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Yesterday’s 19th European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) conference in Helsinki reported a significant addition to the dwindling number of drugs in the fight against the hospital “superbug”, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
UK-based pharmaceutical company Destiny Pharma presented research into the rapid antibacterial activity of its latest platform of drugs against S aureus on the second day of the conference.
Whilst the company’s lead antimicrobial XF-73 continues on course within phase I/IIa clinical development, Destiny has now demonstrated the novel antibacterial mechanism of action of DPD-207. This is an example of its new platform of metalloporphyrin (MP) drugs, which has been proven to act in a similar manner to the XF drug platform.
The XF drugs kill bacteria extremely quickly (much faster than traditional antibiotics) within biofilms (the protective “jelly” bacteria produce around themselves, which acts as a protective barrier against antibiotics).
Bacteria such as MRSA seem unable to become resistant to XF/MP drug action (unlike many antibiotics, to which the superbug can rapidly become resistant).
The MP drugs appear to share many of the same revolutionary and highly advantageous antibacterial properties of the XF drugs.
The MP drug platform represents a significant expansion of the Destiny Pharma drug portfolio.
