A promising strategy to tame troublesome drug-resistant bacteria is bacteriophage, or phage therapy, which uses viruses instead of antibiotics. NIH scientists have used two different bacteriophage viruses individually and then together to successfully treat research mice infected with multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae sequence type 258 (ST258).

In an NIH-led study, scientists found that five genes may play a critical role in determining whether a person will develop Lewy body dementia (LBD), a devastating disorder that riddles the brain with clumps of abnormal protein deposits called Lewy bodies.

Enrollment has begun to test additional investigational drugs in the Accelerating Covid-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV) program. ACTIV, sponsored by NIAID, is a public-private partnership that creates a coordinated research strategy to prioritize and speed development of promising Covid-19 treatments and vaccines.

In an NIH-funded study, researchers tested a novel combination treatment on mice with tumors with characteristics similar to human astrocytomas—a type of slow-growing glioma—and found tumor regression in 60 percent of the mice treated.

An experimental single-dose, intranasal influenza vaccine was safe and produced a durable immune response when tested in a phase 1 study, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

Researchers have developed a computerized adaptive screener to identify youth at risk for attempting suicide. In a new study, the computerized adaptive screen for suicidal youth (CASSY) correctly identified 82.4 percent of youth who went on to attempt suicide in the 3 months after screening.

NIH researchers found that inhaling unfragmented hyaluronan improves lung function in patients suffering from severe exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Methamphetamine overdose deaths surged in an 8-year period in the U.S., according to a new NIDA study published in JAMA Psychiatry. The analysis revealed rapid rises across all racial and ethnic groups, but American Indians and Alaska Natives had the highest death rates overall.

Scientists studying the body’s natural defenses against bacterial infection have identified a nutrient—taurine—that helps the gut recall prior infections and kill invading bacteria, such as Klebsiella pneumoniae (Kpn). The finding, published in Cell by investigators from five NIH institutes, could aid efforts seeking alternatives to antibiotics.

In large clinical trials, full-dose anticoagulation (blood thinner) treatments given to moderately ill patients hospitalized for Covid-19 reduced the need for vital organ support, such as ventilation. A trend in reduced mortality was also observed and is under further study. With large numbers of Covid-19 patients requiring hospitalization, these outcomes could also help reduce the overload on intensive care units around the world.