Tracking the Pipeline of Antibiotics in Development

Tracking the Global Pipeline of Antibiotics in Development, March 2021

Drug-resistant bacteria, or superbugs, present a serious and worsening threat to human health. According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2.8 million Americans acquire serious infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria each year, and 35,000 of them die as a result.

Assessment of Nontraditional Products in Development to Combat Bacterial Infections, March 2021

While antibiotic innovation—finding and designing new types of antibiotics and improving existing drugs—remains essential to combating antibiotic resistance, “outside-the-box” approaches to preventing and treating bacterial infections are also needed. Such nontraditional approaches encompass a variety of products.

As of December 2019, approximately 41 new antibiotics with the potential to treat serious bacterial infections were in clinical development, and four were approved since the previous update in June 2019. The success rate for clinical drug development is low; historical data show that, generally, only 1 in 5 infectious disease products that enter human testing (phase 1 clinical trials) will be approved for patients.

As of December 2019, an estimated 30 new nontraditional products with the potential to treat or prevent serious bacterial infections were in clinical development. Below is a snapshot of the current nontraditional products pipeline, based on publicly available information and informed by external experts.