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CARB-X, the private-public partnership for research on antimicrobial resistance, today announced its first award of 2018, nearly $2 million for the development of a new class of antibiotics. Meanwhile, the group has announced it is seeking to partner with accelerator organisations to build its pipeline of early development research projects. It also announced a study that called for a new global approach and greater financial incentives for antibiotic research.

“CARB-X continues the fight against superbugs with an award to Curza of $2.2 million with a possibility of $1.8 million more for the development of a new class of antibiotics to treat drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria,” it said in a release today. Curza is a company in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The Curza project brings to eight the number of new classes of antibiotics under investigation in the CARB-X portfolio, the organisation said.

This is the first CARB-X award this year. In 2017, CARB-X announced 24 awards totaling $60.0 million, plus an additional $75.25 million if project milestones are met, to accelerate the development of antibiotics and other products, it said.  These funds are in addition to investments by the companies.

CARB-X Seeking Partners for Antibacterial Research

Separately, CARB-X has announced that it is seeking to partner with up to six additional accelerator organisations to support its pipeline of early development antibacterial research projects. CARB-X is welcoming applications until 30 March.

The organisation is seeking to add accelerator partners in Europe, North America and the rest of the world to grow the Powered by CARB-X portfolio, it said.

Study Calls for $1 Billion Prize, Other Measures
CARB-X also highlighted a recently released a study by DRIVE-AB [clarified] that called for a new global approach and more financial incentives to drive antibiotic innovation. A portion of the press release is reprinted below:

A high-profile international consortium [DRIVE-AB] has recommended bold new measures to combat the rising threat of drug-resistant bacteria. In its final study made public today in Davos, Switzerland, the consortium concluded that increased financial incentives and concerted global coordination are essential to winning the fight against the steadfast global rise of drug-resistant bacteria.

The in-depth study, titled Revitalizing the Antibiotic Pipeline: Stimulating Innovation while Driving Sustainable Use and Global Access, was produced by DRIVE-AB (Driving Re-investment in research and development for antibiotics and advocating their responsible use), a group of 16 public-private partners supported by the European Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) and 7 major pharmaceutical companies. Its main conclusions, designed as a package of complementary measures:

• Big reward: Create a $1-billion market-entry reward to companies for each new antibiotic approved to attract more private investment antibacterial research. This prize would be in addition to any sales revenues.
• Increase R&D funding: Increase funding for governmental or non-profit pipeline coordinators, like CARB-X and GARDP, that identify and support the promising research into antibiotics, vaccines and diagnostics to treat the most serious drug-resistant bacteria. Countries are investing an estimated $550 million each year in various R&D development initiatives. While significant, this level is far too low and should be increased to at least $800 million each year for the coordinators. Increased funding for basic research is also needed.
• Long-term commitment from governmental: The study suggests that the G-20, through its member countries, would be ideally positioned to take the lead globally on public funding of R&D and coordinating efforts to ensure a predictable supply of antibiotics over the next 30 years.

The measures would cost an estimated $36 billion and produce some 20 new antibiotics over the next 30 years, which would go a long way to saving lives and battling the rise of superbugs. Bacterial infections are responsible for the deaths of 700,000 people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. In the US alone, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that drug-resistant infections kill 23,000 people each year, many of them in hospital and health-care settings.

“There is no quick fix to solving the global drug-resistance crisis, and it will take increased funding into R&D and concerted global action to win this battle,” said Kevin Outterson, Executive Director of CARB-X, and an author of the DRIVE-AB final report. “The world urgently needs new antibiotics, vaccines, diagnostics and other products to treat drug-resistant bacterial infections and combat the rising threat of drug resistance. We are making progress but much more is needed, and the DRIVE-AB study provides a roadmap to how we can win this fight.”

About CARB-X

According to the release, CARB-X is one of the world’s largest public-private partnership devoted to early stage antibacterial R&D. Funded by ASPR/BARDA and Wellcome Trust, with in-kind support from NIAID, CARB-X is investing up to $455 million from 2016-2021 to support innovative products from ‘hit-to-lead’ phase through to Phase 1 clinical trials. CARB-X focuses on high priority drug-resistant bacteria, especially Gram-negatives. CARB-X operates through Boston University. Other partners include RTI International, the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, MassBio, and the California Life Sciences Institute (CLSI). http://www.carb-x.org/.