DAV361 is a novel product aimed at delivering to the colon a patented optimized β-lactamase enzyme that is capable of inactivating β-lactam antibiotics with high efficiency. By preventing β-lactams (one of the most widely used classes of antibiotics) from disrupting the gut microbiome, DAV361 aims to prevent the selection and amplification of resistant bacteria, their dissemination and the occurrence of infections caused by these bacteria. This approach is of major interest for the latest generation β-lactams, such as carbapenems, which are used as a last resort, as there is an urgent need to slow down the emergence of resistance to this class of antibiotics.
In particular, DAV361 is being developed to prevent colonization of intensive care units’ (ICU) patients with β-lactam-resistant bacteria and prevent subsequent infections. The target population of DAV361 therefore includes all patients hospitalized in ICU and receiving β-lactams. In the longer term, DAV361 could be used in all hospitalized patients treated with carbapenems, antibiotics of last resort, but also in the pediatric population, which is a major consumer of β-lactams, especially at young ages, to prevent the long-term harmful consequences of antibiotic use (i.e. asthma, obesity and diabetes).
Why is DAV361 unique?
- DAV361 is very different from other approaches developed in the microbiome space: it protects the microbiome before it gets disrupted by antibiotics, instead of replenishing it partially after it has been disrupted (as what is done with probiotics, live biotherapeutic products and fecal microbiota transplantation).
- It works with all antibiotics from the β-lactam class, including carbapenems, and not just penicillins and cephalosporins.
- It is indicated for oral and intravenous antibiotics (a fraction of which reach the colon after enterohepatic recycling).
- Its administration is simple and its manufacturing costs are limited.
