Company Receives NIH Grant for Novel Investigational Antibiotic to Combat "Super Gonorrhea"

Image credit: Yassine Khalfalli, Unsplash

This morning, TAXIS Pharmaceuticals announced it has received a $2.9 million grant, to be awarded over 3 years, from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, one of the institutes of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This grant will allow the company to further advance research and development for its dihydrofolate reductase inhibitors (DHFRIs) as a novel approach to combat multidrug-resistant gonorrhea (MDRG, commonly referred to as super gonorrhea), a rapidly spreading, deadly, and highly resistant strain of Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

“Our DHFRIs have demonstrated preclinical potential in overcoming resistance barriers, offering a significant breakthrough for future treatment,” TAXIS Chief Scientific Officer Ajit Parhi, PhD, said in a statement. “This NIH grant further validates our scientific approach and the vital role that DHFRIs can play in addressing this growing public health challenge.”

DHFRIs target and inhibit the essential bacterial enzyme DHFR, thereby blocking DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis, resulting in cell death. TAXIS’ oral, first-in-class investigational DHFRIs targeting MDRG successfully eradicated MDRG in animal efficacy models.

Learn more: "Super Gonorrhea" Is Evolving as a Greater Treatment Challenge

The STI’s Burden

This newer strain of the sexually transmitted infection (STI), also known as super gonorrhea, poses a public health challenge due to its resistance to the last line of effective antibiotic, ceftriaxone. And the overall incidence rates of this STI are escalating worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that in 2020, there were an estimated 82.4 million (47.7 million-130.4 million) new gonorrhea cases among people aged 15 to 49 years worldwide, with a global incidence rate of 19 (11-29) per 1000 women and 23 (10-43) per 1000 men. Most cases were in the WHO African Region and Western Pacific Region.²

Although the MDRG strain has been seen mostly outside the US, in 2023, 2 cases of this pathogen were confirmed in the US and identified by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.³

Massachusetts officials reported that clinicians were able to treat the patients successfully with ceftriaxone. However, this strain of the STI had reduced susceptibility to 5 antibiotic classes—including cephalosporins.³

About the Company

TAXIS, a clinical-stage company at the forefront of developing therapies, is developing new classes of antiresistance therapies to treat life-threatening multidrug-resistant bacterial infections. Their investigational drug candidates include efflux pump inhibitors, DHFRIs, and FtsZ inhibitors and aim to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

The company sees the importance of addressing AMR for this form of STI but also antimicrobial development overall.

"This NIH grant is a critical step in enabling TAXIS to tackle the urgent threat posed by super gonorrhea," TAXIS Pharmaceuticals CEO Gregory Mario, MBA, said in a statement. “Effective antibiotics are the foundation of modern medicine. Along with other innovative pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, we are committed to solving the antimicrobial resistance crisis— the No. 1 threat to global societal health.”

References

1. TAXIS Pharmaceuticals announces $2.9 million NIH grant for its novel investigational therapeutic to combat antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea. Press release. TAXIS Pharmaceuticals. May 27, 2025. Accessed May 27, 2025.
2. Multi-drug resistant gonorrhea. World Health Organization. July 11, 2023. Accessed May 27, 2025. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/multi-drug-resistant-gonorrhoea
3. Landhuis EW. Multidrug-resistant “super gonorrhea” rallies multipronged effort. JAMA. 2024;331(20):1695-1697. doi:10.1001/jama.2023.15355