Why Some Did Not Make It

There are numerous reasons why drugs get stuck in development.  Certainly, problems with efficacy or problems with safety are main reasons but there are many other ‘derailers’ as well.  For instance regulatory issues or manufacturing, difficulties can stop a program.  Occasionally, a suboptimal dose was chosen because of (1) incomplete Continue reading Why Some Did Not Make It

Meropenem Dosing for VAP: High + Prolonged Beats Conventional Dosing

Sometimes an article pops up addressing a question we have been mulling over for quite some time.  It so happened with a recent publication which shed new light on penem dosing for ICU patients[1]. Conducted at a single Belgian centre (sic!), a standard dose of meropenem (1 g IV q8h Continue reading Meropenem Dosing for VAP: High + Prolonged Beats Conventional Dosing

Perusing the Literature

Inhibitor of the NDM Enzyme Aspergillomarasmine (AMA) was identified as an inhibitor of the New Delhi metallo-betalactamase (NDM) enzyme. This substance, when combined with meropenem, restored antibiotic activity against an NDM lab strain.   AMA is a substance which was already tested in the past in humans.  Concerns about interference with human metalloenzymes proved Continue reading Perusing the Literature