Research & Development

Antimicrobial

PYN6 for MRSA and Acne

An estimated 100,000 patients in the UK contract an antibiotic resistant infection while in hospital each year. The reported cost to the NHS of treating these infections is in excess of £1 billion. With the sharp increase of so-called "super-bugs" such as MRSA in hospitals, there is a major need for new anti-bacterial treatments. PYN6 is a fraction isolated from a single plant that has been found in pre-clinical screening assays conducted both in China and in the UK to have activity against clinical isolates of MRSA and against the bacterium associated with the development of acne, Propionobacterium acnes. PYN6 appears to be active against MRSA at one tenth the concentration of the commonly used topical antibiotic, mupirocin. In laboratory studies extending over three weeks of MRSA strain culture with PYN6, none of the MRSA strains tested could be converted to PYN6 resistance.  Phynova is now planning formulation studies to assess the potential of PYN6 for topical application in both MRSA and acne.