ContraFect Announces Multiple Publications Highlighting the Potential Utility of Lysins for the Treatment of Bone and Joint Infections
September 12 2022 - 7:32AM
ContraFect Corporation (Nasdaq:
CFRX), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on
the discovery and development of direct lytic agents (DLAs),
including lysins and amurin peptides, as new medical modalities for
the treatment of life-threatening, antibiotic-resistant infections,
announces today the publication of an editorial in the Journal of
Bone and Joint Infection discussing the potential for each of the
Company’s lysins, exebacase and CF-296, as additional agents in the
treatment armamentarium against bone and joint infections (BJIs)
due to their in vitro activity against coagulase-negative
staphylococci (CoNS), the bacteria most frequently involved in
implant-associated BJIs, and their potential for both local and
systemic anti-biofilm activity. The authors conclude that these
advantages could compensate for the treatment challenges with
current antibiotic treatments against staphylococcal BJIs alone.
A second publication in Antimicrobial Agents and
Chemotherapy, a leading peer reviewed journal dedicated to the
study of treatments for infectious diseases, presents the results
from a study evaluating the in vitro activity of exebacase against
biofilms formed by clinical strains of Staphylococcus epidermidis
(S. epidermidis), a CoNS species, commonly isolated from patients
with prosthetic joint infections. Exebacase displayed significant
anti-biomass and bactericidal activity against S. epidermidis
biofilms, as well as synergistic effects in addition to rifampicin,
vancomycin, and daptomycin.
“The activity we have seen with exebacase in
vitro, in vivo, and in compassionate use cases as recently
presented by Dr. Tristan Ferry of Hôspices Civils de Lyon in Lyon,
France at the 40th Annual Meeting of the European Bone and Joint
Infection Society, provides a complete picture of the potential
impact exebacase could have for patients suffering from
osteomyelitis and prosthetic joint infections, which are
particularly difficult-to-treat with current standard of care
antibiotic agents,” stated Roger J. Pomerantz, M.D., ContraFect’s
President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman. “Prosthetic joint
infections are particularly problematic, often requiring joint
removal and reimplantation. As noted in the editorial, no
randomized clinical trials in the field of BJIs have been
completed. Given the strength of the data we have accumulated to
date, we believe a randomized clinical study of exebacase in
patients with chronic or recurrent prosthetic joint infections
caused by MRSA or S. epidermidis could be the first blinded and
randomized trial in this field,” added Dr. Pomerantz.
About ContraFect:
ContraFect is a biotechnology company focused on
the discovery and development of DLAs, including lysins and amurin
peptides, as new medical modalities for the treatment of
life-threatening, antibiotic-resistant infections. An estimated
700,000 deaths worldwide each year are attributed to
antimicrobial-resistant infections. We intend to address life
threatening infections using our therapeutic product candidates
from our platform of DLAs, which include lysins and amurin
peptides. Lysins are a new class of DLAs which are recombinantly
produced antimicrobial proteins with a novel mechanism of action
associated with the rapid killing of target bacteria, eradication
of biofilms and synergy with conventional antibiotics. Amurin
peptides are a novel class of DLAs which exhibit broad-spectrum
activity against a wide range of antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative
pathogens, including P. aeruginosa, Acinetobacter
baumannii, and Enterobacter species. We believe that the
properties of our lysins and amurin peptides will make them
suitable for targeting antibiotic-resistant organisms, such as MRSA
and P. aeruginosa, which can cause serious infections such as
bacteremia, pneumonia and osteomyelitis. We have completed a Phase
2 clinical trial for the treatment of Staph
aureus bacteremia, including endocarditis, with our lead lysin
candidate, exebacase, which is the first lysin to enter clinical
studies in the U.S. Exebacase was granted Breakthrough Therapy
designation by the FDA for the treatment of MRSA bloodstream
infections, including right-sided endocarditis, when used in
addition to SOC anti-staphylococcal antibiotics.
Follow ContraFect on
Twitter @ContraFectCorp and LinkedIn.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains, and our officers
and representatives may make from time to time, “forward-looking
statements” within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws.
Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as
“projects,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “would,” “should,” “believes,”
“expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “intends,” “plans,”
“potential,” “promise” or similar references to future periods.
Examples of forward-looking statements in this release include,
without limitation, statements regarding the publications, the in
vitro study results, whether the advantages of exebacase and CF-296
could compensate for the treatment challenges with current
antibiotic treatments against staphylococcal BJIs alone, statements
made by Dr. Pomerantz, ContraFect’s ability to discover and develop
DLAs as new medical modalities for the treatment of
life-threatening, antibiotic-resistant infections, whether
ContraFect will address life-threatening infections using
therapeutic candidates from its DLA platform, whether lysins are a
new class of DLAs which are recombinantly produced, antimicrobial
proteins with a novel mechanism of action associated with the rapid
killing of target bacteria, eradication of biofilms and synergy
with conventional antibiotics, whether amurins are a novel class of
DLAs which exhibit broad-spectrum activity against a wide range of
antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative pathogens, and whether the
properties of ContraFect’s lysins and amurins will make them
suitable for targeting antibiotic-resistant organisms, such as MRSA
and P. aeruginosa. Forward-looking statements are statements
that are not historical facts, nor assurances of future
performance. Instead, they are based on ContraFect’s current
beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of its
business, future plans, strategies, projections, anticipated events
and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because
forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject
to inherent risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances that
are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond ContraFect’s
control, including the occurrence of any adverse events related to
the discovery, development and commercialization of ContraFect’s
product candidates such as unfavorable clinical trial results,
insufficient supplies of drug products, the lack of regulatory
approval, or the unsuccessful attainment or maintenance of patent
protection and other important risks detailed under the caption
“Risk Factors” in ContraFect's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for
the quarter ended June 30, 2022 and its other filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results may differ from
those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Any
forward-looking statement made by ContraFect in this press release
is based only on information currently available and speaks only as
of the date on which it is made. Except as required by applicable
law, ContraFect expressly disclaims any obligations to publicly
update any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral,
that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new
information, future developments or otherwise.
Investor Relations Contacts:
Michael MessingerContraFect
CorporationEmail: mmessinger@contrafect.com
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