According to recent research summarized in a Reuters report, an experimental antibody developed by Merck & Co. reduced the recurrence of Clostridium difficile infections by 10 percentage points.
In the study, patients received either 12 weeks of treatment with antibiotics and a one-time infusion of bezlotoxumab, which is designed to block the ability of a toxin to bind to cells, or they received 12 weeks of treatment with antibiotics and a placebo.
Fifteen percent of the patients in the group that received that bezlotoxumab infusion experienced a recurrent C. diff infection, compared to 25 percent of those who received just antibiotics and the placebo.
Following the study, Merck & Co. announced plans to file for regulatory approval of bezlotoxumab, before the end of the year. Merck & Co. licensed the antibody from Massachusetts Biologic Laboratories and Medarex, now owned by Bristol-Myers Squibb.
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