Keyword: Press release

Insulin is a key hormone in energy metabolism and blood sugar regulation. Normal insulin function in the body may be disturbed by e.g. overweight, leading to decreased insulin sensitivity and increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. In a Finnish collaborative study of Turku PET Centre and UKK institute, the researchers noticed that standing is associated with better insulin sensitivity. Increasing the daily standing time may therefore help prevent chronic diseases.

It is often assumed that families move to improve their economic and social prospects, and that these additional resources can benefit the whole family. However, existing research suggests that many children who have experienced long-distance moves within a country fair worse in general compared to non-moving peers.

An international team of researchers have studied a timber elephant population in Myanmar and discovered that Asian elephants perform better at a task when they are commanded by a handler they have known for a longer time.

Brain regulation of feeding behaviour traits has remained incompletely understood. In their latest study, researchers at the Turku PET Centre, Finland, discovered a connection between the function of the opioid system and food craving triggered by appetitive external stimuli.

Do you have in mind a question you would like to ask researchers? Now is the time for it as researchers from three European universities compete in a playful Science Battle to solve puzzling questions. Send us a question and come follow the search for answers at the first EC2U Science Battle on September 24th.

Master of Social Sciences, Master of Arts Tiia Sudenkaarne introduces queer bioethics into Finnish academia. Her dissertation analyses how LGBTQI+ questions often considered marginal are philosophically robust and socio-politically important.

This year, the Elias Tillandz prize for the best scientific paper published in 2020 in BioCity Turku was awarded to Professor Yagut Allahverdiyeva-Rinne and her research group. The prize was presented on Thursday, 19 August 2021.

Researchers from the University of Turku have discovered a new method of X-ray imaging based on the colouring abilities of the natural mineral hackmanite. The international group of researchers also found out how and why hackmanite changes colour upon exposure to X-rays.

The modern re-analysis of a weapon grave found in Suontaka, Hattula in Finland over 50 years ago challenges the traditional beliefs about gender roles in the Iron Age and Early Medieval communities and reveals information about the gender expressions of the period. The grave also functions as a proof of how non-binary people  could have been valued and respected members of their communities.

While tropical forests remain threatened and their future is uncertain, the importance of understanding how well individual protected areas avoid deforestation increases. Researchers from the University of Turku and University of Helsinki, Finland, have investigated this question in a newly published study that focuses on the State of Acre in Brazilian Amazonia.