An Ounce of Prevention...

Bacterial diseases pose a serious threat to human health world-wide. They also pose an increasing economic threat as healthcare costs continue to escalate in both developed and emerging economies.

As traditional antibiotic therapies become increasingly expensive to produce and ineffective against rapidly changing bacteria, vaccines and immunotherapeutics are emerging as viable alternatives. Annual revenue for human vaccine exceeds $12 billion, an increase of 100% since 2002.

The Road to Market: Fighting Staph. Infection

In the United States alone, hospital-acquired Staph. infection alone cost 26.8 billion¹ in 2003. The potential global market for an effective Staphylococcus vaccine exceeds $8 billion. Treating just one patient infected with the increasingly common “superbug” known as MRSA costs a hospital an average of $60,000.

Approximately 1 in 10 Hospitalized Patients Will Acquire an Infection After Admission.³

Existing vaccine technology relies on provoking an immune response to highly specific and rapidly changing antigens specific to each strain of the Staphylococcus bacteria. In contrast, Syntiron’s vaccine technology focuses on highly conserved iron-regulation proteins which trigger an immune response to a wide range of bacterial strains. The promise of Syntiron’s core vaccine technology led to a strategic alliance with sanofi pastuer, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, for the development of a Staphylococcus vaccine for humans. The 2009 agreement grants sanofi pasteur an exclusive world-wide license for the Staphylococcus vaccine. In addition, sanofi pasteur will provide financial support for pre-clinical vaccine development and all future developments, including regulatory approval and commercialization of the vaccine.  In addition to commercial and regulatory milestone payments of up to $149 million from sanofi pasteur, Syntiron will also earn royalties on sales of products commercialized under the license and collaboration agreement. This partnership validates the potential of the Syntiron underlying vaccine technology platform, which will be adapted to develop vaccines and therapeutics beyond the current target pathogens Staphylococcus aureus (a Gram-positive bacterium) and Salmonella newport (a Gram-negative bacterium), as the technology matures.

E. coli

Diarrhea is a common cause of death in the emerging world, and the second leading cause of infant mortality worldwide. The economic and human costs are staggering. There is currently no vaccine to protect against the most common culprit, enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), nor against the ubiquitous enteropathogen, Salmonella. These bacteria are also responsible for gastrointestinal ailments, including traveler’s diarrhea, and for recent outbreaks of food contamination in the US.  Syntiron is currently working on safe, inexpensive vaccines to protect against these internationally devastating bacteria.

Biodefense

Recent world events have highlighted the importance of protecting soldiers and civilians in the event of a bioterror attack. Syntiron’s vaccine technology holds great promise for the protection of humans against potential bacterial bioweapons. Our current research program includes vaccines against the CDC high-priority pathogens Yersinia pestis (the causative agent of plague) and Bacillus anthracis (the causative agent of anthrax). This work  is being funded by a $4.1 million contract from the US Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) contract of $4.1 million and will eventually lead to the development of a multivalent vaccine against all three of these major bioterror agents.

Women's Health

Urinary tract infections (UTI) caused by E. coli and toxic shock syndrome (TSS) caused by Staphylococcus aureus are potentially serious infections that affect women significantly more frequently than men. At Syntiron, women’s health is a key component of our overall goal structure of protecting communities from bacterial infection, and vaccines to combat UTI and TSS are currently being developed by our research team.

NOTES

1. National Trends in Staphylococcus aureus Infection Rates: Impact on Economic Burden and Mortalityover a 6-Year Period (1998-2003). Clinical Infectious Diseases 2007; 45:1132-40

2. Clinical and Financial Outcomes Due to Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Surgical Site Infection: A Multi-Center Matched Outcomes Study PLoS One. 2009; 4(12): e8305.

3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Incidence and nature of endemic and epidemic nosocomial infections. In: Bennett JV, Brachman PS, eds. Endemic and Epidemic Hospital Infections. 3rd ed. Boston, MA: Little, Brown, and Company; 1992:577-596.