Multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections: the emerging threat and potential novel treatment options.

Gram-negative bacterial infections constitute an emerging threat because of the development of multidrug-resistant organisms. There is a relative shortage of new drugs in the antimicrobial development pipeline that have been tested in vitro and evaluated in clinical studies. Antibiotics that are in the pipeline for the treatment of serious Gram-negative bacterial infections include the cephalosporins, ceftobiprole, ceftarolin and FR-264205. Tigecycline is the first drug approved from a new class of antibiotics called glycylcyclines, and there has been renewed interest in this drug for the treatment of some multidrug-resistant Gram-negative organisms. Carbapenems in the pipeline include tomopenem, with the approved drugs doripenem and faropenem, an oral agent, under evaluation for activity against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections. Polymyxins are old antibiotics traditionally considered to be toxic, but which are being used because of their activity against resistant Gram-negative organisms. New pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data are available regarding the use of these agents. Finally, antimicrobial peptides and efflux pump inhibitors are two new classes of agents under development. This review of investigational antibiotics shows that several new agents will become available in the coming years, even though the pace of antimicrobial research is far from ideal.