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news.Basilea Pharmaceutica has received an additional $7.3m from Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB-X) to advance its antibiotic candidate, BAL2420, towards first-in-human clinical trials expected by mid-2026.
The funding is set to advance the antibiotic candidate towards first-in-human clinical trials. Credit: CDC on Unsplash.
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BAL2420 is a lipooligosaccharide phosphoethanolamine transferase A (LptA) inhibitor, a new class of antibiotics with bactericidal activity against Gram-negative bacteria, including drug-resistant strains.
The additional CARB-X funding is supported by the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS); Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority; Antibacterials branch; Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response; and includes contributions from Germany’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and Wellcome (WT224842).
This funding is instrumental in advancing one of the few new classes of antibiotics targeting critical pathogens.
Basilea Pharmaceutica chief scientific officer Dr Laurenz Kellenberger said: “We are very pleased by CARB-X’s continued support for the development of this promising first-in-class drug candidate.
“LptA inhibitors have the potential to address an unmet medical need in the hospital-based treatment of severe infections, caused by Gram-negative bacteria. We look forward to working with CARB-X to bring BAL2420 to patients.”
The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified Enterobacteriaceae, targeted by BAL2420, as priority pathogens needing new treatment options.
Earlier this year, Basilea acquired the LptA antibiotics programme from Spexis. Following an initial CARB-X grant of up to $0.9m in April, which supported early preclinical activities, Basilea nominated BAL2420 as a drug candidate, triggering a final milestone payment to Spexis.
As a non-profit partnership focused on early-stage antibacterial research and development, CARB-X claims to combat the growing threat of drug-resistant bacteria.
Switzerland-based biopharmaceutical company, Basilea focuses on discovering, developing, and commercialising therapies for severe bacterial and fungal infections.
