Antibiotics in phase II and III clinical trials.

There are 19 compounds in late-stage clinical trials, of which ten may be suitable for Gram-positive infections. However, there are only five compounds in development for Gram-negative infections, in addition to four broad-spectrum ones. There are two new classes in late-stage clinical development. This chapter discusses in some detail each of the antibiotics in Phase II and Phase III clinical trials. Only those that appear in the literature are covered. The shortage of compounds in development for Gram-negatives and the small number of new classes in the pipeline is of serious concern; this matter needs to be addressed by governments, the regulatory authorities, the pharmaceutical industry and academia urgently.