The first new antibiotic in 50 years to tackle a common superbug is expected to be tested on patients soon, Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche has announced.
Zosurabalpin, which is entering into the third and last phase of testing on humans, targets one of the bacteria considered to pose the biggest threat to human health, and has been hailed as an “exciting” development in the fight against antibiotic resistance.
The Telegraph reports that it is the first drug in five decades to show promise of tackling Acinetobacter baumannii, a pathogen described as a “priority” by the World Health Organisation and an “urgent threat” by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
The drug-resistant bacteria disproportionately affect patients in hospitals, causing infections such as pneumonia and sepsis.
It is estimated that between 40% and 60% of infected patients, many of whom are immunocompromised because of conditions like cancer, die as a result of the bug.
One of the reasons it is so difficult to treat is that it has a double-walled “membrane” protecting it from attack, so it is difficult to get drugs into it and to keep them in, experts say.
Zosurabalpin, which has been developed with researchers at Harvard University, targets the “machine” which stops the outer membrane from forming properly. It works differently from all existing antibiotics and it is hoped that it could lay the foundations for future drugs.
Drug-resistant bacteria
The phase 3 trial, which it is hoped will start later this year or in early 2026, will look at around 400 patients with a carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter Baumannii (CRAB) infection who will either receive zosuarbalpin or the current standard of care.
It is hoped it will be approved by the end of the decade.
In the past, pharmaceutical companies – including Roche – have been unwilling to pursue new antibiotics because of a difficult market in which the drugs are used sparingly to try to avoid resistance.
However, the UN has warned that if nothing is done to address the issue, drug-resistant diseases could cause 10m deaths each year by 2050.
The Telegraph article – First new antibiotic in 50 years to tackle superbug (Restricted access)
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