Microparticles containing iron or iodine could be used to fortify food and beverages to help fight malnutrition, according to new work from MIT researchers.

A National Institutes of Health (NIH)-supported clinical trial has found that the outcome of treating complicated Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections with two intravenous (IV) doses of the antibiotic dalbavancin seven days apart is just as good as daily IV doses of conventional antibiotics over four to six weeks. Nearly 120,000 S. aureus bloodstream infections and 20,000 associated deaths occurred in the United States in 2017. The study results provide the clearest evidence to date for the safety and effectiveness of dalbavancin therapy for complicated S. aureus bloodstream infections, expanding the number of antimicrobial treatment options for clinicians and patients.

Adults who smoke cigarettes and are addicted to alcohol or other drugs were more likely to achieve sustained remission of their substance use disorder symptoms if they also quit smoking, according to scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).  Based on their analysis of data from a large U.S. study of smoking and health, researchers believe the results clearly show the benefit of pairing smoking cessation with addiction recovery efforts.