French biotech Mutabilis funded by CARB-X
CARB-X is awarding Mutabilis, a biopharmaceutical firm based in Romainville, France, up to US$6.4 million to develop a new drug to treat infections caused by Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) bacteria.
CRE has been dubbed the ‘nightmare bacteria’ by health officials because they cause deadly infections – often in healthcare settings – that cannot be effectively treated with existing antibiotics. Under the award agreement, Mutabilis will be eligible for an additional $5.8 million in further funding if certain project milestones are met, subject to available funds.
“New treatments are urgently needed to address serious life-threatening antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections, like those caused by CRE and other Gram-negative bacteria for which there are few treatment options,” said Erin Duffy, Chief of Research and Development at CARB-X, a global non-profit partnership based at Boston University School of Law, dedicated to funding and supporting the development of new antibiotics, vaccines, diagnostics and other products to address antibiotic-resistant bacteria. “The novel inhibitor of penicillin-binding proteins designed and optimized by Mutabilis is an achievement in this area of antibacterial drug discovery. If it progresses through clinical development, it will be an important new antibiotic for patients suffering from infections caused by drug-resistant Enterobacterales.”
“The support from CARB-X is a great achievement for the Mutabilis team and our EBL-1463 program. We are very proud to have been selected by CARB-X which recognizes the potential of our dabocins family for the treatment of Gram-negative resistant infections. Following the support received from ENABLE (ND4BB/IMI) and the Novo Holdings Repair Impact Fund, this award from CARB-X is new evidence of the ability of our team to advance innovative scientific programs and fund them. We want to thank all of them for their investment in combating AMR,” said Wandrille Ract-Madoux, CEO of Mutabilis.
Mutabilis’ new intravenous drug, EBL-1463, is a novel class of non-beta-lactam inhibitor of penicillin binding proteins (PBPs) called dabocins. It kills bacteria in the same efficient way as beta-lactams – by interfering with the cell wall synthesis of the bacteria. Contrary to beta-lactams, however, EBL-1463 shows unmatched stability to class A, B, C and D beta-lactamases. The project is in the preclinical phase.
Please find more information here: https://carb-x.org/carb-x-news/carb-x-is-funding-french-biotech-mutabilis-to-develop-a-new-class-of-antibacterials-to-treat-infections-caused-by-carbapenem-resistant-enterobacterales-cre-bacteria/