A New Generation of Antibiotics Seek to Penetrate an Increasingly Genericized Antibacterial Market

http://www.arrowheadpublishers.com/reports/infectious-disease/the-global-antibacterials-mark/

According to Arrowhead Publishers’ new report entitled The Global Antibacterials Market: R&D Pipelines, Market Analysis and Competitive Landscape, the anti-infectives market is currently valued at US$66.5 billion with the largest segment derived from the sales of antibacterial agents which generated nearly two thirds of the sales, accounting for nearly US$35 billion from community and hospital-based antibiotics.

The market is driven by the sales of four leading drug classes: the cephalosporins (27%), macrolides (20%), quinolones (17%) and penicillins (17%). Together, these four drug classes account for over 80% of global antibacterial sales.

Report Highlights


Key Antibacterial Market Snapshots

Cephalosporin Antibiotics
Cephalosporins were one of the most prescribed antibiotics for the treatment of Gram positive and negative bacteria and generated over US$9 billion sales worldwide in 2006. Six leading brands accounted for a quarter of global sales; the remainder was derived from generics and other tail-end antibiotics

Macrolide Antibiotics
The second largest segment of the antibacterial market was derived from prescription of macrolides. These antibiotics are widely used in the treatment of respiratory and urinary tract infections. Two leading brands: Biaxin (Abbott) and Zithromax (Pfizer), generated over a quarter of global sales; the remainder was derived from generics and other tail-end antibiotics.

Penicillin Antibiotics
The penicillins are one of the most widely prescribed antibiotics for the treatment of Gram-positive pathogens. While many of these drugs are now generically available, a few leading brands continue to drive growth. These include Pfizer’s Zosyn and GlaxoSmithKline’s Augmentin. These two products generated over a third of global penicillin sales

Quinolone Antibiotics
In 2006 quinolones generated sales of approximately US$6.1 billion and are widely used to treat Gram-negative pathogens. The market is dominated by sales of levofloxacin which is marketed as Levaquin by Johnson & Johnson in the US and Europe, and as Cravit in Japan by Daiichi-Sankyo. This product accounted for nearly 40% of global quinolone sales.


Key Research and Development Trends
While there are 21 different classes of antibacterial agents currently approved, the pharmaceutical industry has been reluctant to invest in R&D in this area and many companies have either abandoned or scaled down their efforts since 1999. This has presented opportunities for smaller pharma players who have been willing to develop potential candidates which are then in-licensed by big pharma for commercialization, as a strong sales force is essential for effective marketing of community-acquired antibacterials.

The development of low drug resistance antibacterial agents is a key driver for the pharmaceutical industry. Due to the nature of bacterial infections, mutations may rapidly lead to drug resistance over the course of treatment and according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), up to 70% of hospital-acquired infections are resistant to at least one antibiotic and up to 40% are resistant to three antibiotics.

During the last few years a number of first-in-class antibiotics have been launched, including the glycylcyclines (Wyeth’s tigecycline), oxazolidinones (Pfizer’s linezolid) and lipopeptides (Cubist’s daptomycin). However, there continues to be a need for new drug-resistant bacterial antibiotics. The majority of drugs in clinical development fall into the following classes:

  • Carbapenem Antibiotics
  • Cephalosporin Antibiotics
  • Dihydrofolate Reductase inhibitor Antibiotics
  • Glycopeptide Antibiotics
  • Ketolide Antibiotics
  • Macrolide Antibiotics
  • Quinolone Antibiotics


The Future of the Antibacterial Market
By 2012 the antibiotic market landscape will have changed dramatically as numerous leading brands face generic competition and a dozen new drugs are likely to enter the market. By 2012 sales of leading brands will likely account for about 36% of global antibiotic sales.

Other large pharmaceutical players have made considerable investment within the antibiotic R&D marketplace and the fruits of their labors should ensure greater market penetration despite difficult market conditions. These include companies such as Abbott, Daiichi-Sankyo and Shionogi.

Conversely, a number of smaller pharma players such as Advanced Life Sciences, Arpida, Replidyne and Targanta are likely to enter the market for the first time with their new generation of antibiotics. It is likely that many of these products will be snapped up by large pharma before they reach the patient as has been witnessed in the past; this will be essential if these new products are to effectively penetrate the hospital and community-based markets where a large, focused sales force is essential.

Arrowhead Publishers’ new report: The Global Antibacterials Market: R&D Pipelines, Market Analysis and Competitive Landscape is now available. For sample pages or ordering information, please contact us at 1-866-397-1376 or 1-312-244-3703, email us at sales@arrowheadpublishers.net or visit our website: www.arrowheadpublishers.com