PanaecinTM (Gallium Citrate): Novel anti-infective for the growing problem of antibiotic resistance
To complement our suite of narrow-spectrum human monoclonal antibodies, we have developed Panaecin™, an inhalable, broad-spectrum, small molecule anti-infective that acts as an iron analog and works by effectively starving bacteria of iron and interfering with iron-dependent metabolic pathways required for pathogenicity.
Panaecin has broad bactericidal activity against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, including antibiotic-resistant strains. Panaecin’s inhibitory activity reaches bacteria growing in mature biofilms and prevents biofilm formation. Panaecin is being developed for the treatment of life-threatening bacterial lung infections in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF).
It is currently in late preclinical stage development and has completed preclinical animal studies. This program is approaching IND filing and a Phase 1/2a clinical trial with Panaecin in cystic fibrosis patients in the first half of 2018.
Aridis’ Panaecin is a promising therapeutic option for controlling chronic lung infections with unique benefits compared to current standard of care antibiotics:
- Broad activity against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, including difficult-to-treat aeruginosa and B. cepacia
- Effective against drug-resistant strains and in the presence of bacterial biofilms
- Very low to non-detectable incidence of drug resistance
