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The TB Alliance has announced that two new treatments for the infection have moved into phase III trials.
A large scale trial in TB patients has started using the antibiotic
moxifloxacin, which is already approved for other respiratory conditions.
The study will initially take part at six clinical trial sites in Africa,
and is designed to test whether a combination of four drugs, including moxifloxacin, can cut treatment times.
Earlier studies have suggested that combination therapy including the drug has the potential to shorten the treatment period for drug-susceptible TB from at least six months to under four months.
And PA-824, which is the first novel TB drug candidate developed by a not-for-profit organisation to reach clinical trials, is now in its first test in TB patients in Cape Town.
Dr Mel Spigelman, TB Alliance’s director of research and development, said: “Our clinical programme highlights the importance of rigorous standardisation in research methods that should serve as a solid foundation for future TB drug development.
“With these clinical advances, and our growing TB drug pipeline, we are confident we will succeed in developing new, novel regimens that are faster-acting, work against drug-resistant disease, and help improve treatment of the growing number of patients co-infected with TB and HIV.”
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