The hottest Pharmacology Substack posts right now

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The Quest for Oral GLP-1s

Asimov Press • 303 implied HN points • 16 Mar 26
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. People overwhelmingly prefer a once‑daily pill, but peptide drugs are ruined by stomach acid and enzymes and are poorly absorbed, so oral GLP‑1s have very low bioavailability and require huge doses that make them expensive.
  2. Scientists solved injectables by changing the peptide and adding a fatty tail so the drug resists breakdown and sticks to albumin, which gives long lasting, effective once‑weekly shots that oral versions still struggle to match.
  3. A promising shortcut is to engineer edible microbes like spirulina to produce and hide GLP‑1 inside cell walls, which could protect the peptide and slash purification costs to make affordable oral pills — though safety, regulation, and public acceptance remain hurdles.

The Lowdown on Low-Dose Aspirin for Primary Prevention

Ground Truths • 13866 implied HN points • 02 Jan 26
🏥 Health & Wellness Pharmacology
  1. Low-dose aspirin for primary prevention in older adults generally causes more harm than benefit. It increases major bleeding and, in some trials, was linked to higher overall or cancer-related mortality without reducing cardiovascular events.
  2. Major guidelines now advise against routine aspirin for primary prevention in older adults, with age cutoffs varying by group. Aspirin still provides clear benefit for secondary prevention after events like heart attack, stroke, or stenting.
  3. There are hints aspirin might lower cancer incidence in specific subgroups (for example people with CHIP), but overall trial data in the elderly showed higher cancer deaths and CHIP testing isn’t part of routine care, so this is not an actionable reason to use aspirin now.

Chinese Peptides

ChinaTalk • 607 implied HN points • 20 Feb 26
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. Chinese factories and online sellers are mass-producing and exporting a wide range of peptides — from approved drugs to experimental research chemicals — at far lower prices than brand-name medicines. They advertise on social apps and ship directly to foreign customers with fast turnaround and bulk incentives.
  2. Many popular peptides lack robust human trials and can contain hard-to-detect impurities, so injectable dosing and sterility carry real health risks. Regulatory enforcement is murky: sellers use “research use only” labels to dodge oversight and FDA actions have varied with political leadership.
  3. Demand is driven by biohackers, athletes, and people chasing weight loss or faster healing, and injections have become socially normalized after drugs like Ozempic. That demand meets China’s large-scale peptide manufacturing capacity, creating a booming gray market that outpaces formal clinical research.

IVERMECTIN and CANCER, it has at least 15 anti-cancer mechanisms of action. Can Ivermectin Treat COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Induced Turbo Cancers? - 9 Ivermectin papers reviewed

2nd Smartest Guy in the World • 4992 implied HN points • 08 Jan 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Pharmacology
  1. Ivermectin has at least 15 anti-cancer mechanisms of action.
  2. Studies suggest Ivermectin can treat a variety of cancers.
  3. High doses of Ivermectin, possibly combined with Fenbendazole, may be beneficial for treating cancer.

Arthur Brooks: Do GLP-1s Make Us Happy?

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 370 implied HN points • 16 Jan 26
🏥 Health & Wellness Pharmacology
  1. Drugs like GLP-1s and other quick fixes can improve health or mood for some people, but the evidence is mixed and some users experience worse mental-health symptoms.
  2. Cosmetic procedures often raise self-esteem in the short term, yet those benefits can fade and may harm people with body‑dysmorphic tendencies.
  3. Changing your appearance won’t automatically create self‑love — real and lasting well‑being usually requires inner work and ongoing effort.
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MASHUP: Aboriginal Smokeless Nicotine, Quinine & Caffeine Therapy, African G6PD Deficiency

Grey Goose Chronicles • 786 implied HN points • 29 Jan 24
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. Aboriginal Australians have a unique way of consuming tobacco with varying effects and health benefits.
  2. Quinine has a rich history in colonial expansion and fighting malaria, while caffeine might hold potential as an antimalarial drug.
  3. Genetic conditions like G6PD deficiency in sub-Saharan Africans show adaptations to malaria, impacting medical treatments and outcomes.

Near-Instantly Aborting the Worst Pain Imaginable with Psychedelics

psychotechnology • 23 implied HN points • 07 Feb 26
🏥 Health & Wellness Pharmacology
  1. Cluster headaches are an extreme, recurring form of pain that can be utterly incapacitating and even drive people to desperate measures.
  2. Psychedelics—especially inhaled DMT at low doses—can abort attacks almost instantly, and psilocybin/LSD can reduce or prevent cycles, often outperforming standard acute treatments.
  3. Legal barriers and crude healthcare metrics leave many patients without access or funding, so advocacy and organized efforts are pushing for research, policy change, and expanded compassionate access.

Bacterial Xanax

Eat Shit and Prosper • 519 implied HN points • 19 Nov 23
🏥 Health & Wellness Pharmacology
  1. The human brain has many neurotransmitters that affect how we feel, much like how different tastes shape our eating experience. Just as tasting food can change our mood, our brain's chemistry can influence our emotions.
  2. Benzodiazepines, like Xanax, were discovered to help with anxiety before scientists fully understood how they worked. They enhance the effects of a natural calming neurotransmitter called GABA, but researchers are still figuring out if our bodies have natural versions of these calming substances.
  3. Gut bacteria might play a role in anxiety by producing compounds that assist with brain function. If these helpful bacteria are reduced or absent, it could lead to anxiety disorders, suggesting that restoring these good bacteria could help some people.

Ketamine Science: Dirty Drugs, Dissociation, & Depression

Tripsitter • 159 implied HN points • 09 Dec 23
🏥 Health & Wellness Pharmacology
  1. Ketamine is a "dirty drug" with unique effects on the body and mind, causing dissociation and a powerful anesthetic effect, but with fewer side effects compared to other anesthetics.
  2. Ketamine shows promise as a rapid and unique antidepressant, working on neuroplasticity and enhancing brain recovery, although its mechanisms and effectiveness vary among individuals.
  3. Ketamine has analgesic properties, particularly effective for certain pain conditions like the wind-up phenomenon, through its action on NMDA receptors in the spinal cord.

From Leaf to Life: The Conversation We Should Be Having Around Kratom 🌱

Tripsitter • 219 implied HN points • 08 Sep 23
🏥 Health & Wellness Pharmacology
  1. Regulators have targeted kratom in attempts to ban it, but public backlash has prevented complete bans so far.
  2. Kratom is seen as a tool for harm reduction due to its potential as an alternative to prescription painkillers, but it carries risks and should be used carefully.
  3. Misinformation and misrepresentation of kratom-related deaths have fueled the stigma around the plant, highlighting the need for proper regulation and education rather than outright bans.

On the Origins of Multiple Sclerosis

Eat Shit and Prosper • 479 implied HN points • 04 Feb 23
🏥 Health Politics Pharmacology
  1. Taking antibiotics might increase your risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS). Studies from Denmark show that anyone who gets a prescription for antibiotics has a higher chance of being diagnosed with MS later.
  2. There is a potential connection between certain bacteria in our gut and MS. One particular bacteria, _Clostridium perfringens_, may produce a toxin that damages the cells responsible for protecting nerves in the brain.
  3. Understanding MS as a complex interaction between bacteria, antibiotics, and the immune system can lead to new treatments. There are even hopes for using therapies like fecal transplants or targeted therapies to help those suffering from MS.

Some Switches Can't Be Unflipped (But We Can Cut the Power)

Holodoxa • 79 implied HN points • 26 Dec 23
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. In hereditary cancer, mutations in tumor suppressor genes are more common than in oncogenes, and a second hit is often required for cancer to develop.
  2. The RET gene, an oncogene, is associated with Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia Type 2 (MEN2) and can lead to various clinical conditions depending on the mutation type.
  3. Mutations in oncogenes like RET can be targeted with drugs, leading to effective treatments for cancers like medullary thyroid cancer, showing the clinical impact of genetic research beyond diagnosis.

Measuring Drug Target Success

Rough Diamonds • 9 implied HN points • 16 Dec 25
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. Most modern drugs are built around a specific molecular target, and researchers pick targets using genetic, animal, or in‑vitro evidence that suggests the target is causally involved in disease.
  2. Targets backed by human genetic evidence more than double a drug's chance of clinical success, while pursuing mechanisms similar to past failures increases the odds of failing.
  3. Preclinical signals can improve early selection but don't replace human trials, so improving the ROI of drug development means making trials cheaper and/or picking better candidates early, rather than relying only on rational design.

A Nicotine Analogue I Had Known and Didn’t Love: 6-methylnicotine (22/30)

psychotechnology • 7 implied HN points • 23 Nov 25
🏥 Health & Wellness Pharmacology
  1. methylnicotine produces a smoother, milder stimulant buzz with fewer physical side effects, but it often feels flatter and less helpful for focused, productive writing than regular nicotine.
  2. Both commercial products add 80 mg of L-theanine and come in different delivery forms, so the calming additive and format make it hard to judge the pure effects of 6-MN and tolerance is a big confounder.
  3. Public research on 6-MN is sparse and mostly proprietary; some users report lower heart rate or help cutting down stronger nicotine products, but overall it isn’t clearly superior and more study of nicotinic analogues would be useful.

Virtual Screening for New Antibiotics: A Machine Learning Approach to LpxC Inhibition

LatchBio • 20 implied HN points • 12 Nov 24
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. Antibiotic resistance is a big problem, and many drug companies are not making new antibiotics anymore. Machine learning can help find new antibiotics by quickly searching through lots of compounds.
  2. In a study, researchers looked at 250,000 chemical compounds to find potential antibiotics that target a specific enzyme in harmful bacteria. This shows how technology can speed up the drug discovery process.
  3. Finding new antibiotics is really important for health, especially as bacteria become more resistant. Using advanced tools to identify promising compounds could save time and money in developing new treatments.

Synthetic integrin antibodies discovered by yeast display reveal αV subunit pairing preferences with β subunits

Axial • 7 implied HN points • 31 Jan 25
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. New antibodies were created that can specifically block integrins, which are important for cell functions like attachment and signaling. This may lead to better treatments for diseases.
  2. Researchers found that different β subunits bind preferentially to the αV subunit in integrins. Understanding these pairings helps explain how integrins work in the body.
  3. The antibodies developed through this study can directly compete with small molecules that normally bind to integrins. This opens the door for more precise therapies in the future.

GPCRs in kidney disease

Axial • 7 implied HN points • 13 Mar 24
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. Kidney disease, particularly autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (PKD), has been underinvested compared to other conditions like oncology and diabetes.
  2. The development of drugs targeting GPCRs PC-1 and PC-2 in PKD could significantly improve the quality of life for patients by reducing cyst size.
  3. Business models in drug development are shifting towards rare disease candidates like PC-1/2, emphasizing treatments that exceed the current standard of care.

Quacking the Code: Bridging the Animal-Human Divide

Nano Thoughts • 0 implied HN points • 04 Apr 24
🔬 Science Pharmacology
  1. Transfer learning allows computers to use knowledge from one area to help in another. This approach helps in drug development by applying what we've learned from studying animals to predict how those drugs might affect humans.
  2. Gene reactomes help us compare how genes respond to drugs across different species. This means we can identify which genes may act similarly in humans and animals, leading to safer drug development.
  3. The Universal Gene Embedding framework acts like a translator for genetic information. It allows scientists to understand gene functions across species, making it easier to predict how drugs will work in humans based on animal studies.