COMBINE pneumonia model at ESCMID Global
The COMBINE project is developing a murine pneumonia infection model to evaluate antibiotic treatments. This week, the project presents results from treatment studies using the model with virulent MRSA strains at ESCMID Global in Vienna.
MRSA, or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is one of the most well-known antibiotic-resistant bacteria. It is often referred to as the ‘hospital bug’ and is a known culprit behind hospital-acquired pneumonia. Because of the potentially devastating consequences that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) can have for healthcare, MRSA is on the WHO list of high-priority pathogens for the development of new antibiotics. However, for that research to happen, the R&D community needs reliable tools and research infrastructures that can facilitate the translation from preclinical to clinical research.
The COMBINE project is developing a standardised and reliable mouse model for pneumonia that can help evaluate novel antimicrobial treatments. At this year’s ESCMID conference in Vienna, a team of researchers will present data on a model for MRSA.
The aim was to develop a reliable mouse model of MRSA pneumonia that can reflect clinical treatment practice. The team evaluated the virulence of three clinical MRSA isolates and used vancomycin and linezolid as control antibiotics. This model represents an important tool for the evaluation of novel antimicrobial treatments and will be able to inform the translation of animal results into the clinic.
In vivo models in COMBINE
The MRSA pneumonia model is one part of a large collaborative effort to improve the quality of in vivo antibiotics testing, develop a pneumonia model for two common culprits: Klebsiella and Pseudomonas. The work is led by Uppsala University, GSK, PEI, Evotec and SSI, with collaborating laboratories from CARB-X, iiCON, Pharmacology Discovery Service, and CAIRD (Center for Anti-Infective Research and Development).
About COMBINE
The COMBINE project (Collaboration for prevention and treatment of MDR bacterial infections) has received funding from the Innovative Medicines Initiative 2 Joint Undertaking under Grant Agreement No 853967. This Joint Undertaking receives support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme and EFPIA companies’ in kind contribution. https://amr-accelerator.eu/project/combine/
About the AMR Accelerator
The AMR Accelerator programme was launched in 2019, with the aim to accelerate the development of medicines for patients suffering from infections with drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis, nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM), and Gram-negative bacteria, and build capability for antibiotics research and development. The program is funded by the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI). The AMR Accelerator program includes nine projects: AB-Direct, COMBINE, ERA4TB, GNA NOW, PriMAVeRa, RespiriNTM & RespiriTB, TRIC-TB, and UNITE4TB. Together, the projects have a €479 million budget. The 98 partners represent key stakeholders from academia, industry, small- and medium-sized companies, patient organizations, regulators, and Health Technology Assessment.
More information & contact:
Scientists interested in joining COMBINE efforts (by sharing preclinical or clinical pneumonia data, conducting validation studies in their labs or sharing bacterial isolates) are welcome to contact us at IMI-COMBINE@pei.de
X: @AMR_Combine
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/amr-accelerator/
Bluesky: @amr-accelerator.bsky.social
