7 October 2022 - - US-based clinical stage biotech company Peptilogics, engineering peptide therapeutic solutions for patients with life-threatening diseases, presented preclinical data from its peptide, PLG0206, at the ASM/ESCMID Joint Conference on Drug Development to Meet the Challenge of Antimicrobial Resistance, the company said.

Data presented demonstrate activity of PLG0206 against multi-drug resistant pathogens and suggest that this novel antimicrobial peptide could potentially address difficult to treat bacterial infections.

The poster, titled "Activity of the novel engineered antimicrobial peptide PLG0206 against non-fermenting Gram-negative rods," highlights data investigating PLG0206 against isolates Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Stenotrophomonas maltophili present in skin, urinary, blood, intra-abdominal and respiratory infections.

Results demonstrate that PLG0206 was active against all tested isolates and retained activity against multi-drug resistant strains, suggesting that the unique mechanism of action of PLG0206 can overcome the drug-resistance mechanisms found in these MDR strains.

The poster presented at the joint meeting hosted by the American Society for Microbiology and European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) is available on the company website.

PLG0206 is an investigational, broad-spectrum, non-traditional antibiotic peptide therapeutic currently in Phase 1b clinical development in patients undergoing debridement, antibiotics and implant retention surgery for the treatment of Prosthetic Joint Infection occurring after total knee arthroplasty.

PLG0206 has the potential to rapidly target bacteria and persistent pathogens that produce biofilm and evade conventional antibiotics.

It was engineered with a unique mechanism of action to target and disrupt bacterial cell membranes, without causing lysis or targeting human cell membranes at therapeutic doses, thereby reducing the potential for inflammation and cytotoxicity.

In both in vitro and non-clinical studies, PLG0206 has demonstrated potent activity against both Gram positive and Gram negative antibiotic resistant bacteria with a low risk of developing resistance to PLG0206.

PLG0206 has been granted FDA Orphan Drug designation and Fast Track designation for the treatment of PJI and has also been designated as a Qualified Infectious Disease Product.

Joint replacement is the most common operative procedure with seven m hip and knee replacements anticipated globally in 2030.

PJI is the most common complication of joint replacement surgery and, if diagnosed with PJI, patients currently require an average of three surgeries to treat.

With up to 60% recurrence and a five-year mortality of 25% associated with this condition, PJI is a catastrophic and growing problem with no effective therapeutic solution.

The disease also leads to a substantial economic burden, where in the US the average per patient cost is USD 500,000 to treat PJI, making this a major challenge for hospitals and payers alike.

Peptilogics engineers peptide therapeutic candidates to radically improve the treatment landscape for patients with life-threatening diseases.

Through biological and pharmaceutical expertise, novel artificial intelligence algorithms, and purpose-built super-computing, Peptilogics is advancing a therapeutic pipeline and accelerating discovery efforts at a pace and scale that was previously impossible.

Peptilogics is backed by visionary investors in life science and technology including Peter Thiel, Presight Capital, Founders Fund, CARB-X, and Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.