Destiny Pharma plc
("Destiny Pharma" or "the Company")
Important Lancet report highlights growing threat of Antimicrobial Resistance with over one million deaths per year
Destiny Pharma's XF platform is delivering effective drug candidates that also address the threat of AMR
Brighton, United Kingdom, 21 January 2022 - Destiny Pharma plc (AIM: DEST), a clinical stage innovative biotechnology company focused on the development of novel medicines that can prevent life threatening infections, today notes the publication of a major Lancet study highlighting that over one million deaths occurred in 2019 due to bacterial Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) and that AMR is one of the leading causes of death across the world. The report also notes the importance of infection prevention in mitigating AMR and names Staphylococcus aureus as one of the six leading lethal pathogens.
Neil Clark, Chief Executive Officer of Destiny Pharma, said: "This report validates the very real clinical need and potential global commercial opportunity for our XF platform as it delivers clinical candidates that prevent infections whilst addressing the threat of AMR. The excellent results from our Phase 2b study demonstrate the potential of our XF-73 nasal gel to prevent post-surgical infections caused by S. aureus, such as MRSA, and we are focused on finalising the Phase 3 clinical trial plans. Additionally, we are testing XF-73 in two dermal infection preclinical programmes ."
Link to Lancet review: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)02724-0/fulltext
Destiny Pharma's XF platform delivers new infection prevention treatments that have been shown in published studies not to generate AMR due to XF's novel, fast, mode of action. XF drugs therefore have the potential to help address this global health threat. Destiny Pharma is committed to progressing the most advanced XF clinical candidates through clinical trials in order to meet the established clinical need and the significant commercial opportunities.
In 2021, The Company announced strong positive results from its Phase 2b clinical study of XF-73 nasal gel, as a new product f or the prevention of post-surgical infections such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) . The primary efficacy endpoint was met with an exceptionally high statistical significance and no treatment related safety events.
Destiny Pharma is in advanced discussions with regulatory authorities in Europe and the US to clarify the design, size and costs of the final Phase 3 clinical trials needed for registration. The Company expects to receive feedback from the European Medicines Authority (EMA) during Q1 this year and from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in Q2, 2022. Furthermore, the Company is confident this Phase 3 clinical trial clarity will help with the negotiation of partnering agreements.
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
Neil Clark, CEO
Shaun Claydon, CFO
+44 (0)1273 704 440
Optimum Strategic Communications
Mary Clark, Manel Mateus, Vici Rabbetts
DestinyPharma@optimumcomms.com
+44 (0) 208 078 4357
finnCap Ltd (Nominated Advisor Joint Broker)
Geoff Nash / Kate Bannatyne, Corporate Finance
Alice Lane, Corporate Broking
+44 (0) 207 220 0500
WG Partners (Joint Broker)
Nigel Barnes / Claes Spång / Nigel Birks
+44 (0) 203 705 9330
MC Associates AG
Anne Hennecke / Andreas Burckhardt
+49-211-529252-0
Notes to Editors
About Destiny Pharma
Destiny Pharma is a clinical stage, innovative biotechnology company focused on the development of novel medicines that can prevent life-threatening infections. Its pipeline has novel microbiome-based biotherapeutics and XF drug clinical assets including NTCD-M3, a Phase 3 ready treatment for the prevention of C. difficile infection (CDI) recurrence which is the leading cause of hospital acquired infection in the US and also XF-73 nasal gel, which has recently completed a positive Phase 2b clinical trial targeting the prevention of post-surgical staphylococcal hospital infections including MRSA. It is also co-developing SPOR-COV, a novel, biotherapeutic product for the prevention of COVID-19 and other viral respiratory infections and has earlier grant funded XF research projects.
For further information, please visit www.destinypharma.com
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