NIH pledges up to $102 million to Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group
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The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases will provide up to $102.5 million over 7 years in renewed funding to the Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group, or ARLG, the NIH announced.
The ARLG was launched in 2013 and has collaborated with researchers in 19 countries to conduct more than 40 clinical studies, resulting in more than 130 research articles relating to antimicrobial stewardship and the epidemiology, diagnosis and management of antibiotic-resistant infections, the NIH said.
The funding will help Duke University coordinate ARLG activities. Vance Fowler, MD, professor of medicine at Duke University, and Henry Chambers, MD, professor of medicine at University of California, San Francisco, will remain the principal investigators.
Antibacterial resistance is a growing global public health threat. According to recently published CDC estimates, each year there are more than 2.8 million cases of antibiotic-resistant infections in the United States, resulting in about 35,000 deaths.
Developing “better countermeasures against antibiotic-resistant bacteria” will be the main focus of ARLG under the renewed funding. The group will investigate vaccines, bacteriophages and microbiomes, and will work on improving diagnostic tests and the appropriate use of existing antibiotics.
“Overuse and misuse of antibiotics drives the spread of antibacterial resistance, and there is an urgent need for novel strategies to combat these serious infections,” NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, MD, said in the release. “The Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group oversees a unique clinical research network that has made significant contributions to improving the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of antibacterial-resistant infections, and we are pleased to continue our support.”
Reference:
NIH. NIH renews funding for the Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group. https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/nih-renews-funding-antibacterial-resistance-leadership-group. Accessed December 20, 2019.