Sanofi-Aventis and Novozymes in antibiotic development deal
This article was originally published in Scrip
Sanofi-Aventis and Novozymes have struck a global licensing agreement to develop and market a potential new antibiotic. The two firms will develop plectasin NZ2114, a drug candidate developed by Novozymes for the treatment of severe infections, such as pneumonia, septicaemia and complicated skin and soft tissue infections. Dr Marc Cluzel, senior vice-president of R&D at Sanofi-Aventis, says that the candidate, from a novel class of antimicrobials, is potentially more active against resistant bacteria than currently available treatments. It is a variant of plectasin, a defensin-type peptide antibiotic, which is active against resistant and sensitive Gram-positive bacteria such as Staphylococci and Streptococci. The French company has an exclusive worldwide licence for the development, registration and commercialisation of the drug. Plectasin NZ2114 is the first drug candidate that Novozymes has outlicensed for further preclinical and clinical development, it says. Financial terms were not disclosed.