LegoChem BioScience said it acquired a patent regarding the compositions and methods for inhibiting beta-lactamase in the U.S., Monday. Beta-lactamase is a super-bacteria enzyme that breaks down the core structure of antibiotics and neutralizes the antibiotic's antimicrobial effect.

The company and Geom Therapeutics is working on developing LCB10-02, a unique gram-negative bacterial antibiotic LCB10-0200, and a co-administration agent to go along with the broad spectrum gram-negative super bacterial therapy.

Gram-negative bacteria contain a Beta-lactam decomposition enzyme that triggers an immunological mechanism of neutralizing the pharmacological effect by producing beta-lactamase, which degrades the beta-lactam structure after administering beta-lactam antibiotics. Global pharmaceutical firms are developing new drugs by using antibiotics and beta-lactamase inhibitors to overcome this resistance.

The number of Gram-negative bacteria and Gram-positive bacteria infected patients is similar, but in the case of Gram-negative bacteria there are only two approved licensed combination therapy AstraZeneca’ s Avycaz and Merck’s Zerbaxa.

LegoChem had transferred the technology for the drug candidate to Geom last September. The latter company is now undergoing preclinical trials on animals. As the company registered the patent through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), it plans to apply for patents in other countries such as EU and China separately.

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