Micreos' Staphefekt is the world's first bacteria-killing enzyme for human use in MRSA

The breakthrough achieved by Dutch bacterial specialist Micreos is the most promising development the sector has seen in decades, as the company has this week launched the first bacteria-killing enzyme for human use against MRSA. Micreos is not a pharma company, instead coming from a background in food safety, and takes a holistic approach to solving the problems posed by bacteria and phages across both healthcare and food services.

It is no exaggeration to say that the threat of multi-drug resistant bacteria is looming over the contemporary public health landscape like a dark cloud. Bacterial infections are becoming harder and harder to treat, and modern society is at risk of being set back to where we were 100 years ago, before the discovery and wide application of the range of antibiotics we have come to rely on.

Mark Offerhaus, chief executive of Micreos, in a telephone interview with The Pharma Letter, explains the rationale behind the company’s approach: “At one time it was easy to give a broad spectrum of antibiotics, but now science is showing us that 99% of the bacteria on our skin and in our gut should be there and should be left alone. This is a very new insight.” He cites the sharp increase in gut-related problems and skin conditions such as eczema. “It’s not unlikely that this is a side effect and the collateral damage of the overuse of antibiotics. We’ve wiped out the diversity of bacteria on our skin and in our gut.”