AstraZeneca welcomes new antibiotics research programme

AstraZeneca has announced its support for a new public-private collaboration designed to boost antibiotics research in Europe.

The pharmaceutical giant is one of several companies that will work alongside public research bodies and scientific experts to aid the discovery and development of new antibiotics for bacterial infections.

A joint budget of up to 223.7 million euros (179.4 million pounds) has been set aside for the initial stages of the project, with 109 million euros coming from the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) and 114.7 million euros contributed in-kind by the participating pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

AstraZeneca's president of research and development Martin Mackay commented: "The steady rise of drug-resistant bacteria is an imminent and urgent threat to public health, and without a reliable arsenal of effective antibiotics, modern medical care is not possible."

The IMI, which is a joint undertaking between the European Union and pharmaceutical industry association EFPIA, is the largest public-private initiative in Europe.

Other firms taking part in the programme include GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi.