A new antibiotic combination developed by Venatorx Pharmaceuticals Inc. "may represent a significant improvement over the standard of care" for adults with complicated urinary tract infections (cUTI), said Christopher Burns, the company's co-founder, president and CEO.
The world’s largest genomics study in patients with life-threatening COVID-19 infections has uncovered 16 new genetic variants associated with severe disease and drawn up a roadmap for research into new therapies and diagnostics. The research involved comparing the complete genome sequences of 7,491 patients admitted to 224 intensive care units in the U.K. against those of 48,400 participants in Genomics England’s 100,000 Genomes project, and of a further 1,630 people who had mild COVID-19. While some of the gene variants found in the Genomicc study affect the function of a protein, others influence the amount of the protein that is expressed. An example is mucin-1, where overexpression led to worse outcomes.
To counter the worldwide growth of antimicrobial resistance, a subject of worldwide concern but little actual progress, Arrepath Inc. has raised a $20 million seed financing to advance its machine learning-based platform for discovering new classes of anti-infectives.
Shares in Glaxosmithkline plc ticked down after the U.K. pharma announced that enrolment and vaccination in three trials of its respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) maternal vaccine will stop, after a safety issue prompted a voluntary pause last week.
SK Bioscience Ltd. is developing a vaccine intended to simultaneously immunize people against the flu and COVID-19. It is the first vaccine of its type to be developed in South Korea and will use the technology from Skycellflu, a cell-cultivated influenza vaccine developed by the Seongnam-si, South Korea-based company.
For years, a vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has been out of reach. But this could change thanks to several candidates in the late-stage pharma pipeline. Among them, Moderna Inc. became one of the front-runners in the race to develop a vaccine for the virus after this week announcing that its entrant in the contest, mRNA-1345, is moving into phase III development.
A study from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and the Karolinska Institute has shown that individuals who carry the major genetic risk variant for severe COVID-19 infection are less likely to contract HIV.
Glaxosmithkline plc has voluntarily paused a late-stage trial of its potential respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) maternal vaccine candidate in pregnant women following a safety warning. In a brief statement, the London-based firm said it also paused recruitment in two other trials investigating the drug in pregnant women.
Researchers at Inserm have developed a method to direct pre-existing antibodies toward new targets. Their bimodular fusion proteins could be a broadly useful method for expanding access to antibody therapy. In a study that appeared in the Feb. 11, 2022, issue of Science Advances, the teams showed that antibodies to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which are present in 95% of the global population, could be redirected to a target cell of their choosing by fusing an EBV antigen to a cellular targeting ligand.
Barely more than two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, there are five approved vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 available in the U.S. Forty years into the HIV pandemic, there are none. That contrast was repeatedly made by speakers at the 2022 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI).
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