CARB-X Awards Amicrobe $2.48M

Funding will accelerate the development of the first topically applied antimicrobial in the CARB-X portfolio for use on infected tissue in surgical, emergency, and post-disaster settings.

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CARB-X announced today an award of up to $2.48 million to Amicrobe Inc. to accelerate the development of a new bioengineered antimicrobial designed for direct application to contaminated and infected tissues, including those of surgery and trauma. The award commits funding of up to $2.48 million in an initial period, with the possibility of up to $3.76 million more based on the achievement of milestones to the satisfaction of CARB-X.

“The addition of the Amicidin-β program, which represents the first topically applied antimicrobial in the CARB-X portfolio, expands the diversity of our pipeline and reflects a novel approach against drug-resistant infections,” said Kevin Outterson, BU Law professor and executive director of CARB-X. “The Powered by CARB-X portfolio now has 20 projects including the Amicrobe project. These projects are in the early stages of research, and there is always a high risk of failure.  But if successful, they hold exciting potential in the global fight against the deadliest drug-resistant bacteria.”

Amicrobe’s Amicidin-β project, which is currently in preclinical development, stands out because it represents a new generation of topically applied antimicrobials designed to combine broad, rapid microbicidal activity with beneficial physical properties to enhance intrawound performance and safety. If successful in reaching the market, the Amicidin-β project could potentially be used to treat infected tissue in surgical and emergency settings, and also in post-disaster scenarios involving large numbers of injured people.

“The era of antimicrobial resistance challenges all of us to bring forward new technologies and products to prevent and treat life-threatening infections” said Michael P. Bevilacqua, MD, PhD, CEO and CSO at Amicrobe, a Carlsbad, CA-based firm. “At Amicrobe, we are very pleased to receive the recognition and support of CARB-X to accelerate our Amicidin-β program.”

CARB-X’s portfolio is the world’s largest and most scientifically diverse portfolio of early development antibiotics and rapid diagnostics to treat the most serious drug-resistant bacterial infections, often referred to as superbugs. Projects include nine new classes of antibiotics, non-traditional approaches like the Amicrobe project, and a rapid diagnostic for lung infections. CARB-X, which stands for Combating Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator, was launched in July 2016. It currently funds projects in six countries and is working to expand its pipeline with the best science from around the world.

Drug-resistant infections currently cause an estimated 700,000 deaths worldwide annually, according to the World Health Organization. If antibiotic resistance continues at its current rate, that number could rise significantly. In the US alone, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 23,000 people die each year from drug-resistant bacterial infections, many of which occur in hospitals and health care settings, with more than 25,000 deaths in the European Union.

CARB-X is a partnership between the UK charity Wellcome Trust and the US Department of Health and Human Services Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). CARB-X is actively seeking global support from other governments, industry, and civil society to expand its ability to fund the best science around the world to get the new life-saving treatments so urgently needed.

BARDA’s Director Rick Bright, PhD, said:“The support announced today will help speed development of a new antibacterial product with the potential to treat patients with life-threatening infections. Antibiotic resistant infections not only pose a day-to-day public health concern but also complicate our response to national security threats, which is why at BARDA we working to revitalize the antibacterial pipeline. Today’s announcement is another example of our commitment to promote and accelerate medical countermeasure innovation through novel public-private partnerships like CARB-X.”

Tim Jinks, head of drug-resistant infections at Wellcome Trust, said:“Wellcome is committed to addressing this urgent global health threat. With drug-resistant infections spreading rapidly it’s vital we speed discovery of new and innovative treatments. The addition of this exciting project to the CARB-X portfolio is another important step in achieving this. Drug discovery must also go hand-in-hand with concerted action to ensure responsible use of antibiotics and availability of existing and new treatments for patients in all countries.”

The funding is part of an overall commitment of up to US$455 million by the US government and Wellcome Trust over a five-year period from 2016 to 2021. So far this year, including the Amicrobe award, CARB-X has announced $47.4 million to fund 20 projects plus an additional $62.4 million if project milestones are met. These funds are in addition to the companies’ own investments in their programs. Responsible use of existing antibiotics and equitable access, particularly in low-income countries where need is greatest, are also vital to address the global health problem. Both are a condition of CARB-X funding.

The last new class of antibiotics approved for treatment against Gram-negative bacteria was discovered in 1962. Antibiotic discovery is challenging because bacteria are able to genetically modify and become resistant to medicines. As well, large pharmaceutical companies have significantly scaled back investment in antibiotic research in the past decades because it has not been sufficiently profitable.

CARB-X’s role is to identify and fund promising early research in antibiotics, vaccines, rapid diagnostics, devices and alternative approaches to prevent, diagnose and treat the most serious drug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections. Projects funded by CARB-X receive non-dilutive funding as well as drug development and business support services. It is in the early phases of research that most projects are abandoned often because of lack of funding. The goal is to progress these Powered by CARB-X projects to a stage where they may attract additional private or public support for clinical development.

CARB-X expects to make further funding announcements later this year.

Posted October 24, 2017.

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CARB-X Awards Amicrobe $2.48M

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