Latest news with #ODN
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Business
- Express Tribune
IT minister discusses AI, fibre collaboration
Listen to article Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, held back-to-back meetings with top Chinese tech firms during the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai to advance Pakistan's digital agenda. In a meeting with PeaceCable International Network, led by CEO Sun Xiaohua and Sales Director Zhuang Wei, talks focused on enhancing digital connectivity through submarine and terrestrial fibre-optic infrastructure. PeaceCable shared details of its $24 billion portfolio in submarine cables, fibre, and power solutions. Khawaja briefed the delegation on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's vision for a "Digital Pakistan," highlighting the National Fiberisation Policy. Key targets include connecting 10 million homes to fibre broadband in three years and increasing fiberised mobile towers from 14% to 60%. She encouraged PeaceCable to invest in FTTH rollout, the ODN market, and terrestrial fibre, assuring full support from the Ministry of IT and Telecom (MOITT). In a separate meeting, Khawaja met with a Chinese delegation led by Cheng Dong of the All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese. Other members included Liu Yuangui of Shenlan Technology, Prof Zhao Shanting, and Dr He Bin from the Zhangjiang High-tech City Medical Innovation Research Institute. The meeting focused on AI skill development, digital governance, and tech innovation in smart cities and medical research. Discussions included launching an AI skills exchange programme for Pakistani youth, digital solutions with Pakistan's National IT Board, and joint ventures in health tech, edtech, and fintech. Chinese delegates also proposed showcasing smart maintenance machinery and AI-powered tools in Pakistan.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
The new weight loss drug that should work without common side effects
Scientists have discovered a new experimental weight-loss drug, TDP, which appears to work without causing the side effects of nausea or vomiting common with existing GLP-1 medications like Ozempic. TDP is a smaller version of octadecaneuropeptide (ODN), a protein produced by brain cells called glia, which researchers believe targets energy-regulating pathways in the brain. Animal studies on mice, rats, and shrews showed that TDP led to weight loss and improved blood sugar control without inducing adverse gastrointestinal reactions. The findings, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, are currently a proof of concept based solely on these animal trials. Researchers, including Caroline Geisler from the University of Kentucky, are hopeful that human clinical trials for TDP could commence within the next two years.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Breakthrough weight-loss drug works without nausea or vomiting, scientists reveal
A breakthrough has been made in weight-loss drugs after scientists discovered a new medication – known as TDP – that works without causing side effects of nausea or vomiting. Millions of Americans are already using Ozempic and other GLP-1 class drugs to lose weight. While largely successful, the shots can cause uncomfortable gastrointestinal side effects. Those symptoms and others have landed patients in emergency rooms in recent years, with 25,000 visits occurring from 2022 to 2023, according to scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Researchers say the new experimental rival largely forgoes those issues although how it works to curb appetite is still being researched. 'This paper shows for the first time that giving a smaller version of octadecaneuropeptide in the periphery is still effective to improve body weight and metabolic control without side effects,' Caroline Geisler, an assistant professor at the University of Kentucky's College of Pharmacy, told Gizmodo this week. Octadecaneuropeptide, commonly referred to as ODN, is a protein produced by brain cells called glia that support the nervous system. The researchers used ODN to create the drug TDP. 'Now we know that [glia] play a large role in sensing and communicating the status of the body, and we hope that by targeting a glial signaling molecule, we can engage many energy-regulating pathways in the brain and avoid the side effects of nausea and vomiting,' Geisler said. In studies, the researchers inserted ODN into the hindbrain of rats, which contains the brainstem and cerebellum. The cerebellum is a part of the brain that controls movements and other cognitive processes, such as language and attention span. Once the rats were treated with ODN, they lost weight and improved their ability to control their blood sugar. Whereas when the researchers blocked ODN, the animals showed a weaker response to treatment with the popular GLP-1 drugs. They also dosed mice, rats, and shrews with TDN. The drug also improved blood sugar control, causing weight loss without nausea or vomiting in the rats for over a week. The shrews did not vomit either, and the drug appeared not to have effects on the animals' movement, body temperatures, and heart rate. However, the results, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, are only a proof of concept. The study's authors are hoping to test the drugs in people next. 'We have an optimistic timeline that we could be ready to start clinical trials within two years,' Geisler said.
Gizmodo
5 days ago
- Health
- Gizmodo
This Experimental Weight Loss Drug Works Without the Nausea or Vomiting
What if you could lose weight with a drug that won't make you lose your lunch at the same time? New research shows it might be possible. Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Kentucky, and other institutions say they've found a potentially novel way to suppress people's appetite and treat obesity—without causing the nausea or vomiting commonly experienced with semaglutide (the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy). In early animal experiments, the team's experimental drug appears to be working as intended. Semaglutide and similar drugs mimic the natural GLP-1 hormone, which is important to regulating our insulin production and hunger. As effective as these medications are at helping people lose weight, they have their tradeoffs—most notably a high chance of gastrointestinal side effects. So there's clearly still a need for improved obesity treatments, according to lead study author Caroline Geisler, an assistant professor at UKY's College of Pharmacy. This Simple Strategy Could Curb One of Semaglutide's Worst Side Effects Geisler and her team have been exploring one particular strategy for treating obesity, involving a protein called octadecaneuropeptide, or ODN. ODN is produced by the brain's glia, specialized cells that support neurons. But glia aren't just the brain's support troops, and ODN seems to be important to controlling our sense of hunger. 'Now we know that [glia] play a large role in sensing and communicating the status of the body, and we hope that by targeting a glial signaling molecule, we can engage many energy-regulating pathways in the brain and avoid the side effects of nausea and vomiting,' Geisler told Gizmodo. The researchers first tested their hypothesis by delivering ODN directly to the hindbrain of rats. Once treated, the rats lost weight and improved their blood sugar control. And when they blocked ODN signaling in rats, the animals exhibited a weaker response to GLP-1 treatment (suggesting its effects are at least partly tied to ODN). Finally, they indirectly dosed mice, rats, and shrews with an experimental drug derived from ODN, called TDN. In mice, TDN improved blood sugar control; in rats, it caused weight loss without nausea or vomiting; and in shrews (animals commonly used to test motion sickness and vomiting), the drug triggered no puking at all. The drug also appeared to not have any noticeable effects on the animals' heart rate, movement, and temperature. 'This paper shows for the first time that giving a smaller version of ODN in the periphery is still effective to improve body weight and metabolic control without side effects,' Geisler said. The team's findings, published Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine, are only a proof of concept for now. There remain many questions about exactly how ODN works in the brain to tamp down our appetite and control blood sugar. It's also possible that ODN-based drugs can be further optimized for medical use, though TDN seemed to produce steady weight loss in animals for at least over a week without waning. Still, the researchers are hopeful this potential new drug class can match or even surpass the effectiveness of today's GLP-1 therapies while being less of a hassle to take. And they're now planning to develop such drugs for testing in people. 'We have an optimistic timeline that we could be ready to start clinical trials within 2 years,' Geisler said. The Best Obesity Drugs Aren't Even Here Yet The study researchers are hardly the only ones working to introduce the next generation of improved obesity and diabetes treatments. But it's likely plenty of people would sign up for a safe weight loss drug that comes without the need for a barf bag.
