Despite the variety of antibiotics currently available, bacterial infections remain a significant and growing medical problem. Many bacterial infections are serious and require hospitalization and treatment with injectable antibiotics.

Among the most common bacterial infections are those caused by Gram-positive bacteria, which include staphylococci, streptococci and enterococci. Gram-positive infections are often serious and life-threatening. The need for more effective antibiotics is particularly acute because many Gram-positive strains, particularly many staphylococci, have become resistant to currently available antibiotics. Of particular note are infections due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (commonly known as MRSA). Drug resistance is especially common in hospital-acquired infections.

Antibiotic Product Candidate — Telavancin
Telavancin is a bactericidal, once-daily, injectable investigational antibiotic with a multifunctional mechanism of action. We discovered telavancin in a research program dedicated to finding new antibiotics for serious infections due to Staphylococcus aureus and other Gram-positive bacteria. Telavancin inhibits the formation of the bacterial cell wall and disrupts bacterial cell membrane function. We believe the additive mechanisms of action seen with telavancin speed bacterial killing while also reducing the risks of inducing resistance to telavancin or cross-resistance with other antibiotics.

Astellas Telavancin Collaboration
Theravance has a collaboration arrangement with Astellas Pharma Inc. (Astellas) for the global development and commercialization of telavancin. Under the terms of the collaboration, Theravance is responsible for the development of and U.S. regulatory process for telavancin for the treatment of complicated skin and skin structure infections and hospital-acquired pneumonia, as well as for the manufacture of approximately six months of first commercial sale stock for launch of telavancin in the United States. Astellas is responsible for all other development, regulatory, manufacturing, sales and marketing activities. Theravance will collaborate substantially with Astellas in marketing in the United States for the first three years.

Antibiotic Product Candidate — TD-1792
TD-1792 is an investigational heterodimer antibiotic that combines the antibacterial activities of a glycopeptide and a beta-lactam in one molecule. The goal of the TD-1792 clinical program is to develop a next-generation antibiotic for the treatment of serious infections caused by MRSA.