The World Health Organization (WHO) has released its latest report on the antimicrobial resistance threat and on the development of new antibacterials to help address the issue.
The ‘2023 Antibacterial agents in clinical and preclinical development: an overview and analysis’ report states that although the number of antibacterial agents in the clinical pipeline increased from 80 in 2021 to 97 in 2023, ‘there is a pressing need for new, innovative agents for serious infections and to replace those becoming ineffective due to widespread use’.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites no longer respond to medicines, making people sicker and increasing the risk of spread of infections that are difficult to treat, illness and deaths. AMR is driven largely by the misuse and overuse of antimicrobials says WHO and the threat is increasing.
“Antimicrobial resistance is only getting worse yet we’re not developing new trailblazing products fast enough to combat the most dangerous and deadly bacteria,” said Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Antimicrobial Resistance ad interim. “Innovation is badly lacking yet, even when new products are authorized, access is a serious challenge. Antibacterial agents are simply not reaching the patients who desperately need them, in countries of all income levels.”
Not only are there too few antibacterials in the pipeline, given how long is needed for R&D and the likelihood of failure, there is also not enough innovation says the report. Of the 32 antibiotics under development, only 12 can be considered innovative. Additionally, just 4 of these 12 are active against at least 1 WHO ‘critical’ pathogen – the top risk category.
