The University of California San Diego launched the Center for Innovative Phage Applications and Therapeutics (IPATH) to develop bacteriophages to fight multidrug-resistant bacteria. The initial focus will be on treating chronic infections associated with cystic fibrosis, organ transplantation and implantable hardware. The center hopes to start clinical trials by year end.
The university says IPATH is the first bacteriophage treatment center in North America.
The center has partnered with the Center for Phage Technology (CPT) at Texas A&M University, AmpliPhi Biosciences Corp. (NYSE-M:APHB) and Adaptive Phage Therapeutics Inc. (Bethesda, Md.). The partners will provide phage cocktails against bacteria selected by UCSD, but will not make monetary contributions to the project, UCSD Associate Dean of Global Health Sciences Steffanie Strathdee told BioCentury.
Bacteriophages are viruses that infect and destroy bacteria, acting as natural predators for the microbes. As each phage is highly specific for an individual species or strain of bacteria, phages could overcome help overcome antibiotic resistance without disruption to the gut microbiome (see “Showdown: Bacteria vs. Virus”).
IPATH is launching with $1.2 million in seed funding from UCSD. Strathdee said the center is working with NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and other agencies to secure funding for individual trials.