A Scientifically Rich Year

COMBACTE-NET

Four different papers were published in different journals by COMBACTE-Net, of which one was a detailed summary of the eight years of progress of LAB-NET. This article was published as a special report in the Journal of Microbiology in May. This paper emphasizes that the current clinical research practice is no longer fit for purpose, and a sustainable transformation is urgently needed.

COMBACTE LAB-NET: building a European laboratory network for clinical trials on anti-infectives.

The manuscript entitled “Efficacy and safety of suvratoxumab for prevention of Staphylococcus aureus Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (SAATELLITE): a randomized clinical trial” was published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal. SAATELLITE was a preemptive treatment phase 2 trial with the primary endpoint measuring the incidence of Staphylococcus aureus (SA) pneumonia within 30 days post-dose.

In April, COMBACTE-Net and Da Volterra concluded that the bacterial composition in the colon can be used to recognize patients at increased risk of infection with the bacterium Clostridium difficile after a course of antibiotics. This conclusion was based on a study executed in 34 European hospitals from CLIN-Net. The results were published in Nature Communications in a back-to-back publication.

1. Incidence and predictive biomarkers of Clostridioides difficile infection in hospitalized patients receiving broad-spectrum antibiotics
2. Microbiota-based markers predictive of development of Clostridioides difficile infection

COMBACTE-MAGNET

In April, COMBACTE-MAGNET has published two papers. One paper was published in Science Direct, Value in Health. The objective of this study was to estimate how much a reduction in the rate of hospital-acquired infections translates into a change in hospital mortality and length of stay.

Predicting Potential Prevention Effects on Hospital Burden of Nosocomial Infections: A Multistate Modeling Approach

The other paper was published in Nature Communication. The study highlights how natural selection and host immunity interact to drive both the rapid rise, and fall, of resistance during infection.

Rapid evolution and host immunity drive the rise and fall of carbapenem resistance during an acute Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection

COMBACTE-CARE

COMBACTE-CARE published one paper in January in Frontiers in Microbiology. In this study, the efficacy of the Eazyplex^® SuperBug Complete A system, based on loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), to detect the presence of carbapenemases in Acinetobacter spp. directly from bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples was assessed.

Evaluation of a Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Assay to Detect Carbapenemases Directly From Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid Spiked With Acinetobacter spp.

COMBACTE-CDI

The COMBACTE-CDI project officially came to an end in April 2021. The consortium is now busy with drafting manuscripts on all research done. In april the first publication did appear in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. The objective of the research was to identify factors that contribute to plasmid-independent metronidazole resistance of C. difficile.

Haem is crucial for medium-dependent metronidazole resistance in clinical isolates of Clostridioides difficile

The main publication of the project is currently under review but a preprint is already available ‘Key Differences in Diagnosis and Patient Populations between Community and In-Patient Clostridioides Difficile Infections (CDI): Results from Combatting Bacterial Resistance in Europe CDI‘.