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Scientists say they have developed a novel antibiotic that looks promising in early clinical trials of kidney infections and urinary tract infections (UTIs).
The new antibiotic, the cefiderocol, acts as the "Trojan horse" in Greek legend to trick bacteria into allowing it to enter, the BBC reported Friday.
Tests on a kidney or urinary tract infection in 448 people, reported in Lancet Infectious Diseases, suggested the drug was as effective as current treatments.
"This important study suggests a new antibiotic that could potentially be an alternative to treatment, but we are not there yet," said Serge Mostowy, a professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The drug is inspired by the story of the giant wooden horse that had been used to sneak Greek warriors into the city of Troy.
But instead of wood, iron is used to pass an antibiotic into bacteria.
"During an acute infection, one of our innate immune responses is to create an iron-poor environment," said Simon Portsmouth, of Shionogi Inc., a Japanese pharmaceutical company, which developed the drug.
"In response, bacteria increase their iron intake," he added.
Cefiderocol binds to iron and, in a fatal error, the bacteria carry it beyond their defenses and inside their cells.
"Cefiderocol has been deemed safe and tolerable," Portsmouth said.
Bacteria that become resistant to antibiotics make some infections extremely difficult to treat.
The Antimicrobial Resistance Review has made bleak forecasts for the future, including that 10 million people would die each year from drug – resistant infections by 2050.
Yet new drugs are rare, the report says.
Experiments on people with pneumonia and infections resistant to some of our most powerful drugs, carbapenems, are already underway.
However, much larger trials are needed to ensure the effectiveness of cefiderocol that attacks bacteria in a totally new way, the researchers said.
–IANS
RT / MAG / BG
(This story has not been changed by Business Standard staff and is generated automatically from a syndicated feed.)
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