Stark-Watzinger: We urgently need new approaches for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of superbugs : Date: Press release: 34/2023
BMBF supports CARB-X for a further four years
The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) will be supporting the international non-profit initiative “Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator” (CARB-X) for a further four years. Since 2016, CARB-X has been funding projects worldwide that work on highly innovative therapeutics, vaccines and diagnostics to treat antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Federal Research Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger declares:
“There are more and more antibiotic-resistant bacteria worldwide, some of which are resistant to a number of antibiotics. This is why we urgently need new approaches for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of these superbugs, which are becoming increasingly dangerous to humans. Therefore, the Federal Research Ministry has been supporting the international CARB-X partnership since 2019 and will continue to do so over the next four years, providing a further 39 million euros in funding as well as an additional two million euros for a CARB-X accelerator. This is how we support the global research and development of new and effective medicines and innovative approaches for antibiotic-resistant bacteria so that we can continue to successfully treat bacterial infections in the future.”
Background
CARB-X was launched in 2016 by the Boston University School of Law. Its mission is to improve international cooperation in the area of antimicrobial resistance. CARB-X focuses on the dangerous bacteria indexed in the priority lists of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In the period between 2019 and 2022, CARB-X received 39 million euros in funding from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Since its inception, CARB-X has invested around 400 million US dollars in 92 projects throughout the world. Thus, CARB-X is funding the world’s largest and most innovative pipeline of products against antibiotic-resistant infections, both pre-clinical and in the early stages of development.
Local accelerators support the work of CARB-X and of the portfolio companies it is funding. The German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), together with its partners the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) and the Paul-Ehrlich-Institut - Federal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines (PEI), has established itself as one such CARB-X accelerator within the CARB-X Global Accelerator Network (CARB-X GAN).
Further information