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Fundraisings and IPOs

Date: 2018-05-07

Type of information: Grant

Company: Melinta Therapeutics (USA - CT)

Investors: Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB - X) (USA - MA)

Amount: up to $6.2 million

Funding type: grant

Planned used:

  • This award will support the development of Melinta’s investigational pyrrolocytosine compounds. Melinta’s novel pyrrolocytosine compounds are a novel class of antibiotics from the company’s ESKAPE Pathogen Program, a program based on Melinta’s proprietary drug discovery platform focused on developing breakthrough antibiotics for bacterial “superbugs” by targeting the bacterial ribosome. The pyrrolocytosines have been designed de novo, from the ground up, in a site not previously exploited by the many successful classes of antibiotics that target the ribosome. They are being developed to optimize properties that allow them to get in and stay in bacterial cells. The novelty in chemistry and binding, combined with the optimized properties, have translated to date into an in vitro activity profile that is not affected by current resistance mechanisms of concern. The pyrrolocytosines have also been shown in preclinical studies to be active against multidrug-resistant pathogens on the Antibiotic Resistant Threats in the United States report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2013, including all of the ESKAPE pathogens (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter species).

Others:

  • • On May 7, 2018, Melinta Therapeutics, a commercial-stage company discovering, developing and commercializing novel antibiotics to treat serious bacterial infections, announced that it has entered into a partnership with CARB-X, under which Melinta will be awarded up to $6.2 million to support the development of the company’s investigational pyrrolocytosine compounds. Under the terms of the partnership, Melinta will receive an initial award of up to $2.3 million from CARB-X, with the possibility of $3.9 million in additional awards based on the achievement of certain project milestones.
  • CARB-X was launched in August 2016 to accelerate pre-clinical product development in the area of antibiotic-resistant infections, one of the world’s greatest health threats. CARB-X was established by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Wellcome Trust, a global charitable foundation dedicated to improving health.

Therapeutic area: Infectious diseases

Is general: Yes