EU approves new antibiotic to tackle rise of superbugs

The European Commission has approved a new antibiotic, Emblaveo, for serious illnesses like pneumonia and urinary tract infections. Emblaveo, marketed by US pharmaceutical company Pfizer, combines two existing medicines to tackle Gram-negative bacteria, which are among the leading drug-resistance threats. The treatment is likely to be used in a narrow group of serious cases to reduce the risk of triggering a surge in anti-microbial resistance (AMR). The European Commission is the first authority to approve the treatment, and health policymakers are trying to provide an incentive to pharma businesses to invest more in dealing with pathogen resistance. AMR is estimated to be linked to 5 million deaths a year worldwide. Emblaveo is the second antibiotic the EU has approved this year, after Exblifep. It will be marketed against bacteria that produce enzymes known as Metallo β-lactamases (MBL), which break the structure of many existing antibiotics, destroying their efficacy.