August 1, 2019
Sonoran Biosciences has received a Phase 2B SBIR award from the National Institutes of Health for $2 million
Sonoran Biosciences, a preclinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on the prevention and treatment of surgical site infections, has been awarded a $1,999,516 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase IIB grant by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. This project represents a continuation of a previous project funded by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.
The company’s SB Gel is a novel polymer-based material that is a liquid at room temperature and forms a solid in the body that releases drugs over time and then dissolves. This SBIR award will support completion of pre-clinical toxicology and manufacturing activities for a formulation that releases antibiotics to enable improved treatment of prosthetic joint infections. By replacing the local antibiotic delivery role of antibiotic-loaded bone cement spacers in a dissolvable carrier, Sonoran’s product could enable reliable treatment of prosthetic joint infection in a single surgery rather than multiple procedures staged several weeks apart.
Prosthetic joint infections are a devastating complication of total joint replacement surgery which rank among both the most common and expensive causes of repeat surgery. The number of PJIs in the United States has more than tripled in the last 20 years. PJI treatment is under-reimbursed, and with healthcare reforms, responsibility for infection-related costs is increasingly being placed on healthcare providers.
Prosthetic joint infections and other bone and implant-related infections are especially difficult to treat because they are caused by bacteria that form biofilm on implant and tissue surfaces. Treatment requires surgical removal of the vast majority of the infection and very high concentrations of antibiotics for a sustained period of time to kill any remaining biofilm bacteria. Currently, most patients undergo a treatment regimen involving two surgical procedures: a first in which the infected implant and infected or dead bone and soft tissue are removed and an antibiotic-loaded bone cement “spacer” is added to the wound, and then a second procedure in which the joint is reconstructed with a new implant. The formulation being developed in this work is intended to enable treatment in a single surgery by providing high antibiotic concentrations around a new permanent implant, avoiding the need for a spacer. Sonoran’s work to date indicates that the antibiotic concentrations provided in the tissues around a surgical site exceed the concentrations required to eradicate biofilms of a range of bacteria representing those commonly found in surgical site infections including prosthetic joint infections.
About Sonoran Biosciences, Inc.
Sonoran Biosciences is a preclinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing a novel antibacterial gel for the prevention and treatment of surgical site infection (SSI). The company’s lead product SBG002 is an injectable sustained-release gel containing tobramycin and vancomycin designed for direct application in surgical sites. SBG002 has the potential to become a first-in-class product for prevention of SSI, including after orthopaedic, cardiac, and colorectal surgery.
The content of this article is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.