WASHINGTON, Dec 9 (AFP) - A new antibiotic may speed up treatment of tuberculosis, the most deadly infectious disease in the world after AIDS, drugmaker Johnson and Johnson announced Thursday.
The treatment, tested in mice, appeared to be safe in a preliminary study in healthy humans, the drugmaker said.
"Scientists at Johnson and Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development have identified a novel anti-tuberculosis compound that works better and faster than the current standard of care in mouse models of TB infection," the company said in a statement.
The findings were published in the December 9 issue of Science Express, the online version of the journal Science, and will be published in the January 14 print edition.
The Johnson scientists worked with colleagues at the Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control in Solna, Sweden, and Pitie-Salpetriere School of Medicine in Paris.
The new drug, dubbed R207910, cleared TB infections from the lungs of mice better than a three-drug regime recommended by the World Health Organization, Johnson said.
"The drug acts through a novel mechanism of action, and is therefore active against all multi-drug resistant strains of TB tested so far," said Koen Andries, of Johnson.
Johnson said in a statement that no new anti-TB drugs have been developed in 40 years, while one out of three persons in the world is a carrier of TB. The company pointed out that TB has worsened the AIDS crisis, because HIV-infected people are likely to get the disease.
"That is the main reason why there is now such a resurgence of tuberculosis in countries that were previously hit by HIV," Andries said.
"The HIV epidemic has worsened the TB epidemic substantially."
Johnson said the new drug, when combined with others, could possibly reduce treatment times by as much as 50 percent.
041209
AF041252
©AFP 2004.. All Rights Reserved. AFP articles contained on the AEGiS web site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without AFP's prior written permission. You may make one copy of each article for your personal, non-commercial use only; more copies would require AFP's prior written permission. http://www.afp.com/
AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, Elton John AIDS Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, Bridgestone Firestone Trust Fund, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2004. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
©1990, 2004 - AEGiS. AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content.
