Blacksmith Medicines Inc, a California-based biopharma company involved in discovering and developing therapeutics targeting metalloenzymes, announced on Tuesday that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted US Patent No. 12,187,754 titled 'LpxC Inhibitors and Uses Thereof', a patent directed to composition of matter and methods of use of FG-2101.

FG-2101 is a non-hydroxamate small molecule antibiotic candidate discovered at Blacksmith that is designed to selectively inhibit LpxC, a zinc-dependent metalloenzyme found only in Gram-negative bacteria. FG-2101 is being developed for intravenous and oral routes of administration to treat Gram-negative bacteria infections, including drug-resistant strains. The company says that FG-2101 has advanced through IND enabling studies and is due to enter human trials later this year.

In addition to this granted US patent, Blacksmith says that it is pursuing patent protection for FG-2101 in Europe, China, Japan and various other countries worldwide. The FG-2101 programme is currently supported under a contract with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).