Skip to content

Overview

This joint Royal Society and Academy of Medical Sciences symposium brought together scientists, medical practitioners and funding bodies to raise awareness and interest for new anti-microbial advances.

 

A report on the event is available to read (PDF).

Background

Anti-microbial resistance continues to grow as a worldwide health challenge. Pathogens are continually evolving to combat drugs given to treat potentially life-threatening diseases, rendering treatments ineffective and threatening the many advances in fighting microbes over recent decades.

As therapeutics in current use become less effective, new approaches are required. This event aimed to raise awareness and interest for new anti-microbial advances, the challenges faced in market delivery, and their appropriate use in healthcare systems.

About the conference series

Supported by AstraZeneca, the meeting formed part of the Royal Society’s Transforming our future conferences in the life sciences, and the Academy of Medical Sciences’ FORUM programme. These meetings are unique, high-level events that address the scientific and technical challenges of the next decade. Each conference features cutting edge science from industry and academia and brings together leading experts from the scientific community, including regulatory, charity and funding bodies.

Organisers

Schedule

Antimicrobial Optimisation: Research Priorities, Advances in Innovation and Lessons from COVID-19

Speakers

The future of AMR reimbursement: What types of products will succeed?

Abstract

Companies successfully developing new antibiotics have collapsed after achieving approval due to the market failure that faces new antibiotics. This problem has been recognized and reimbursements that reflect the societal value of new antibiotics are coming. But, not all new antibiotics will earn a strong reward. Importantly, it is possible to Judge the likely value of a given project (e.g., the project you are working on right now!) and this talk will cover current insights on the future of AMR reimbursement.

Speakers

The phage approach

Abstract

 

Speakers

Mining biosynthetic pathways for new antibiotics

Abstract

One of the impediments to returning to microbial natural products as sources for leads for new antimicrobials is the rediscovery of known compounds when using traditional phenotypic extract screens. With the availability of thousands of microbial genome sequences, we now understand that such an approach does not comprehensively sample the potential of most microbes to produce new compounds. By directly exploring microbial genomes and identifying biosynthetic programs that have not yet been fully explored for their antibiotic potential, it is possible to select organisms and pathways that are likely to yield novel chemistry and antimicrobial activity. Coupled with synthetic biology tools to focus on these pathways, new antibiotics can be discovered. An example of our recent work using this genomes fist strategy coupled with a phylogenomic filter will be presented with a focus on new inhibitors of the ClpP protease.

Speakers

How can novel clinical trial designs address challenges in evaluating antimicrobials for multi-drug resistant organisms?

Abstract

The paradigm of evidence-based medicine has been to optimise outcomes by iteratively improving a "standard-of-care" (SOC) regimen, which forms the basis for comparison with new interventions. Platform trials generally still follow this paradigm, comparing multiple new interventions to SOC, but speed up drug development by doing this simultaneously. However, this paradigm poses multiple challenges for antimicrobials, in particular the absence of a clear SOC, with large numbers of antimicrobials with a week evidence base supporting their use. A single SOC will drive resistance, supporting diversity in prescribing – but comparisons vs different "SOC" require multiple large non-inferiority trials which are simply infeasible. I will review two recent developments in trial design which could be exploited to address these challenges, and highlight the considerable challenges that still remain.

Speakers

Innovation in Point of Care Diagnostics

Abstract

AntiMicrobial resistance is a serious healthcare challenge, and it is estimated that drug resistant microbes will kill 10 million people worldwide per year by 2050. This has led researchers and governments to accelerate AMR research globally, primarily focusing on antimicrobial drug discovery to increase our arsenal of antimicrobials and preserve our working antimicrobials. Diagnostics have been highlighted in several reports as a key way of reducing overuse of antimicrobials in practice and encouraging rationalisation of antimicrobial prescribing. However, despite this, development of innovative diagnostic solutions has been overlooked and underfunded, likely due to the "blue sky" nature of this type of research. Dr Joshi’s research focusses on innovative, interdisciplinary solutions for diagnosis of AMR infections at point of care. This talk will focus on AMR, links to Climate change and the importance of encouraging and investing in new, feasible, long term approaches to tackle AMR.

Speakers

New methods of evaluating antimicrobials

Speakers


Chair


Speakers

Innovating to secure the future of modern medicine

Abstract

Antibiotics are essential infrastructure for our health systems. But declining R&D into new antibiotics compounded by increasing shortages of existing generics, has left fewer drugs left in our medicine cabinet. Meanwhile, our existing drugs are no match for superbugs. This lack of innovation compromises access for patients, and undermines modern medicine for every country. Working together, in the context of drug development, and to change the politics around it, must happen across countries and across sectors. To turn the tide on the slow pandemic of AMR, we need to bring research, development, policy and politics together, with stewardship, access and innovation at the heart. Dame Sally Davies will reflect on key global advances in antibiotic innovation, and what the world still needs to do to win the war against superbugs.

Speakers

Related Events

Transforming our future

Sci-Fi: bridging climate science and green finance

Wednesday 21 July 2021

This Royal Society meeting explored climate science and the technologies that show genuine promise towards net zero emissions, as well as barriers to the flow of capital and solutions to funding such technologies.

 

Transforming our future

Sustainable packaging: protecting products and the planet

Friday 02 July 2021

This Royal Society symposium brought together key stakeholders from across the packaging industry to highlight the cutting-edge technologies that are making packaging more sustainable. 

Transforming our future

The Science of COVID

30 - 31 March 2022

Over two days, this meeting explored the basic science, vaccine efforts and diagnostic logistics, treatment and recovery from long and acute COVID, as well as the opportunities gained for the life sciences, and how this can be taken forward for future preparedness.