi
Osaka University,
Osaka, Japan

"for their discoveries concerning peripheral immune tolerance"

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