Cellics receives $3.94 million from CARB-X for sepsis treatment
Today CARB-X announced it is funding $3.94 million to Cellics Therapeutics, based in San Diego, to further its nanomedicine treatment for sepsis.
"Our macrophage nanosponge technology leverages the natural receptors on human macrophage membranes to neutralize bacterial pore-forming toxins, endotoxins, and inflammatory cytokines that underlie sepsis," said Steve Chen, MD, president and chief medical officer at Cellics, in a CARB-X press release.
The project, which is called CTI-111, uses cell membrane technology created by Cellics founder Liangfang Zhang, PhD, and the plan is to use the treatment in combination with other medicines such as antibiotics. The project may receive up to $15 million more in funding from CARB-X if specific milestones are met.
Sepsis occurs in 1.7 million US adults and contributes to nearly 270,000 deaths per year, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CARB-X, which stands for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator, is a nonprofit partnership that invests in early research and development to combat drug-resistant bacteria. Since its launch in 2016, CARB-X has announced 71 awards worth $256.64 million.
Oct 21 CARB-X press release
Effort launched to broaden access to new drug-resistant TB treatments
The TB Alliance today announced a new initiative to scale up novel treatments for tuberculosis (TB), including drug-resistant forms, in the most affected countries in Southeast and Central Asia, the group said today in a press release.
Known as LIFT-TB (Leveraging Innovation for Faster Treatment of Tuberculosis), the project's goal is to broaden adoption and scale up of improved treatment regimens and increase treatment completion rates for drug-resistant TB.
Sandeep Juneja, PhD, senior vice president for market access at the TB Alliance, said the group has recently seen great momentum in the fight against some of the most drug-resistant forms of TB. "Now, we're excited to help make an impact by ensuring that novel TB treatment regimens become widely available to those who need them the most."
The 5-year program is supported by $11 million from the TB Alliance and the government of South Korea and will target seven countries: Indonesia, Myanmar, The Philippines, Vietnam, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. Along with the main goals, the initiative will also cover the initial stages of a study of the 6-month, all-oral, three-drug (bedaquiline, pretomanid, and linezolid, or BPaL) regimen, which will take place in the participating countries.
Oct 21 TB Alliance press release