Venus Remedies Partners with Infex for MET-X Development in India

Venus Remedies has entered into an exclusive license agreement with Infex Therapeutics, a UK-based anti-infectives specialist, for the clinical development of MET-X. This agreement authorizes Venus Remedies to spearhead the clinical development, registration, and commercialization of MET-X, an innovative metallo-beta-lactamase (MBL) inhibitor. The initial development phase will focus on integrating MET-X with meropenem to tackle drug-resistant gram-negative bacteria, with Venus Remedies holding exclusive marketing rights within India.
 
In India, meropenem resistance is reported to be as high as 62-87% in WHO critical priority pathogens like K. pneumoniae and A. baumannii as per the ICMR’s Antimicrobial Resistance Research and Surveillance Network-Annual report 2023, with as high as 50% being directly attributable to MBL prevalence.
 
Under the terms of the agreement, Venus Remedies will commence with a phase I trial involving healthy volunteers in India, evaluating MET-X in combination with meropenem. Following successful phase I outcomes, the focus will shift to phase II/III trials targeting drug-resistant complicated urinary tract infections (cUTIs), prevalent in hospital settings.
 
All trials conducted in India will adhere to international standards, compliant with regulations from the FDA, EMA, and MHRA, which will also support further development and global commercialization efforts for MET-X. The agreement grants both Infex Therapeutics and Venus Remedies the option to expand their collaboration to include other MET-X/beta-lactam combinations under mutually agreed terms.
 
MET-X is Infex Therapeutics’ broad spectrum MBL-inhibitor, targeting gram-negative bacteria. These pathogens produce MBL enzymes to deactivate beta-lactam antibiotics, such as meropenem, and evade antibiotic clearance of disease. MET-X blocks MBL resistance, restoring antibiotic activity. The drug is being developed to be one of the first broad-spectrum MBL inhibitors to address a wide range of bacterial species and MBL-resistant strains, such as E.coli and K.pneumoniae. The treatment has shown best-in-class performance in animal studies to date. The development of new agents to overcome MBL antibiotic resistance in such gram-negative bacteria is a World Health Organisation critical priority.
 
Saransh Chaudhary, president, global critical care, Venus Remedies and CEO, Venus Medicine Research Centre, said: “This early-stage introduction of MET-X into the Indian market leverages our decades-long dedication to AMR-focused R&D and our prominent role in critical care and antibiotic therapies. This partnership is perfectly poised to enhance our antibiotic arsenal with meropenem and explore further beta-lactam combinations, ensuring high-quality research and a significant market presence.”
 
Pawan Chaudhary, chairman and managing director, Venus Remedies said, “The in-licensing of MET-X is a major step forward in providing breakthrough solutions for drug-resistant infections, a serious threat to India’s healthcare ecosystem. Our aim is to develop an effective solution against MBL-producing pathogens, fulfilling a critical healthcare need and continuing our commitment to transformative therapies and sustained innovation in critical care.”
 
Dr Peter Jackson, CEO of Infex Therapeutics, said: “By leveraging Venus Remedies’ robust expertise in critical care antibiotics, we can accelerate MET-X as our second clinical-stage drug programme. Crucially, the international standards of these trials will also support future regulatory filings in the UK, US, Europe, and other global markets. MET-X has shown best-in-class performance in preclinical studies and could be game-changing for patients suffering from gram-negative, MBL-resistant infections.

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