Spexis announces closing of sale of preclinical antibiotics program to Basilea - Seite 2

The assets sold to Basilea are macrocyclic antibiotics developed within Spexis’ Outer Membrane Protein Targeting Antibiotics (OMPTA) program which selectively disrupt the lipopolysaccharide transport bridge, an essential structure in Gram-negative bacteria. This results in a loss of the integrity of the outer cell membrane, intracellular accumulation of lipopolysaccharides and killing of the bacteria. Activity has been shown in vitro and in vivo against Enterobacteriaceae such as E. coli and K. pneumoniae, including strains resistant to beta-lactams and colistin, an antibiotic regarded as last-resort therapy. The program was funded in part by CARB-X (Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator)², a global non-profit partnership dedicated to supporting early-stage antibacterial research and development to address the rising threat of drug-resistant bacteria.

Jeff Wager, MD, Chairman & CEO of Spexis, said: “We are very pleased to have finalized this transaction with Basilea as it underscores the power of our macrocycle platform as a drug discovery platform and its potential to generate products that can address significant unmet medical needs.  From a corporate strategy perspective, this transaction is part of Spexis’ efforts to partner or divest non-core programs and assets as the company works towards exiting its moratorium status and will generate funds and streamline focus which we can utilize towards advancing our core programs in rare disease and oncology. ”

About multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria

Infections by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (GNB) are a major challenge for healthcare professionals. Due to an additional outer cell membrane compared to Gram-positive bacteria, it is more difficult for antibiotics to get into the cell. In addition, this outer membrane carries lipopolysaccharides/endotoxins which induce inflammation and play an important amplifying role in the pathogenesis of infections by GNB and are therefore considered an important virulence factor. Moreover, GNB can acquire resistance to several classes of antibiotics such as carbapenems, fluoroquinolones, tetracyclines and earlier-generation cephalosporins, making infections with GNBs particularly difficult to treat. In 2017, the World Health Organization published a list of 12 classes of priority bacterial pathogens that pose the greatest threat to human health, of which nine classes are Gram-negative.³