Research and Discovery
Tetracyclines are among the most commonly used classes of antibiotics and have been proven safe and effective in more than 50 years of clinical use. Previously, all tetracyclines were “semisynthetic,” that is, primarily obtained by fermentation, purified, and modified for clinical use. The nature of this process, however, markedly limited potential modifications so that only a narrow range of tetracyclines have been synthesized.
Our proprietary chemistry technology, based on a published breakthrough process, represented a significant innovation in the creation of tetracycline drugs. It allowed us to chemically modify many positions on the tetracycline core structure, making it possible to create and pursue a wider variety of novel tetracycline compounds for the treatment of infections that are resistant to existing tetracyclines and other antibiotic classes.