Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Priority Medicines for Europe and the World
"A Public Health Approach to Innovation"
Background Paper
Tuberculosis
By Dr Mary Moran
7 October 2004
6.8-1
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Table of Contents
Summary ............................................................................................................................................... 3
Introduction
What is the Size and Nature of the TB buRden?................................................................................ 4
What is the TB Control Strategy? ......................................................................................................... 6
Why Does the Disease Burden Persist?............................................................................................... 8
Research into Pharmaceutical Interventions Past and Present: What Can be Learnt? ........ 10
Diagnostics ............................................................................................................................................ 10
Drugs ..................................................................................................................................................... 11
Vaccines ................................................................................................................................................. 18
Existing Resource Flows for TB R&D............................................................................................ 20
Basic research ....................................................................................................................................... 20
Diagnostics ............................................................................................................................................ 20
Drugs ..................................................................................................................................................... 20
The Tuberculosis Antimicrobial Acquisition and Coordinating Facility (TAACF) .................... 22
Vaccines ................................................................................................................................................. 24
Resource flow lessons.......................................................................................................................... 25
What is the Current Pipeline? ......................................................................................................... 25
TB Diagnostics ...................................................................................................................................... 25
TB Drugs ............................................................................................................................................... 26
TB Vaccines ........................................................................................................................................... 26
Opportunities for Research into New Pharmaceutical Interventions ..................................... 27
Are there research gaps that could be filled affordably, have a significant impact and be
achieved in a) 5 years or b) the longer term? Which of these are pharmaceutical research
gaps?..................................................................................................................................................... 30
Basic research ....................................................................................................................................... 30
Diagnostics ............................................................................................................................................ 31
Drugs ..................................................................................................................................................... 32
Vaccines ................................................................................................................................................. 37
Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................... 38
References ........................................................................................................................................... 40
Annexes
Appendices
6.8-2
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Summary
Tuberculosis is a major and growing threat. The expanded European Union now has a
substantial and increasing TB burden of more than 50,000 cases per year, around 10% of
whom have TB which is already resistant to one or more of our existing drugs. And globally,
TB control is now threatened by the upsurge in HIV-TB co-infected patients, who are
straining current TB tools and DOTS approaches to the limit.
Controlling TB with our existing tools is a cumbersome, expensive and sometimes
unsuccessful task. There are no cheap, rapid, reliable diagnostics for TB screening or MDRTB diagnosis, and our first-line TB diagnostic test picks up only around 50% of patients with
active TB. Drug therapies are resource-intensive and expensive, particularly in European
settings, requiring 6-8 months of therapy with up to one-hundred observed doses. Therapies
for MDR-TB are even longer, up to 2 years, and have high failure rates. And there is no
reliable vaccine to prevent TB in adults.
Although new tools and approaches are being developed in all areas – including basic
research, drugs, diagnostics and vaccines - progress is being delayed by lack of targeted
funding and support, in particular from the EU which now provides less than 5% of global
funding for development of new TB tools. The U.S. is driving the TB R&D agenda,
particularly for new drugs, with the preponderance of research and development now being
funded by the U.S. government and U.S. philanthropists, and with U.S.-based industry and
academic groups being the main collaborators (and beneficiaries of R&D contracts).
The landscape of R&D for these new tools has also changed dramatically, with the major
pharmaceutical industry no longer playing a lead role. Development of new TB drugs,
diagnostics and vaccines is now almost entirely driven by public-private partnerships,
funded by philanthropists; while industry participation tends to be from smaller companies,
such as biotech firms and contract research organisations, rather than large multinational
companies. Those large companies who are involved – for instance in developing vaccine
adjuvants or working on the discovery stage of TB drugs – are almost all EU-based.
Current EU funding for R&D of new TB tools does not always reflect these new
epidemiological and pharmaceutical realities. EU funding is insufficient (around $8.5
million per year under the Fifth Framework Programme) and is not well targeted at the PPPs
and smaller industry and academic groups who are now most active in TB research and
development.
This paper suggests a new EU funding model which would support European industry and
academic research while ensuring it is closely focussed on optimal health outcomes for TB
patients and the governments who provide their care.
6.8-3
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Introduction
TB is an infectious disease, caused by M. tuberculosis. Although it most commonly presents
as pulmonary TB (80% of patients), up to 1 in 5 patients present with extra-pulmonary
manifestations, including miliary TB, bone and joint TB and TB meningitis.1 TB normally
progresses slowly from the latent stage (infection without active disease) to active TB
disease, except in HIV co-infected patients where progression can be rapid and fatal.
What is the Size and Nature of the TB burden?
One in three people globally is infected with TB (latent TB), although only a small proportion
of these progress to clinical disease (active TB).2 In 2001, an estimated 8.5 million cases of TB
disease occurred globally, with just under half of these being diagnosed (3.8 million cases)
and around three-quarters of diagnosed cases being cured. a3 The bulk of TB is concentrated
in 22 high-burden countries, all in the developing world, while multi-drug resistant TB
(MDR-TB) is focussed in “hot spots” such as Latvia, Estonia, parts of the Former Soviet
Union and several Chinese provinces.4
TB now ranks as the ninth most significant burden of disease globally, representing 2.4% of
all DALYs lost – as a comparison, HIV/AIDS is responsible for 5.8% of lost DALYs and
malaria for 3.0%.5 However, although the extensive burden of TB is a concern, a greater
cause of disquiet is the rapid growth of TB in some regions, leading to an overall increase in
TB notifications of around 0.4% per year (see Fig 1).
Fig.1: Global trends in TB case notification6
Global trends in case notifications
170
Standardized case
notification rate
160
150
140
130
120
110
100
90
1980
1985
1990
1995
2000
This overall trend hides important disparities in TB control. Within Western Europe there are
several countries with increasing TB rates (including the UK, Denmark and Norway) and TB
burdens in Eastern Europe and Africa are growing rapidly.7 However, many regions,
including the Eastern Mediterranean; South East Asia; Western Europe; and India and China
(which together make up 40% of the global TB burden) have stable or declining TB
notification rates, consistent with improved socio-economic conditions and more rigorous
implementation of TB treatment programmes.
Global cure rates are 49% (non-DOTS programmes) and 74% (DOTS programmes). If cure plus completion of
treatment are measured, these figures are 67% and 82% respectively. (The same reference applies.)
a
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Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Fig. 2
Fig. 38
The rise and rise of TB in
Africa, linked to HIV
The epidemiology of TB in Europe
400
Former Soviet
Standardized case
notificaiton rate
300
Sta
notificat
nd
250
ion rate
ard
ize
200
d
ca
150
se
100
Central Europe
Established Markets
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
50
0
0
1980
1980
1985
1990
1995
1985
1990
1995
2000
2000
The rise of TB in Eastern European countries is linked to declining social conditions and the
breakdown of health-care systems (including TB programmes) during the transition to
market-based economies. The impact of this socio-economic decline was compounded by a
lack of political commitment to DOTS, with many Former Soviet Union (FSU) countries
continuing to use inappropriate TB control strategies, such as non-DOTS protocols and
unproven revaccination programmes.9 As a result, these countries – including many EU
accession countries – have high and rapidly increasing rates of both TB and MDR-TB. (See
Annex 6.8.1a-c)
Globally, the rise of TB, particularly in Africa, is largely due to the unchecked HIV/AIDS
pandemic. This is due to the direct role played by HIV immunosuppression in activation of
latent TB; the sheer number of new TB patients spreading the disease; the poorer
performance of TB tools in HIV+ immunosuppressed patients; and the impact of HIV on
health systems, health workers and the general economy.
Three factors are likely to impact on the future TB burden in Europe.

The accession of Central European and Former Soviet Union countries means the
expanded EU will soon face a substantially increased burden of TB and MDR-TB.
Although much of this will remain within the borders of the accession countries,
migration means that the relatively TB-naïve health systems of Western Europe will also
be exposed to increased TB, including potentially untreatable drug-resistant strains of
TB (at least one-third of MDR-TB patients do not respond to existing drugs). 10 Around
20,000 TB cases were notified in the first-rank accession countries in 2001, with TB
incidence rates as high as 75-85 per 100,000 in Latvia and Lithuania - by comparison,
France and Germany have incidence rates around 10 per 100,000. (See Annex 6.8.2)
Latvia and Estonia also had the dubious honour of being in the Top 5 for both MDR-TB
and poly-drug resistant TB (MDR was a disturbing 18% in Estonia and 12% in Latvia).11

Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union (CEE/FSU) currently combine
some of the world’s highest MDR-TB rates with the world’s fastest growing HIV
infection rates. In 1995, the number of HIV infections in the region was estimated at
below 30,000. By end 1999, this had climbed to 420,000, reaching 700,000 in 2000.12 The
course of the TB-HIV epidemic in Sub-Saharan Africa (where MDR-TB rates are low) is a
salutary lesson for the CEE/FSU region, but one which is not being adequately
addressed.
6.8-5
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis

In the longer term, economic growth in the accession countries is highly likely to reduce
their burden of both TB and MDR-TB.
Globally, the two factors most likely to influence the TB burden are:

DOTS expansion, which delivers increased TB detection and cure rates in areas of DOTS
coverage. There has been a renewed push for DOTS expansion, with rapidly increased
coverage in four of the top five high-incidence countries (India 45%; China 68%;
Indonesia 98% and Bangladesh 95%).13 Results from Vietnam, Peru and early results
from China show that DOTS can reduce the TB burden, however we will need to
substantially improve case-finding tools and strategies, which currently find a minority
of TB patients even with 100% DOTS coverage.

The HIV/AIDS pandemic, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, but increasingly in SouthEast Asia, India and China. Country data show that HIV-TB has grown from 4% of the
global TB burden in 1995 to 12% in 2000, with Africa now representing 20% of all TB
cases.14 Without new TB tools and additional approaches, new AIDS epidemics in other
areas of the world will be catastrophic for TB control. Scaling up of joint TB/HIV
activities will be required.
What is the TB Control Strategy?
The fundamental TB control strategy, recommended for all epidemiological settings, is DOTS
(Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course). Its five key elements are:15
 Political commitment and resources to address TB

Uninterrupted supply of the four to six most effective anti-TB drugs

A standardised recording and reporting system to enable outcome assessment of
patients and TB programmes

Access to sputum microscopy to detect patients with smear-positive pulmonary TB

Standardised 6-8 month drug therapy, with directly observed treatment for at least
the first 2 months.
In high HIV-TB settings, DOTS is supplemented by scaling up of 12 collaborative TB/HIV
activities defined in the interim Policy on Collaborative TB/HIV Activities (ref:
WHO/HTM/TB/2004.330; WHO/HTM/HIV/2004.1. DOTS-Plus for the treatment of MDR-TB
(including access to cheaper drugs) is now also being piloted by WHO in a limited number
of settings.16 Finally, wider use of anti-retroviral therapy in developing countries is seen as
an important adjunct to TB treatment.
The effectiveness of DOTS and its supplementary programmes varies depending on the
epidemiological setting. Epidemiological modelling suggest that, in normal settings, DOTS
can deliver a 6-7% annual TB decrease if coverage is 100% and if TB programmes can detect
70% of smear-positive patients and cure 85% of these – the so-called 70/85 targets. These
figures are premised on passive case-finding, rather than active TB screening or contacttracing, as is used in most Western countries. The passive case-finding approach has been
partly dictated by the absence of cheap, reliable screening tests to detect either latent or
smear-negative TB, with most developing countries unable to afford the more sophisticated
6.8-6
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
diagnostics available in the West. Modelling also suggests that achieving DOTS targets
would have averted 3.4 million additional TB deaths between 2001 and 2005, and allowed a
total of 12.8 million people to be treated for TB.17
However, real-life results of DOTS are more mixed. DOTS clearly delivers higher detection
and cure rates of smear positive new pulmonary cases than non-DOTS approaches.b But
DOTS implementation has been slow and, even when implemented, most developing
countries are struggling to reach the global 70/85 targets, in particular the 70% case-finding
target.c Only two of the 22 high-burden countries (Vietnam and Peru) have achieved the
70/85 targets; and case-finding rates in the major-burden TB countries (India, China,
Indonesia, Nigeria, Bangladesh) are still below 35%.18
Importantly, there are two settings where the DOTS strategy alone does not appear to be
adequate without additional activities. The first is high-prevalence HIV settings, where
DOTS can slow the increase in TB but “on its own ... is unlikely to reverse the upward
trend”. 19 This view is confirmed by epidemiological modelling for Sub-Saharan Africa
which suggests that, even if full DOTS implementation to the 70/85 targets could be achieved
(in itself problematic), growth in TB will only be slowed from 10% to 7% per year.20
Collaborative TB/HIV activities will be required in these circumstances.
The second area is MDR-TB. DOTS reduces generation of new MDR-TB cases, but
management of existing MDR-TB patients is beyond the capacity and finances of most
developing country DOTS programmes. In the absence of suitable tests, most MDR-TB
patients are diagnosed on the basis of two failed courses of DOTS (15 months therapy) –
during which time they remain infective with drug-resistant TB strains. Once diagnosed, the
vast majority receive no further treatment, since MDR-TB treatment is around 1,400 times
more expensive than TB treatment, with the drugs alone costing up to $8,000-13,000 per
patient. DOTS-Plus, which offers subsidised drugs, currently covers only around 2,500 of the
estimated 300,000-400,000 patients with MDR-TB, although additional patients are treated
outside DOTS-Plus in wealthier countries such as South Africa or Latvia.21 Delays in
diagnosis, lack of treatment, and relatively low cure rates in patients who are treated, all
mean that MDR incidence is not being reduced as quickly as possible. The DOTS Plus
strategy is required in these circumstances.
DOTS averages 60% detection rates compared to 36% under non-DOTS programmes, and 77% cure-rates
compared to 52% for non-DOTS. (WHO Global TB Control Report 2003, pp19-23)
c After a decade of DOTS, 71% of TB patients globally are still treated outside DOTS programmes and slightly less
than half of the 22 high-burden TB countries have achieved country-wide DOTS coverage of 95% or greater, while
all top five high-incidence TB countries continue to have case-finding rates of around 35% or less.
b
6.8-7
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Why Does the Disease Burden Persist?
Obstacles to improved TB control fall into two main categories. The first are obstacles
related to DOTS itself; while the second are factors relating to developing country health care
more generally. The main DOTS-related obstacles are:
1.
Technical limitations of existing DOTS tools. WHO and CDC staff noted in 2001
that “as DOTS coverage has expanded, it has become apparent that the performance of
existing tools for TB diagnosis and treatment limits more efficient implementation of the
strategy”. 22 Key limitations are:

Lack of cheap, quick and reliable tests for:
-
Screening for latent TB (which would allow preventative therapy to be given before
infectious or active TB supervene);
-
TB diagnosis. Our fundamental TB diagnostic test, AFB microscopy, has an overall
detection rate of only 50% (up to 75% in pulmonary cases) and is cumbersome,
requiring trained microscopists and repeat patient visits. There is no suitable test for
detection of TB in paediatric, extra-pulmonary or smear-negative patients in poor
settings, many of whom are HIV-positive;
-
MDR-TB diagnosis. Current diagnosis relies on manual culture, which is cheap but
extremely time-consuming (results take 6-9 weeks), and must be performed in a
National Reference Laboratory or its equivalent. The scarcity of such laboratories
means culture and drug-sensitivity testing (DST) are barely used in most developing
countries, who instead rely on lengthy treatment trials. (See Annex 6.8.3)

Lack of short-course drugs in long-acting formulations. Current TB drugs are cheap and
can deliver cure rates of 85% or more. However they must be given daily or three-times
weekly for 6-8 months (with observation of each dose for the first 2 months; and for all
doses in rifampicin-containing regimens)

Lack of an effective adult TB vaccine

Lack of effective drugs for MDR-TB. Current drugs are described by WHO as
“inherently more toxic and less effective than first-line drugs”23; they require treatment
courses of 20-24 months; are prohibitively priced at up to US$8,000-13,000 per patient;
and typically cure only around half to two-thirds of patients.24
2.
DOTS “cumbersome, labour intensive and expensive” system of administration
(as it was described by staff at WHO and the CDC) makes it difficult for developing
countries to implement DOTS or to reach the global 70/85 targets. 25 The programme
measures needed to overcome the technical weaknesses of existing TB tools (for example,
repeat testing, lengthy treatment courses and frequent direct observation of patient therapy)
now significantly outweigh the cost of the drugs themselves – indeed, they commonly
represent around 90% of the cost of DOTS.
6.8-8
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Table 1: Estimated public sector health system costs per treated case of infectious TB,
excluding MDR-TB (US$)26
Country
United Kingdom
India
China
Uganda
Thailand
Russia
Total
$9,029
$57-$201
$61-$75
$430-$541
$219-$280
$1,115-$1,395
Drugs
$200
$7
$18
$32
$43
$83
The costs of MDR-TB treatment are even more prohibitive, reaching as high as US $250,000
per patient in Western settings. Although the drugs are very expensive, the chief costs are
incurred by hospitalisation, direct observation and monitoring during the 2-year treatment
course needed with these old second-line drugs. We note that Latvia alone needs to spend
Euro 6.3 million to manage 600 MDR-TB patients.27 This is more than twice the sum of
money dedicated annually by the EC to development of shorter, more effective treatments
for TB and MDR-TB.
3.
The 70% case detection target may not be realistic using current diagnostic tools and
passive case-finding approaches, with recent WHO research suggesting TB case-finding may
plateau at 40-50% of smear-positive (infectious) patients.28
The second group of obstacles are factors relating to developing country health care more
generally, and which apply to other diseases as well as TB:
1.
The 22 high-burden TB countries identified five main country-level constraints
to reaching the DOTS targets, including:
 lack of human resources;
 impact of health system restructuring, in particular decentralisation;
 poor health system infrastructure, organisation and management;
 private sector non-compliance with DOTS recommendations;
 lack of political commitment in some developing countries.
Additional factors included poor drug supply systems; and poor physical access to
treatment centres, especially for remote patients. 29
2.
A funding gap. In 2003, the WHO reported the known country-level gap in TB
funding at $219 million; the probable additional country-level gap at $838 million;
and the gap in international technical assistance at $115 million (all figures for the 22
high-burden countries only).30 These gaps are likely to widen, particularly in SubSaharan Africa, as increased numbers of HIV patients are detected (many co-infected
with TB) in response to current international initiatives. These include the WHO 3 x 5
initiative; the US $15 billion Bush grant; the work of the GFATM and Clinton
Foundation; and WHO’s policy on TB/HIV collaborative activities.
3.
Patient factors, including TB stigma and reliance on alternative healthcare providers.
6.8-9
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Research into Pharmaceutical Interventions Past and Present: What
Can be Learnt?
Diagnostics
Research into new TB diagnostics has been increasing in the past 10-15 years, with research
and development toward new tests for smear-negative TB, TB screening, and rapid detection
of MDR-TB; as well as tests to improve or replace sputum-based AFB for smear-positive
patients.
Much of the commercial R&D for TB has been undertaken by small and medium sized
biotechnology companies taking advantage of the advanced state of diagnostics science, the
lower development costs than for pharmaceuticals, and the presence of a modest Western
market. Over 50 groups in 18 countries are developing or already marketing new TB tests,
though of the largest 10 diagnostic companies, only 3 have any products for this disease.
Academic research supporting these TB diagnostics development activities is carried out by
a wide range of institutions, with support coming primarily from national research institutes
or other public funds.
Although multiple new tests have been developed for all patient categories, review of these
reveals a number of weaknesses. The lack of regulatory oversight for diagnostics in
developing countries means that clinical evaluations are often poor and advertised test
specifications often overstate their efficacy. Smaller companies often lack the skills, financing
or depth to make improvements needed to improve performance. A wider problem is that
almost all the tests developed by the larger, more capable companies have been developed
with the Western market in mind and are therefore unsuitable for wide use in TB-endemic
countries due to their cost and high-tech nature. Nevertheless, promising new technologies
do exist and, with adaptation, could be widely implemented in low-income settings.
In an attempt to address this, the Tuberculosis Diagnostic Initiative (TBDI) was set up within
WHO/TDR in 1996 to support industry and academic research into tests for resource-poor
settings by providing an enabling infrastructure and a modest budget to fund development
or evaluation projects. Despite offering substantial support to industry – including a 12,000
sample specimen bank for diagnostic testing; a database of all diagnostics in development;
test performance guidelines; and support for field trials - this enabling approach was unable
to drive the development process forcefully enough to deliver new tools and was
supplemented in May 2003 by a new public-private-partnership, the Foundation for
Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND).
FIND is reviewing existing technologies, prioritising them from a health perspective and
funding co-development of promising technologies with industry, in order to deliver new
diagnostic tests for latent, active and MDR-TB. In conjunction with TDR, they will also trial
existing (and eventually new) diagnostics to independently validate their performance.
Diagnostic lessons
This history of TB diagnostics research holds a number of lessons. The first is that it is not
enough to support R&D indirectly: companies have little incentive to invest the estimated
additional $5-20 million needed to conduct adaptation or development work and, in the
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Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
continued absence of such incentives, will not do so. Secondly, diagnostic development is
increasingly the province of smaller companies and biotechs. Incentives targeted towards
these companies will need to differ in size and scope from the incentives needed to stimulate
multinational pharmaceutical companies. And, finally, the plethora of small companies,
each promoting their own technology, can make it difficult for funders (or indeed
purchasers) to determine where best to invest their funds. (For suggested solutions, see R&D
Gaps, below.)
Drugs
A review of TB drug development needs to look at both industry and public/not-for-profit
groups, since the balance of activity between these has changed dramatically.
Industry
All our current TB drugs were developed between 1940 and 1970, but there has since been a
marked downturn in industry interest. Only three of the world’s Top 20 drug companies
conduct any TB drug research or screen new compounds for anti-TB activity. And only one
of these companies conducts TB research as part of its mainstream R&D activities, rather
than as free-standing, smaller-scale research which tends to fall under the “corporate social
responsibility” umbrella. d31 These three companies (all European) are GSK, Novartis and
Astra-Zeneca.
The chief disincentive to TB drug research by the multinational
pharmaceutical industry is the lack of a sufficiently large commercial market for the final
product. While global sales of TB drugs are potentially large (estimated at $450 million in
2000, expanding to $640 million in 2010), the key driver of commercial R&D investment is the
private sector market in developed economies: for TB, this is estimated at only $113 million
globally per year. 32
Although the major pharmaceutical industry has not developed any novel TB drugs in the
past 30 years, they have produced two groups of drugs relevant to TB. The first consists of
four drugs based on the rifamycins (discovered in the 1960s) and developed specifically to
treat mycobacterial infections (M. tuberculosis and M. avium). All four of these were
supported with US Orphan Drug funding although none are suitable for routine use in TBendemic settings for the reasons noted in Table 2.e Nevertheless, further development of one
of these new drugs, rifapentin, may allow the frequency of drug administration, and
therefore observation, to be reduced from daily to weekly or even fortnightly.
In 2001, this was reported as five companies, however mergers have since reduced this to three companies.
Orphan legislation has existed in the U.S. since 1982 and in the E.U. since 2000. Neither the US nor EU
legislation mention neglected developing country diseases as a target, although the US later specifically noted
these in the Pharmaceutical Exports Amendment Act (1986) to their Orphan Drug legislation. It is worth noting
that, while neglected diseases are theoretically covered by the EU legislation, since even a few cases in the EC
would qualify as a disease with prevalence less than 5 per 10,000, the original suggestion to explicitly include
neglected developing country diseases in the legislation was blocked by EC Commissioner Bangemann.
d
e
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Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Table 2: TB drugs developed by pharmaceutical industry 1980-200033
Drug
Efficacy, safety, therapeutic benefit
Rifater
(Rifampicin, INH
Pyrazinamide
(120/ 50/ 300)
Rifadin iv
(Rifampicin iv)
Combination of 3 old drugs (1952, 1965, 1970)
Dosages do not comply with new WHO guidelines
(150/75/400)
WHO does not recommend use of 3-FDCs
Intravenous form of old drug (1960’s)
Oral treatment preferential, but useful in some
circumstances
Priftin
(Rifapentin)
Developed for AIDS opportunistic infection (M.avium
complex)
Used for once-weekly continuation phase TB treatment in
some Western settings, where HIV can be excluded.
Not suitable for HIV-TB co-infected patients in current
dosage..
Prevention and treatment of AIDS opportunistic infection
(M. avium complex)
Useful for TB treatment in HIV patients on ARV therapy
Very expensive
Mycobutin
(Rifabutin)
US Orphan Drug
support
Yes
1994
Hoechst
Marion
Roussel (EU)
Yes
1989
Hoechst
Marion
Roussel (EU)
Yes
1998
Hoechst
Marion
Roussel (EU)
Yes
1992
Adria Laboratories
(US)
A second promising group of drugs are broad-spectrum antibiotics developed by industry
for Western infectious disease indications, but which incidentally have anti-TB activity. The
fluoroquinolone family are particularly promising (e.g. moxifloxacin, gatifloxacin, ofloxacin),
with public research from as early as the 1980s suggesting that the addition or substitution of
fluoroquinolones in TB therapy could dramatically shorten treatment, from 6-8 months to
around 3 months.34 However, until recently, their potential for TB treatment was not further
explored nor were these patented drugs made available for large-scale public trials aimed at
a TB indication. Companies were apparently deterred from working on a TB indication for
these drugs (or assisting others to do so) because of the potential impact of a TB indication
on their sales as broad-spectrum antibiotics in the West.35 However one major company,
Bayer, recently moved forward on this and is now collaborating in publicly-driven TB trials
of their existing broad-spectrum antibiotic (moxifloxacin).
A further interesting area of industry activity is the foundation of specialised infectious
disease research institutes which include TB in their remit: the Novartis Institute for Tropical
Diseases in Singapore, launched in January 2003; GSK’s Tres Cantos research centre in Spain,
launched in 2003; and Astra-Zeneca’s infectious disease research centre in Bangalore, India,
launched June, 2003 (and which appears to have a more commercial focus). These institutes
are currently focussed on the early pre-clinical stages of R&D. For instance, GSK and AstraZeneca each has three projects in the early discovery stage; and Novartis has announced that
its Singapore Institute will cover pre-clinical stages only. Some of these groups have
intimated that they may seek public involvement, possibly through PPPs, to deliver a
finished anti-TB drug but, whichever is the case, their work will play a critical role in
priming the drug pipeline.
Given their small market share, smaller biotech companies currently play a relatively more
active role in TB drug development (as opposed to drug discovery). For instance, a 2003
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Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
review showed that 4 of the 5 companies currently collaborating on, providing or developing
TB lead compounds are biotechs: ActivBiotics, FasGen, Chiron and Sequella Inc., all USbased (See Table 3). Small contract research organisations (CROs) are also the main supplier
of outsourced R&D services for the major drug development PPP, the TB Alliance. 36
Public and not-for-profit Private Sectors
The bulk of TB drug development is now being done in the public sector and by the TB
Alliance. Collectively, this R&D ranges from basic research through to the development of
new TB drugs, including novel compounds and adapted existing antibiotics. (See Current
Pipeline for full details.)
Basic research
Basic research led to the 1998 decoding of the TB genome by the Wellcome Sanger Institute;
while the TB Structural Genomics Consortium (over 70 laboratories in 12 countries) (See
annex 6.8.4) is now identifying and placing in the public domain, the genes involved in TB
persistence, virulence and reactivation; and the 3-D structure of their corresponding TB
proteins. This work has been a major breakthrough and is a first step towards identifying
new TB drug and vaccine targets.
Novel drugs
Novel drugs offer the best hope for improved TB treatment, since they are likely to be potent
against MDR-TB as well as drug-sensitive strains and latent TB. A significant contributor to
novel TB drug development is the TB Alliance, the sole PPP working in this area. The TB
Alliance, launched in 2001, has a portfolio of 10 anti-TB compounds or groups, including PA824, licenced from a US biotech and considered to be a promising TB compound because of
its high bactericidal and sterilising activity.37 Two of the TB Alliance’s drug development
projects are industry collaborations (rifalazil analogues with a US biotech firm, and pyrroles
with an Indian generic company); while the remaining nine are collaborations with academic
or public institutions (six of these are U.S. based). As of mid-2004, the TB Alliance had no
major industry partners, although we believe discussions are ongoing.f
Three smaller groups are also working on TB drugs (these projects include variations on
existing drugs in distinction to novel compounds), however their efforts are focussed on
development of a single drug or compound group held by an individual company, rather
than being a broad-ranging portfolio approach aimed at identifying optimal drug leads.
Two of these projects involve US biotech companies (Sequella Inc and FasGen, supported by
the NIAID); while the third involves a major pharmaceutical company (development of
thiolactomycin analogues by GSK, NIAID and St Judes).
Adapted existing antibiotics
The second main area of drug development involves trialling antibiotics already on the
market, for a new TB indication. If successful, these drugs could be available relatively
quickly, since they already exist as finished drugs; but, unlike novel TB drugs, they have the
drawback of being potentially unusable against MDR-TB due to cross-resistance engendered
Although not formal partners, GSH has seconded a senior scientist to the TB Alliance and BMS has donated
$150,000 to the Alliance’s work.
f
6.8-13
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
through previous widespread use for non-TB indications.38 The two most promising classes
of drugs are the fluoroquinolones and longer-acting rifamycins (as noted above). If current
large-scale clinical trials of these drugs substantiate early promising results, we may be able
to reduce TB treatment in non-MDR settings to 3 months with 6-12 observations – as
opposed to the current regimen of 6-8 months treatment with up to 80-100 observed doses.
Despite evidence as early as the 1980s that these classes of antibiotics had potential for TB
therapy, there was little progress due to both public inertia, based on the expectation that
older TB drugs would suffice, and on the need for lengthy and sometimes unproductive
negotiations with patent holders for access to drugs for clinical trials.g Since 2003, however,
there has been an unprecedented increase in activity, with an October 2003 review showing
13 trials (including 5 Phase III trials) to assess the potential of fluroquinolones and longeracting rifamycins for first-line TB treatment. (See Table 3 Matrix.) The majority of these are
being conducted by U.S. public health institutions, in particular the CDC and NIAID,
although the EC and WHO/TDR are involved in at least one larger-scale trial. Developing
country capacity to undertake these trials, including of novel drugs, is assisted by the preexistence of good DOTS delivery and recording systems. However, although trial capacity
in TB-endemic settings is being rapidly built up (see p.13), it is still below the standard
needed.
Lack of funds has also been cited as one reason for delays in trialling « off the shelf » drugs, even though such
trials are relatively cheap and the savings for developing countries are potentially substantial (trials of new drugs
are estimated at $1.6-3 million for Phase II, and $8-22 million for phase III, depending on whether they are
conducted in developed or developing countries.) g
g
6.8-14
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Table 3 TB DRUG DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY MATRIX (Stop TB overview as of October 2003)
Basic Research
Discovery
Lead
Identification
Pyridones and
Quinolizines
TB
Alliance/KRIC
T/Yonsei
Lead Optimization
Preclinical
Clinical Trials
Regulatory
Inorganic Iron
Compounds as TB
Agents
UFRGS
Enoyl-ACPReductase
(InhA) Inhibitors
GSK(DDW)/TA
M
PA-647/PA-822
TB Alliance/NIAID
PA-824-Preclinical
Development
NIAID(DAIDS)/JHU/T
B Alliance and Others
Moxifloxacin-Phase 2
Randomized MoxiContaining Regimen for
Smear+TB (II)
JHU/FURDJ/FDA
Ofloxacin--OFLOTUB
Comparative studies of
OFL, MXF, GFL 4 mo vs. 6
mo
St.
George's/EC/TDR/WHO
Shikimate Pathway
Enzymes As Targets
For Anti-TB Agents
Development
UFRGS
Isocitrate Lyase
(LCL) Inhibitors
GSK(DDW)
Ascididemin
Compounds
AUCKU/TB
Alliance
Thiolactomycin Analogs
NIAID(TBRS)/GSK/St.
Jude
PA-824--Confirmatory
Assessment of the AntiTB Activity
of PA-824 in Mice
JHU/TB
Alliance/NJMRC
Antimicrobials
GSK(DDW)
Third
Generation
Macrolides
UILL/TB
Alliance
KRQ-10018
TB
Alliance/KRICT/Yonsei
Moxifloxacin--Shortening
with
MXF II
JHU/CDC/NJMRC/Bay
er
Rifapentine
(INH/RIF/EMB/PZA)- 4
mos vs. 6 mos in HIVnon-infected adults who
are sputum neg. after first
2 mos TB treatment
DMID 01-009 (III)
DMID/NIAID/NIH
(TBRU)
Rifapentine-Randomized
Weekly RIF/INH for 3
Months vs. 2x Weekly
RIF/PZA for 2 Months
(III) JHU/UCFF
Target Identification
and Validation
NHLS/WITS/GSK/
UW/UBC/
Harvard/LSHTM
6.8-14
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Basic Research
Discovery
Mechanisms of DNA
Metabolism in
Mycobacteria
NHLS/WITS/NIAI
D/RVC
Development of in
vitro test for
sterilizing activity
St. George's
Studies on Drug
Tolerance
St. George's
40 Grants in Target
Identification and
Assay Development
NIAID
Lead
Identification
Lead Optimization
Preclinical
Clinical Trials
Sigma70identifying
transcription
inhibitors
ASTRA
PA 20013
NIAID/JHU/FasGen,
Inc.
Moxifloxacin--Preventive
Therapy
of LTBI with
MXF in the MDR Era
JHU/CDC/NJMRC/Bay
er
Rifapentine-RPT/INH-3,
INH/RIF-3, Continuous
INH,Novel TB
Prevention Regimens for
HIV+ Adults (III)
JHU/WITS/NIAID(DAI
DS)
Methyl
Erythritol
Pathway
inhibitors (end
product,
isprenoids)
ASTRA
DNA Synthesis
Inhibitors
ASTRA
Ethambutol AnalogsSecond Generation
Ethambutol Antibiotics
NIAID(DMID)/Sequella
, Inc.
Gatifloxacin- Highly
Active Quinolones for
Treatment of MDRTB
(Gatifloxacin with
Ethionamide)
CNYRC/BMS
Rifapentine (II) Dose
Escalation Study
CDC-TBTC
MJH 98-I-81 & Analogs
(Isoniazid Compounds)
TB
Alliance/Wellesley/CN
YRC
LL-3858 (Pyrroles)
Lupin(TB Alliance)
Rifapentine for Latent
TB Infection
CDC-TBTC
Rifalazil Analogs
ActivBiotics(TB
Alliance)
Rifapentine RIF/INH
efficacy of once weekly
(III)
CDC-TBTC
6.8-15
Regulatory
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Basic Research
The Regulation of
Dormancy in M.
Tuberculosis
NHLS/WITS/UPEN
N/NIAID/
PHRI/ROCK
Discovery
Lead
Identification
Lead Optimization
Preclinical
Clinical Trials
Nitroimidazooxazines
Analogs
NIAID(TBRS)/TB
Alliance
Rifabutin-safety and
efficacy of short course in
HIV+ (II)
CDC-TBTC
Anti-Persister TB Drugs
St. George's
Capreomycin-Aerosol
Capreomycin (I)
TBRS/NIAID/Masan/Yo
nsei
EBA of Moxifloxacin,
Gatifloxacin,
Levofloxacin,
Levofloxacin,
Lindezolid (I)
NIAID(DMID)/TBRU
Isoniazid ResistanceIntermittent ShortCourse Therapy
CDC-TBTC
6.8-16
Regulatory
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
ACRONYMS
EMB-ethambutol FQ-flouroquinolone
rifapentine RMP-rifampicin
AUCKU-Auckland
ASTRA--AZIPL
University
AstraZeneca
R&D India
INH-isoniazid
MXF-moxifloxacin
BMS-BristolMyers Squibb
BTRU-Brazilian
Tuberculosis
Research Unit
DHHS-U.S.
Department of
Health
and
Human
Services
LSHT-London
School
of
Hygiene
and
Tropical
Medicine
RTI-Research
Triangle
Institute
CNYRC-Central New
York
Research
Corporation
CSU-Colorado
State University
CORU-Cornell
University
IUATLDInternational Union
Against Tuberculosis
and Lung Disease
JHU-Johns
Hopkins
University
KRICT-Korea
Research Institute
of
Chemical
Technology
NIH-National
Institutes of Health
NJMRC-National
Jewish Medical
and
Research
Center
SRI-Southern
Research Institute
PHRI-Public
Health Research
Institute
UPENNUniversity
Pennsylvania
WellesleyWellesley College
SKMOH-South
Korean Ministry of
Health
UFRGS-Federal
University of the Rio
Grande Do Sul
of
TAM-Texas
A&M University
TB
AllianceGlobal Alliance
for TB Drug
Development
WITSUniversity of
Witwatersrand
OFL-ofloxacin PZA-pyrazinamide
RIF-
CWRU(TBRU)Case Western
Reserve
University
Tuberculosis
Research Unit
DMID-Division
of
Microbiology
and Infectious
Diseases
Masan-Masan
National
TB
Hospital
CDC-Centers
Disease Control
Prevention
for
and
ROCKRockefeller
University
RVC-Royal Veterinary
College
St.
George'sSt.George's
Medical School
TBRSTuberculosis
Research
Section
Yonsei-Yonsei
University
Medical School
TDR/WHO-Special
Programme
for
Research and Training
in Tropical Disease
UBCUniversity
British
Columbia
6.8-17
FUR-TD-TBRU-Federal
University of Rio de
Janeiro-Thorax
Institute-Tuberculosis
Research Unit
NHDP-National
Hansen's
Disease
Program
CDC(TBRU)Centers
for
Disease Control
and Prevention
Tuberculosis
Research Unit
FDA--U.S.
Food and Drug
Administration
CDC-TBTCCenters
for
Disease Control
and Prevention
TB
Trials
Consortium
GSK-GlaxoSmithKline
NHLS-National
Health
Laboratory
Service
NIAID-National
Institute
of
Allergy
and
Infectious
Diseases
St. Jude-St. Jude
Children's
Hospital
of
UILL-University
of Illinois
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Drug development lessons
The most striking lesson to be derived from this review of drug R&D is that the normal
mechanisms to supply new pharmaceutical tools simply do not apply. In particular, the
multinational pharmaceutical industry (with the notable exception of the three EU-based
companies noted above) no longer plays a lead role in TB drug development. TB drug
development by most multinational companies was minimal during the 1980s and 1990s and
tended to focus on Western niche markets (e.g. drugs for HIV-TB co-infected patients on
antiretroviral therapies); large companies tend not to develop potential TB compounds in
their libraries; and they can be slow in providing access to existing antibiotics of potential TB
interest. The few multinational pharmaceutical companies who do show interest (all
European-based) are working in early pipeline areas – including the important discovery
area - and some have indicated that they will seek public partnership to move compounds
forward.
Instead, R&D of novel TB drugs, including for MDR-TB, is increasingly the province of
publicly-driven groups. For instance, a Stop TB review of known TB drug development (as
opposed to discovery) projects underway at the end of 2003, showed that the majority (22)
were being conducted without any industry collaboration. Likewise, just over half of the
compounds being developed into new TB drugs derived from the public and academic
sectors rather than from industry.h
Commercial development of TB tools, where it exists, also tends to be within small biotech
companies rather than large multinational pharmaceutical firms (MNPs), this holding true
for both drug and diagnostic development. The predominance of biotechs reflects two
factors that are not present for MNPs: biotechs do not systematically shy away from smallerscale markets, with several companies continuing to work on these “niche” diseases; and
biotechs invariably need external funding partners, such as PPPs, to move their compounds
along the pipeline.
An unexpected but useful flow-on from this “new world” of TB drug development, is that
many compounds that had previously languished on the shelves of biotech companies and
academic research institutes – a significant waste of both public and private capital – are now
being developed into useful new TB drugs and diagnostics. A less positive outcome is that
the substantial capacity of most multinational pharmaceutical companies is longer turned
towards TB drugs, which cannot compete with Western commercial sales.
Vaccines
The only TB vaccine, bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG), was developed over 80 years ago. Its
protective effect is limited and geographically variable, with studies showing a zero
protective effect in India, ranging up to a 77% protective effect in the U.K.39
MNPs were active in only one of the fifteen novel TB drug development projects listed, compared to the biotech
industry which was providing lead compounds or participation in four projects.
h
6.8-18
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Research into new TB vaccines has increased substantially since the early 1990’s – indeed,
more than 170 TB vaccine candidates have been screened in animal models since 1997. These
candidates fall into five main groups:
 Sub-unit vaccines (nearly half of all vaccine candidates), which include one or more
mycobacterial components believed to induce protective immunity;
 Naked DNA vaccines, consisting of DNA encoding protective antigens plus various
adjuvants;
 Live attenuated mycobacteria vaccines (including recombinant BCGs, attenuated
strains of M.tuberculosis, and non-pathogenic mycobacteria such as M.smegmatis);
 Live attenuated non-mycobacterial vaccines, such as Salmonella or vaccinia virus;
 Improved BCG (prime booster) vaccines, which combine BCG with a novel candidate
for improved efficacy.
However, our incomplete scientific understanding of disease models of latency and
persistence, or of the human immune response to M. tuberculosis, means that development
of these new vaccines has been largely empirical, with current candidates representing
virtually all known technological approaches to immunisation. The vast majority are also
still in the laboratory modelling stage, with only three candidates in Phase I trials (20-50
human subjects). Large clinical trials of these vaccines also pose major problems given the
current state of scientific and technical knowledge (see “Opportunities” section below).
TB vaccine research is chiefly being conducted in the public sector and through PublicPrivate Partnerships (PPPs). The main players are:
 The Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation (formerly known as the Sequella Global
Tuberculosis Foundation), a PPP founded in 1997 (US-based);
 The European Commission TB Vaccine Cluster (TBVac). TBVac is a consortium of
academic and industry TB vaccine researchers, coordinated from the Institut Pasteur,
and composed of 36 academic research groups from 12 EU countries, and two major
pharmaceutical companies (GSK and Aventis). (See Annex 6.8.6 for full list);
 The Infectious Disease Research Institute, a PPP founded in 1993 (US-based);
 Several mid-size biotech companies who are developing TB vaccine candidates or
technologies, often in conjunction with PPPs e.g. InterCell Corporation (Austria); and
Corixa Corporation, Sequella Inc. and EpiVax Inc. (all US-based);
 Several major pharmaceutical companies, including GSK-Biologicals, Aventis and
possibly Astra-Zeneca (all EU-based) who continue to work in the field of vaccines
generally. The NIAID notes that major industry research is “relatively low level but
steady”, although it can nevertheless play an important role.40
 A multitude of academic researchers funded through public research grants.
Vaccine lessons
The upsurge in R&D into TB vaccines over the last decade has been made possible by recent
advances in basic TB science, in particular sequencing of the TB and related genomes;
development of new techniques for molecular manipulation of mycobacterial genomes; and
progress in our general understanding of TB and its biochemistry, biology and disease
mechanisms. These advances were, in turn, made possible through substantial increases in
public and not-for-profit funding for TB research since the early 1990s. For instance, the US
increased its TB research funding from $3.6 million in 1991 to around $60 million in 2001,
6.8-19
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
and the Wellcome Trust funded public discovery of the TB genome.41 Progress in the more
general field of vaccinology, including by industry, has also been an important stimulus e.g.
the use of DNA immunisation and adjuvant technologies.
A second, and related, lesson is that our current state of scientific understanding and
technical tools, while improved, is still insufficient to support rational, targeted TB vaccine
development. The current plethora of empirical vaccine candidates stems not from a
richness of proven opportunities, but rather from a lack of certainty as to where R&D efforts
are best focussed. Finally, the difficulty and expense of vaccine development suggests future
advances will continue to be through public-private collaborations, with no single group
having sufficient resources to bring a TB vaccine to completion alone.
Existing Resource Flows for TB R&D
Basic research
Most Western donors provide grants for TB basic research to academic and public health
institutions. Total TB research funding (public and not-for-profit) is estimated by the
WHO/TDR at approximately $125 million per year in 2000.42 As noted above, the US
National Institutes of Health (NIH) are by far the largest investors, providing around half to
two-thirds of funding in most years. The US Centers for Disease Control, and Wellcome
Trust have also been major funders. The EC has been a more modest investor, providing
Euro 28 million over 4 years for TB research under the Fifth Framework Programme
(approximately $8.5 million per year at March 2004 conversion rates). An unspecified
proportion of this goes to basic research (including structural and functional genomics,
molecular epidemiology of MDR strains in Europe, and studies of the development of drug
resistance).43 (See Annex 6.8.8)
Diagnostics
Development of new TB diagnostic tools was supported by a 2001 grant of $10 million over 5
years from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to the TB Diagnostic Initiative within
WHO/TDR. This was boosted in 2003 by a $30 million grant, also from the Gates Foundation,
to set up FIND. The EC’s Fifth Framework programme provided Euro 13 million for drug
and diagnostic R&D (the diagnostic proportion is not known), and the NIH also offers
relatively small amounts (for example, approximately 0.6 million through Small Business
Innovative Research Awards from 2002-2004). Expenditure by companies is unknown.
Drugs
Resources for TB drug development come from 3 sources: industry investment, PPPs and
public investment. Although the three industry TB research institutes account for a relatively
small proportion of the pharmaceutical industry’s current $40 billion annual spend on new
drug research, they nevertheless represent a substantial contribution to global TB drug R&D.
Astra-Zeneca invested $10 million to set up its 70-person Research Institute in India, with a
$5 million R&D budget for 2001; Novartis and the Singapore Government are jointly funding
the 70-person Novartis Singapore Institute with $25 million/year for 5 years (their respective
contributions are unknown); and TB-dedicated resources at GSK’s Tres Cantos centre are
unknown.44
6.8-20
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Funding for Public-Private Partnerships is surprisingly small given their leading role in TB
drug development. The only PPP for TB drug development - the TB Alliance- has raised $42
million since 2001, the bulk of this from the Rockefeller Foundation ($15 million pledged)
and Gates Foundation ( $25 million grant). This sums are insufficient to finalise development
of the TB Alliance’s most promising lead compound, let alone other compounds in its
portfolio.
Public investment in TB drug development takes a number of forms. Both EU governments
and the US offer a wide range of general R&D incentives to the pharmaceutical industry
including research subsidies, tax breaks and Orphan Drug market exclusivity. For instance,
the UK instituted a 150% tax break for neglected disease research in 2002, and U.S. Orphan
Drug incentives (commenced in 1982) supported development of the industry TB drugs
noted above. The total costs of these financial incentives for industry are unknown, although
thought to be substantial, nor do we know the proportion devoted to TB. The U.S. also offers
in-kind support to industry (see the TAACF below).
However, direct public investment in novel TB drug development is far more limited. The
TB Alliance has received only one government grant (Euro 2 million from the Netherlands
Gov’t) to develop its current portfolio of ten compounds; and the GSK-NIH-St. Jude’s project
received a 3-year NIH Challenge Grant of $1.2 million with a matching contribution from
GSK to develop thiolactomycin. Resources for the remaining two biotech projects are
unknown, although the NIAID provides support to both. The EC Fifth Framework
Programme provided Euro 13 million over 4 years for TB drug and diagnostic R&D,
including for basic research and epidemiology, with an unknown proportion going to drug
development.
The US also provides in-direct support in the form of in-kind contributions to TB drug
development. This is in the form of access to the NIH network of contract research
organisations and grantees (the TB Alliance estimates this contribution at equivalent to $1.5
million); as well as access to NIH in-house research capacity, in particular the important
services of the TB Antimicrobial Acquisition and Coordinating Facility (see boxed text).
6.8-21
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
The Tuberculosis Antimicrobial Acquisition and Coordinating Facility (TAACF)
The TAACF was established by the NIAID in 1994 to encourage and support academic researchers
and pharmaceutical companies to re-enter the area of TB drug development. TAACF services are free
to researchers anywhere in the world, including PPPs, industry and academic researchers; and data
are kept confidential in order to protect the user’s intellectual property (IP). The overall service is
managed by the Southern Research Institute (SRI), with individual services provided at five US-based
centres, as below:
High-throughput screening (HTS) of large compound libraries – in particular industry compound
libraries - against validated TB targets. HTS has been provided by the SRI since 2001/2002. The SRI
and collaborating institutions (e.g. Texas A&M University) also develop, validate and optimise target
assays against which screening can be conducted.
In vitro screening of promising individual compounds or compound groups, performed by the
National Hansen’s Disease Program in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. This step is readily available to public
researchers, who generally have the capacity to produce the small amounts of compound needed
(usually between 1-7mg). In vitro screening is, however, slower and far more labour intensive than
HTS, although this can be improved by robotisation of some steps. Compounds that pass all screens
successfully are then referred for in vivo testing. TAACF data show that of more than 50,000
compounds screened, over 500 were successful « hits » and approximately 200 had sufficient in vitro
potency and selectivity to warrant further testing as compounds with promising anti-TB activity.
In vivo screening of compounds that have shown in vitro activity is performed by Colorado State
University. Promising compounds are tested for their capacity to inhibit the growth of TB in an
aerosol mouse model, using genetically modified mice that can deliver results in one month instead of
the usual three.
Medicinal chemistry and structural analysis services are also offered by the TAACF. These allow
promising groups of screened compounds to be narrowed down to the most active compound
structures within the group – the first step to identifying a drug lead.
Technology transfer support is managed by the Research Triangle Institute (RTI). If the submitting
group is interested, the RTI can help find partners and funding opportunities.to further develop
promising anti-TB compounds identified by TAACF screening.
6.8-22
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Discussion
The TAACF is funded at around $2 million per year for all five facilities, and has now identified over
500 possible anti-TB compounds or « hits » from over 400 suppliers worldwide. This service has been
invaluable, however the TAACF still faces challenges.
To date, no large companies have used the TAACF’s High-Throughput Screening service (although it
has also not been heavily marketed), apparently due to industry’s preference for keeping intellectual
property in-house. In response, the TAACF have sought to purchase compound libraries, but note
that this is very expensive, costing around $100,000 for a 100,000 compound library, plus an estimated
additional $100,000 to put these through HTS. They are not currently budgeted to this level. An
alternative approach suggested by TAACF staff might be to transfer TAACF-developed assays to
industry, who could then conduct in-house screening. This approach would protect their proprietary
knowledge – but industry would also have no obligation to divulge promising results (or negative
results), or to conduct further drug development on any promising compounds discovered.
In vitro screening has been popular, as witnessed by the figures above. The majority of users are
academic groups (75%), with a further 10% of compounds coming from small companies such as
biotechs. Only around 3% of compounds have been submitted by large drug companies, and often in
response to a specific request by the TAACF (for instance, due to the TAACF following up an
interesting literature report on a company-held compound). Industry are apparently reluctant to
submit compounds since this would require them to reveal compound structures to the TAACF (the
TAACF in turn requires structure disclosure as a precaution against patent infringement claims later
in the day). A possible approach would be for the TAACF to conduct screens blind, however they
would have no way of knowing which compounds were promising, or whether hits were being
pursued.
Many academic groups are unable to progress compounds past the in vitro stage, since they lack the
capacity to scale-up production to the quantities needed for in vivo testing (up to 1gm of compound is
needed), and are unable to produce the large numbers of analogues used for secondary screening of a
promising compound or group. The TAACF has suggested that this could be overcome by providing
government-subsidised access to Contract Research Organisations (CROs) who could provide these
skills: these contracts could be extremely valuable to CROs. Finally, the TAACF’s medicinal
chemistry services are warmly welcomed by non-industry groups but less relevant to industry which
has superior experience in this area.
The two most significant challenges identified by the TAACF were the inability to share information
on promising « hits » with other researchers, since the TAACF is bound by confidentiality agreements;
and the lack of any follow-on mechanism to ensure that promising hits are followed up by either
academia or industry. Although some academic groups will publish their results, most have neither
the incentives nor financial support to carry research forward into drug development. Likewise, our
current system actively incentivises industry to keep information (either positive or negative) in house
and, as noted above, does not highly reward investment in further TB drug development. Even if
participants were willing to follow up all promising « hits », there is a further obstacle: no one is
currently funded to do this work. While the TB Alliance certainly has the scientific expertise to
identify the most promising « hits », its current under-resourcing means it lacks the capacity to
include many additional early stage compounds in its portfolio.
These latter obstacles are less easily overcome, since they hinge on the management of intellectual
property.
Solutions under consideration include a substantial incentive package for large
pharmaceutical companies who have little to gain from a TB drug, but fear the loss of IP. Likewise,
improved incentives to encourage academic researchers to relinquish or share IP would be valuable –
and possibly less expensive.
6.8-23
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Finally, governments provide indirect assistance through supporting clinical trials and
building clinical trial capacity. This support is more evenly balanced between the EU and
US, in particular since the launch of the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials
Partnership (EDCTP). Major groups now supporting TB trials include the CDC and NIH
(e.g. through the NIAID, TBTC and TBRU); the International Union Against TB and Lung
Disease; the EDCTP; and WHO/TDR, although the latter is constrained by resources. The
EDCTP budget is EUR 600 million over 5 years for AIDS, TB and malaria; while the TDR’s
budget is around $30 million/year for both drug development and research capacity building
for all ten diseases in its portfolio.45
Vaccines
Global investment in TB vaccine R&D was estimated at around $80 million per year in 2003,
a figure which was dramatically increased by a recent large grant from the Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation (see below).46
The EC Fifth Framework programme allocated Euro 15 million (just under Euro 4 million per
year) to vaccine research, chiefly through the EC TB Vaccine Cluster (TBVac). In addition,
the EU is funding research into alternative vaccine delivery mechanisms (2 projects), and
conducting early work to set up vaccine clinical trial sites in Africa (2 projects). The EDCTP
also offers funding support at the Phase II and Phase III stages of clinical trials.
The largest public supporter of TB vaccine research is, however, the U.S., in particular the
NIAID, which provides:
 Academic grants for TB vaccine research (basic research and vaccine candidates)
 The TB Research Materials and Vaccine Testing contract, which provides:
o high quality TB research reagents to investigators throughout the world.
(One of the obstacles to TB vaccine research is the lack of quality reagents
from the contagious and technically difficult TB mycobacterium.);
o screening of TB vaccine candidates (over 170 candidates already screened);
 The TB Research Unit (TBRU) supports an international collaboration of scientists
working on immunological markers of infection; surrogate markers for vaccine trials;
and clinical trial capacity building;
 Infrastructure for Phase 1 and 2 human trials is made available to industry and public
researchers (via the TBRU and the Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Units; as well
as the CDC’s TB Trials Consortium).
Further U.S. support is provided through:
 The CDC (as above);
 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which will assist manufacturers in
developing and licencing any new TB vaccines.
Private not-for-profit groups are increasingly major funders of TB vaccine research,
including:
 The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, who donated just under $83 million to the
Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation in February 2004.
 Infectious Disease Research Institute (budget unknown)
6.8-24
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Resource flow lessons
This review of resource flows holds a number of lessons. The first is that government
funding at the basic and clinical trial stages is relatively well-developed, and increasingly
shared between the EU and U.S., but that funding for development of new TB tools –
especially drugs and diagnostics - is, to be honest, a bit of a mess.
Government financial incentives that do exist are largely aimed at and designed for the
wrong target i.e. in-house R&D by multinational pharmaceutical companies (MNPs).
However, the majority of MNPs no longer have scientific expertise in TB and have expressed
a clear disinterest for working in this field; while those who are involved, have mostly
shown a preference for working through PPPs or in public collaborations rather than
developing drugs entirely in-house. Industry financial incentives are also poorly designed
for the smaller biotechs, medical technology firms and Contract Research Organisations
(CROs) who are now the main industry players in TB research: for instance, tax breaks are of
little or no interest to companies with negative or small profits; and market exclusivity and
patent extensions are of limited relevance to one-product companies.
There is also a striking lack of public funding for the groups who driving development of
novel TB tools, in particular the TB Alliance, which dominates the field. Indeed, current TB
drug development – vital if we are to control TB and MDR-TB - is resting on the shaky
foundation of two philanthropic donations and a handful of in-kind support from the U.S.. .
A second major lesson is that the EU does not appear to have positioned itself strategically in
terms of new TB tools, leaving the U.S. to play a dominant role. For instance, the EU
provides less than 5% of the funding dedicated to TB drug development projects and, unlike
the U.S., offers neither in-kind nor infrastructural support for most stages of drug
development. No EU academic groups, public health institutes or biotech companies
collaborate in TB Alliance projects, although a small number of EU institutions are members
of the TB Alliance’s expert advisory groups (See Annex 6.8.7 for list). The bulk of funding
for new TB tools comes from U.S. philanthropists; and drug development is dominated by
U.S. research institutions (7 of 11 projects) and biotechs (all U.S. based). Trials to adapt
existing antibiotics for TB are also dominated by U.S. institutions, which were conducting 12
of the 13 projects identified by Stop TB as of end 2003. (See Table 3 for full details.)
What is the Current Pipeline?
TB Diagnostics
As noted above, there is a reasonably high level of activity in TB diagnostics, with new tests
at every stage of the R&D pipeline from proof of principle through to Phase III trials.
Although currently too expensive and technically difficult for resource-poor TB settings,
many tests have potential for such use, if adapted. Diagnostics of particular interest include:
a) Rapid culture and DST systems (rapid detection of organisms and drug resistance)
 Oxygen quenching MGIT (Becton Dickinson, USA)
 Colorimetric liquid culture (Biotest, Germany)
 Nitrase reduction assays (Sweden, Russia)
 Colorimetric solid culture (TK medium, Turkey)
6.8-25
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
b) Culture surrogates (for case detection and drug resistance)
 Phage amplification: FastPlaque (Biotec, UK)
 Luciferase reporter-phages (Sequella Inc, USA)
c) Molecular methods (nucleic acid amplification for the detection of TB organaisms or for
rapid detection of rifampin resistance)
 Inno-LIPA (Innogenetics, Belgium)
 PCR (Roche, Switzerland)
 SDA (Becton Dickinson, USA)
 BioChip (Englehardt, Russia)
 TMA (GenProbe, USA)
d) Tests detecting antigen or volatile gases. This work is at an earlier stage, just short of
proof of principle and, although technically challenging, is considered promising.
 Blood based tests to detect TB antigens (KIT, Netherlands; Univ. Bergen, Norway;
Lionex Diagnostics GBH, Germany; Pasteur, Madagascar)
 “Electronic noses” to detect antigens in breath (KIT, Netherlands; Cranfield
University, UK).
e) Tests for latent TB infection, capable of distinguishing it from prior BCG vaccination or
infection with non-tuberculous species of mycobacteria.
 Whole blood IFN ELISPOT (Oxford Immunotec, UK)
f) Laboratory free tests for active infection using transient cellular immunity
 Skin patch test using MPT64 (Sequella Inc., US), now in Phase II trials
TB Drugs
As seen from the Matrix below, all stages of the TB drug pipeline are thin. The discovery
and lead identification stages, which provide new compounds to enter the TB pipeline, have
only a handful of projects; and the few compounds that are in development tend to be at the
earliest pre-clinical stages. This means we cannot expect a novel TB drug, active against
both MDR-TB and drug-sensitive TB, until at least 2010.
From a first glance at this matrix, the late pipeline appears to be relatively full, however it
should be noted that these products are existing antibiotics in clinical trials for a new TB
indication, rather than genuinely novel anti-TB drugs. The final products will therefore
probably be unsuitable for MDR-TB use, although they are promising in terms of simplifying
and shortening non-MDR TB treatment, and may be available as early as 2007-2008. See
Table 3 matrix.
TB Vaccines
Development of new TB vaccines has reached an important turning point, with a decade of
experimental laboratory modelling now leading to entry of the first vaccine candidates into
clinical trials. If successful, delivery of a final vaccine will take at least 10 years (2014).
6.8-26
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Vaccine type
Recombinant MVA
vaccinia) Ag85A
Developer
(modified
Live attenuated recombinant BCG
rBCG30
Subunit vaccine/adjuvant (M72S)
(used as either a BCG booster or
an improved BCG)
Subunit vaccine/adjuvant
- ESAT-6 plus Ag85B
Multi-epitope
subunit
vaccine/adjuvant
Oxford University
Wellcome Trust (UK)
TBVac
Aeras Global TB Vaccine
Foundation
UCLA, U.S.
NIAID
NIAID
IDRI
Corixa
Corporation
Licenced to GSK
(Possible EDCTP and Aeras
interest in trials)
Staten
Serum
Institute
(Denmark)
InterCell Corporation
Aeras Foundation
Clinical trial stage
Phase I, in UK and Gambia
(commenced 2001)
Phase I
subjects)
clinical
trials
(30
Phase I
subjects)
clinical
trials
(20
Possibly Phase I in 2005
Uncertain progress:
probably be abandoned
will
Opportunities for Research into New Pharmaceutical Interventions
a)
What is the state-of-the-art science for TB – what opportunities does it offer?
The greatest opportunity – and one which is realistic and achievable – is to apply our
existing scientific and technological skills to develop families or groups of compounds or
technologies already known to have anti-TB potential, but which have not progressed due to
lack of political will and funding.47 (See Appendix 6.8.1) Seizing this opportunity alone
would deliver a broad range of new tools to address the growing threat of TB in Europe and
elsewhere. Three opportunities stand out:
 Completion of promising novel drugs already in the pipeline;
 Adaptation of existing TB diagnostics for use in resource-poor settings, including
tests for screening, diagnosis and MDR-TB detection ;
 Further investigation of compounds with promising anti-TB activity, and screening of
industry compound libraries to find remaining anti-TB compounds that have not
been examined and taken forward.
Scientific advances have also opened up a number of new opportunities, as listed below.
The most significant breakthrough has been the decoding of the TB genome and other
mycobacterial genomes, and follow-on work by the TB Structural Genomics Consortium to
identify the TB genes and associated proteins responsible for latency, persistence and
activation of TB (the first 40 proteins have already been elucidated).48 This work, once
completed, will be the first step towards rational design of new TB tools, rather than the
resource-intensive empirical approach currently used to develop new drugs and vaccines.
The development of TB fixed-dose combinations (FDCs), rather than single-drug
formulations, has also been a major therapeutic advance, in particular because of the role
FDCs play in reducing maladministration and consequent MDR-TB.
Key areas for further research include:
6.8-27
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Basic science49
 Improved understanding of how TB “works” in the human host, in particular disease
models of latency, persistence and re-activation;
 Improved understanding of the human immune response to M. tuberculosis,
including: the role of various T-cell populations; the molecular signals that activate
the protective immune response; and the TB antigens that induce human protective
immunity.
Diagnostics
 Increased discovery research into new diagnostic approaches
 Increased research into new delivery methods, for example the “electronic nose”
concept noted earlier.
Drugs
 Research to sift through TB target proteins (target validation), including those now
coming out of the TB Structural Genomics Consortium, in order to identify the most
promising targets for drug and vaccine development.50
 Development of surrogate markers that can act as early end-points for success or
failure during clinical drug trials (we now have to follow patients for 2-years to rule
out treatment failure). Use of surrogate markers would substantially reduce both the
cost and length of clinical trials, expediting the arrival of new drugs.51
 Aerosol drug delivery mechanisms that promise to rapidly debulk pulmonary TB
and to extend our range of treatments to drugs that cannot be administered orally
because of poor pharmacokinetics or side-effects of high system exposure. However,
work in this area is early, and use may be limited by the expense of delivery
devices.52
 Depot formulations of existing TB drugs, which offer the promise of once-monthly
administration instead of observed daily administration, delivering significant
benefits in terms of adherence, reduced creation of MDR-TB and lower TB
programme costs. Reports on depot preparations were published as early as 1966,
with follow-up studies by the University of Illinois showing that a single
subcutaneous polymer depot implant of INH and pyrazinamide delivered the same
therapeutic activity as daily administration over 8 weeks.5354 Industrial technologies
for depot preparations already exist (e.g. polymers or microspheres), as do the
component drugs, making this an interesting area for investigation.
 Slow-release oral formulations of existing TB drugs, which maintain plasma levels for
around 3 days, theoretically allowing twice-weekly dosage. Research in this area has
been conducted since 2001 by the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and
Research, Chandigarh, India. As with depot preparations, the technologies and
component drugs already exist, again making this a promising area for further
research.
 Development of further fixed-dose combinations, in particular combinations that
include second-line drugs and new drugs that come out of the development pipeline.
Vaccines55
 Development of surrogate markers of vaccine-induced immunity. In their absence,
clinical trials to establish immune status are likely to be very expensive, requiring
“long duration and/or enormous cohort sizes”, for instance patient follow-up would
need to be an estimated minimum 3-4 years post vaccination;56
6.8-28
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis




Lack of cheap, simple diagnostics to distinguish BCG-vaccinated patients from those
with latent or active TB. In their absence, “identification of the appropriate patient
population remains a challenge” – a huge obstacle to clinical trials – with diagnostics
being described as “essential tools for...clinical evaluation of candidate vaccines”;57
Improved vaccine adjuvants;
Improved animal models to better mimic the action of TB in humans (eg. persistence,
reactivation and the cross-effect of non-pathogenic and environmental bacteria, and
of prior BCG vaccination);
Identification of the optimal route for vaccination (nasal, oral, intradermal etc.)58
b)
What is the current status of institutions and human resources available to
address TB ?
Structural genomics
 The TB Structural Genomics Consortium, set up in 2000. The TBSGC is composed of
70 member laboratories in 12 countries around the world, supported by central
facilities at three U.S. sites. Just under a third of member institutes are located in EU
Member states. (See Annex 6.8.5 for full list).
Basic research
 Informal institutional support, funded through grants from national governments
and institutions, with the US being the predominant funder;
 The TB Alliance provides some assistance (e.g. through establishment of expert
working groups and seminars).59
TB diagnostics
 TDR (which plays a supportive role)
 FIND (PPP): active review and prioritisation of technologies and co-development of
new TB diagnostics with industry
 Neither of these addresses discovery research, which is largely being supported
(under-supported) through ad-hoc national research grants
 Limited NIH support
 Within the EU, there are 28 biotech companies, and at least 5 academic institutions
and 4 public institutes, working on TB diagnostics. (See Annex 6.8.6 for list.)
TB drugs
 The TB Alliance (PPP): active review of promising compounds and development of
new TB drugs
 Broad NIH support, including through the TAACF
 A list of EU-based academic institutions and industry groups working in this area is
attached at Annex 6.8.7
 There is limited institutional support for research into alternative drug delivery
mechanisms, which is largely conducted through ad-hoc national research grants,
including:
o Animal studies of aerosol rifampicin (academic groups in U.S., India and
UK);60 and a later stage human trial of aerosol capreomycin for MDR-TB
(NIAID/TBRS/Masan/ Yonsei: see Table 3);
o We are not aware of any formal institutional support for research into depot
or slow-release drug preparations, although industry (including small to midsize firms) is very active in the high-growth area of alternative delivery
6.8-29
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
technologies.i Two academic groups working in this area are the University
of Illinois (US) and the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and
Research, Chandigarh, India.

Target identification and validation research:
o Some institutional funding from NIAID (40 grants) See Table 3
Surrogate markers for drug and vaccine trials
 The NIAID provides some funding (e.g.TBRU-Case Western Reserve UniversityMakerere University Uganda project);
 GSK previously had a joint project with Stellenbosch University (South Africa) under
its Action TB initiative;
 Informal support for academic research, funded through grants from national
governments and institutions.
Vaccines
 Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation (PPP)
 The Infectious Disease Research Institute (PPP)
 The European Commission TB Vaccine Cluster (see Annex 6.8.6 for member list);
 Broad NIH support (see above)
 Adjuvant development is moderately well supported, with significant industry
activity (biotechs and major companies) and some public grants (e.g. NIAID);
 Alternative delivery models receive very little support, and mostly through ad-hoc
research grants (e.g. the EC funds 2 projects; NIH grant to Uni. North Carolina)
Are there research gaps that could be filled affordably, have a
significant impact and be achieved in a) 5 years or b) the longer term?
Which of these are pharmaceutical research gaps?
Investment into TB research offers two main opportunities: areas where relatively small
investments can deliver large returns; and areas where investment into a research gap or
bottleneck will deliver increased flows throughout the R&D pipeline. These are outlined
below.
Basic research
A shortlist of validated molecular targets would revolutionise TB drug development by
allowing industry to move towards rational drug design in addition to current methods (e.g.
methodical examination of compounds with known anti-TB activity). There have been
dramatic scientific steps in this direction, with the TB Structural Genomics Consortium now
examining the genetic basis of TB latency and persistence, and systematically publishing the
structure of TB proteins (some of which will be valuable drug targets). However, we will
A 2004 conference noted that drug delivery systems and emerging technologies accounted for $38 billion in
revenues in 2002, with expected growth of 28% per annum over the next 5 years. Conference Ref : Drug Delivery
Systems, Europe 2004 - Business Development, Emerging Technologies Novel and Niche Delivery Methods; 25th
& 26th February 2004, London. Accessed March 2004 at http://www.visiongain.com/b2b/Drug_delivery.htm
i
6.8-30
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
not be able to capitalise on these advances unless we increase our input in two areas: target
identification and validation; and further research into disease models of latency and
persistence.61
Target identification and validation is the process of sifting through TB proteins to identify
those most likely to be useful for drug development (most relevant to the disease process
and most technically tractable). This work is in turn facilitated by a better understanding of
the principles of latency, persistence and reactivation, and of the human immune response to
M.tuberculosis infection.
The time is ripe for intervention in this area, since the TB Structural Genomics Consortium
(TBSCG) is already delivering TB protein structures, which will need to be prioritised in
terms of their relevance to TB disease mechanisms and many EU groups are already
involved in the TBSCG.
Diagnostics
Diagnosis is currently the rate-limiting step in entry to TB treatment, with less than half of all
patients with active infection being diagnosed and treated. Within an expanded EU, there is
also an urgent need for cheap, rapid and reliable tests for TB screening (CXR is notoriously
unreliable) and MDR-TB diagnosis (ideally within 3 days). The development and
implementation of such tests is well within reach.
There are promising TB diagnostics at all stages of the pipeline, and a plethora of lowhanging fruit in the form of existing tests that need relatively cheap and minimal adaptation
before they could be used in TB and MDR-TB endemic settings. Diagnostic development is
far less resource-intensive than drug development, with an average new test costing between
$5-20 million to develop, compared to the estimated $800 million needed for fully industrial
development of a new drug (adaptation of existing diagnostics is even cheaper).
Development times are also far shorter, at around 1-3 years compared to 10-15 years or more
for new drugs or vaccines. FIND expects to produce the first new field-relevant diagnostics
in 2005-2008, with a stream of further trial results over the next 5 years.
EU support for new TB diagnostics has additional merits beyond the obvious need, and the
cost-effectiveness and feasibility of new tests. The EU already hosts a number of TB
diagnostic firms (28), as well as a network of Supranational Reference Laboratories (SRLs)
tasked with supervising MDR-TB diagnosis in laboratories in Eastern and Central Europe,
FSU and developing countries.j Renewed TB diagnostic activity is now centred in Europe,
with both FIND and the TDR located in Geneva; and the mechanics of any EU intervention
would be significantly simplified by the presence of a single PPP in the diagnostic field
(FIND), which has reliable start-up funding and well-established links with pharmaceutical
firms working in diagnostics. FIND offers the added advantage of having the scientific
expertise (including senior staff attracted from the CDC and TDR) to prioritise the confusing
array of existing and new TB diagnostics, allowing R&D investments to be optimally
targeted. (See Annex 6.8.6 for a list of EU-based firms with interesting technologies.)
j
SRLs exist in the UK, Sweden, Germany, Italy, Belgium, amongst others.
6.8-31
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Finally, unlike R&D into TB drug development - which is already dominated by U.S.
funding, researchers and industry - the field of TB diagnostics is still “up for grabs”. The
NIH is currently looking at TB diagnostics to see whether it has a role to play, but its activity
is still largely limited to blue skies research and field trials - in other words, it is an area
where the EU has room to make its mark.
Short-term, cost-effective results (< 5 years) could be achieved by:
1.
Funding FIND directly, in conjunction with the Gates Foundation, to co-develop
tests with industry. Such an approach would support EU industry, while keeping
R&D firmly focussed on optimal public health outcomes;
2.
Providing industry incentives to encourage and reward EU-based diagnostic
firms who work with FIND to develop new field-adapted tests, including new
tests for TB screening, and rapid (3-day) tests for MDR-TB. These incentives
should be designed with biotech companies in mind, since these dominate the
field;
3.
Ensuring EDCTP support is allocated to trials of new and existing diagnostics,
including through FIND and TDR.
The EU could also fuel the longer-term diagnostic pipeline by funding the significantly
under-supported area of diagnostic discovery research. This would in turn provide new
leads, which EU-based diagnostic firms could develop for Western markets and adapt, in
conjunction with FIND, for resource-poor countries. Possible approaches include:
4.
Funding FIND to either a) extend its scientific pipeline to the discovery stage; or
b) employing FIND as a technical advisory body to review existing approaches
and provide the EU with information on which are most promising
5.
Providing a formal funding stream for public research into TB diagnostic
discovery and encouraging member states to do so.
Conversely, the EU may wish to directly support the biotech industry by providing
incentives for the industry to develop more sophisticated versions of any simple, new fieldadapted tests that appear, for instance by developing robotised assays for use in higherincome EU and Western markets. k
Drugs
The biggest gap in TB drug development is primarily structural rather than technical. While
it is true that technical hurdles exist in identifying compounds, that the models of infection
are challenging and that clinical trials take years to undertake, nevertheless given adequate
A matter that is not related to R&D, but is nevertheless important to the EU. It would be extremely helpful if
EU-based Supranational Reference Labs could be funded to conduct their supervisory role with respect to
developing country TB laboratories, in particular laboratories in high MDR-TB areas of Eastern and Central
Europe: this work is currently performed voluntarily. The lack of approved, high-quality national TB
laboratories in some countries (e.g. Russia) makes it extremely difficult to either map or control MDR-TB in these
settings and, by extension, the wider European forum. SRLs have repeatedly expressed willingness to increase
their contribution in this area, if funded.
k
6.8-32
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
human and financial resources these problems can be addressed. What is lacking is the
commitment to overcome these problems.
As noted above, some large pharmaceutical companies now play a significant role in TB
drug discovery, while TB drug development is dominated by publicly-driven groups, in
particular the TB Alliance, with the biotech sector playing a more minor role. The TB
Alliance has shown itself willing and capable of developing new TB drugs, and the
pharmaceutical industry (in particular biotechs and CROs) are equally willing to provide the
necessary technical skills if paid or incentivised to do so. However, the EU currently has no
financial tools to link these two groups together – neither direct funding for the TB Alliance,
to facilitate outsourcing of contracts; nor subsidised Alliance access to industry in-kind
services; nor incentives to encourage industry to offer in-kind services to the Alliance.
Likewise, there is limited support for biotechs working in this sector, with many of current
industry incentives being poorly suited to smaller companies.
This lack of support for TB drug development, or for a role for EU industry in this
development, is particularly surprising given the EU’s urgent need for more effective and
affordable drugs to manage TB and MDR-TB in an expanded EU. The EU accession
countries now report nearly 1,000 new cases of MDR-TB each year, and 4,721 cases of TB that
are resistant to at least one TB drug.62 Differing costs between countries make the cost of
treating these cases difficult to estimate, however, at Latvian prices, treatment costs for all
new MDR-TB patients in the accession countries would be EUR 105 million in the next
decade, assuming no increase in patient numbers or in annual treatment costs.63 We could
probably double or even triple this figure since, as noted above, TB numbers are trending
upwards at around 5-7% per year in the relevant countries; and costs will be far higher for
patients who enter Western European health systems (the US estimates $250,000 per patient,
compared to Latvia’s $12,500 per patient). In addition to MDR costs there are, of course, also
the costs of providing lengthy DOTS treatment to the more than 50,000 cases of “normal” TB
reported in Europe and the accession countries each year (over 80,000 cases if the second-line
accession countries are included).l In the UK, “normal” TB treatment is estimated at $9,029
per patient, of which only $200 is drug costs.64
By contrast, the cost of developing a new drug that allows short, effective treatment of MDRTB (and “normal” TB) is estimated at $76-115 million from lead compound up to registration,
including the cost of all failed projects.32 The final drug would be available not only for
MDR-TB patients in Europe but for all TB patients worldwide.65
EU support for new TB drugs would not only cost-effectively address Europe’s substantial
and growing TB problem but, if based on a well-thought out incentive or investment
structure, could also support the competitiveness of the EU-based pharmaceutical industry
(in particular biotechs and CROs) and their profitable involvement in TB drug development
activities that are currently dominated by US companies and institutions.
l
By “normal”, we mean TB uncomplicated by HIV/AIDS or multi-drug resistance.
6.8-33
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
There are three main areas where EU investment in TB drug R&D represents “value for
money”. These are:
1. Discovery of promising TB lead compounds
2. Lead optimisation and pre-clinical
3. Clinical trials of existing drugs.
1.
Drug discovery research and lead identification. These first steps in the drug
development process involve identifying the best approaches to a known target (eg.
inhibitors of DNA synthesis), and narrowing these down to a group of active compounds
(e.g. pyridones). These compounds can be discovered either by high throughput screening
of large industry compound libraries, or by targeted in vitro and in vivo screening of
compound families with known anti-TB activity. Medicinal chemistry techniques are then
applied to screening results in order to determine which, among the many structures in a TBactive compound group, is most likely to be safe, effective and feasible i.e. a lead compound.
These R&D areas are crucial, since relatively high numbers of lead compounds must enter
the pipeline in order to deliver a single successful TB drug – yet, as of end 2003, there were
only 6 discovery projects and 3 lead identification projects underway. (See Table 3) There is
little direct public funding for discovery research, which is currently being conducted almost
entirely by EU-based industry (GSK, Astra-Zeneca and Novartis) and falls outside the remit
of the TB Alliance. The TB Alliance is more involved at the lead identification stage, and
offers some support – for instance, it is developing a publicly-available database of the many
known compounds with anti-TB activity; while the NIH also provides a free screening and
medicinal chemistry service through the TAACF, which could theoretically screen these
compounds (see boxed text). However, the TAACF’s services are ad-hoc rather than
systematic, being provided at the request of academic institutions, biotechs or industry who
are interested in and funded to do TB research. There is no systematic method to review all
known promising compounds, nor is there systematic access to industry compound libraries,
most of which remain closed to public researchers.
Possible EU approaches could include:
 Setting up a consortium of European academic institutions and industry groups
(perhaps similar to the successful TB Structural Genomics Consortium) who would
systematically prioritise, and submit for screening, those compounds with known or
suspected anti-TB activity, using the TB Alliance database as a guide;
 Supporting this consortium by providing a free EU-based facility for in vitro and in
vivo screening, taking into account the TAACF experience. (This approach is not
predicated on access to company-held intellectual property);
 Sub-contracting CRO’s to produce analogues of promising compounds (“hits”)
identified by screening, with these hundreds of analogues then entering secondary in
vitro screening;
 Sub-contracting CROs to conduct scale-up synthesis of promising “hits” to produce
sufficient quantities for the next stage of testing (in vivo testing in mice);
 Providing incentives to encourage researchers to relinquish or share IP with groups
who can conduct further drug development;
6.8-34
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis



Supporting development of the TB Alliance database of TB-active compounds, to
guide the work of the proposed consortium;
Providing a public medicinal chemistry service to optimise screening results, similar
to that provided by the TAACF. Or, given industry’s superior experience in this area,
a better alternative might be to sub-contract this work to a loose network of EU-based
CROs, biotechs and industry groups who are willing to participate; or to offer
financial incentives to encourage firms to supply these in-kind services to not-forprofit drug development groups;
Provision of a high throughput screening facility is less promising, given the
TAACF’s experience to date. However, the EU could fund purchase of compound
libraries by EU-based groups, for subsequent screening by the TAACF: this approach
would allow costs to be shared 50:50 between the EU and U.S. and would facilitate
involvement of EU companies and academics in TB drug development.
There are several persuasive reasons for EU involvement in these areas. The structured
approach suggested above would allow the EU to put in place a more productive model than
the less structured, individual enterprise approach being followed by the U.S.. At the same
time, it would provide financial and infrastructure support to EU-based academic and
biotech institutions involved in the screening consortium; and would provide a range of
lucrative opportunities to European CROs, biotechs and industry by purchasing their private
sector skills for public use. Incentives or support at the discovery stage would also benefit
EU-based multinationals who have a monopoly in this area. Finally, the paucity of discovery
and lead identification research is now choking off R&D further down the drug pipeline:
this alone is a major incentive for increased EU activity in this area.
Discovery research and lead identification of new anti-TB compounds require larger and
longer-term investments than pre-clinical research, with estimated costs, including costs of
failure, ranging from $40 million (using a PPP model) to $125 million in a pure industry
model. m 66 However, the EU would not have to bear the total cost since EU industry already
makes substantial investments through their infectious disease institutes; and the EU could
select the most cost-effective among the suggested options - for example, a targeted
screening facility plus outsourced contracts for medicinal chemistry and scale-up production
of “hit” compounds. These initiatives would, in turn, provide substantial benefits to EU
academic networks and industry.
2.
The lead optimisation and pre-clinical stages of drug development offer a prime
opportunity for the EU to achieve these goals. Lead optimisation is the process of improving
a promising anti-TB compound to make it more potent, more selective and more “drug-like”.
The pre-clinical stage takes this optimised compound and conducts the toxicological and
ADME studies (pharmacokinetic and absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination)
needed before clinical trialling in humans. These technologies are well established and
readily available within industry, including contract research organisations (CROs). The
pre-clinical stage of drug development is also cost-competitive, being estimated at $4.9-5.3
million for a successful drug, including costs of failure (these costs are based on a survey of
CROs who provide these specialist services).67 Results are deliverable within 5 years.
The wide range is explained by the difficulty of estimating discovery costs, since this information is generally
kept in-house by industry.
m
6.8-35
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Possible mechanisms to facilitate industry involvement at these stages of TB drug
development include:
 Direct funding of the TB Alliance, who would in turn outsource relevant activities to
industry. Again, this supports industry activity, while allowing it to be closely
targeted on tools of maximal public health utility;
 Industry incentives designed to maximally reward contributions to gaps in the drug
development pipeline (ideally identified by the independent scientific experts e.g. the
TB Alliance’s scientific experts committee ) rather than the current scattergun
approach of broad-brush R&D subsidies;
 Industry incentives targeted to the needs of smaller European biotechs, CRO’s and
medical technology firms, as well as those more suited to multinational companies;
 PPP access to industry groups who are already sub-contracted to EU public health
institutions (if these exist).
Any or all of the above measures would be a win-win outcome, supporting EU industry
while using the scientific expertise of the TB Alliance or other public groups to ensure that
subsidised industry activity was tightly targeted on public health outcomes of priority
interest for the EU.
3.
Clinical trials of existing industry antibiotics for a TB indication (thirteen such trials (five
Phase III) have already commenced). Such trials are an extremely cost-effective use of
public funds, since the cost of adapting existing drugs to a new indication is far lower than
developing new drugs from scratch. They also allow private innovation by EU companies
(Bayer, Aventis) to be extended to a broader public.
Beyond supporting these trials
financially, the EU could support the further industrial work needed to provide these drugs
in fixed-dose combinations with other TB drugs (FDCs) rather than single tablets. The cost
of Phase I to III clinical trials of a novel TB drug are estimated at $26.6 million in a developed
country setting and $9.9 million in a developing country setting, and would take an
estimated 7-10 years to complete (in the absence of surrogate markers).68 The length and cost
of trials using existing antibiotics would be substantially lower since many of these trials are
already well-advanced (in Phase II or Phase III) and partially funded, including by the EU.
Two further areas with investment potential are a) non-pharmaceutical gaps in the pipeline
and b) exploratory technologies noted above.
a)
Non-pharmaceutical gaps in the current pipeline e.g. developing country clinical trial capacity
and regulatory issues.
Clinical trial capacity building is not a clear area of comparative advantage for the EU.
Nevertheless, it represents a “niche” opportunity due to the presence of a major new EU
initiative (the EDCTP); the relevance of the final outcome to EU industry (e.g. the potential
benefit of cheaper developing country trial sites); and the public health interests of EU
members. Support should therefore continue, albeit with more resources applied more
quickly.
6.8-36
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
Several gaps in the regulatory process for new TB drugs could also be usefully addressed by
changes in EU policy, including joint negotiation of a global standard for regulatory
approval of new TB drugs (with the WHO, FDA and others); institution of a formal fast-track
regulatory package for new TB drugs (similar to that provided for many orphan drugs); and
regulatory approval of surrogate markers (when available) as valid end-points to support
drug registration. Policy work on the first two issues will need to commence almost
immediately, in readiness for the first adapted TB drugs (some are already in Phase III
clinical trials, meaning possible registration as early as 2007-2008).
b)
Exploratory technologies
As discussed above, three areas of under-funded TB research are:
 work on surrogate markers, to allow TB drug and vaccine trials to be completed more
cheaply and quickly;
 research into depot drug preparations, to allow reliable once-monthly administration;
 research into new aerosol delivery mechanisms for TB drugs.
Of these, the first two are most relevant to the EU. The EU has a comparative advantage in
surrogate marker research, since studies have been conducted by EU-based groups,
including GSK and St George’s Hospital Medical School (UK); and this work could be
brought to completion within a 5-year timeframe. Surrogate markers are also of great
interest to industry(and public researchers because of their ability to dramatically cut clinical
trial times and hence costs; as well as expediting the arrival of novel drugs for TB and MDRTB.
We are not aware of any work on depot or slow-release oral TB drugs being conducted in
Europe (there is also very little elsewhere), however the clear advantages of this method of
administration in terms of reducing MDR-TB creation and cutting TB programme costs (both
financial and human) nevertheless mark it as a priority.
If their early promise is
substantiated, depot or slow-release preparations could be in the field more quickly than
novel drugs, since the component drugs already exist and there is already a substantial body
of industry experience in this area.
Vaccines
A TB vaccine is the holy grail of cheap, effective TB control. However, the relatively early
nature of TB vaccine research and the lack of clear front-runners in this expensive and
lengthy process make investment in TB vaccines a difficult area for public funders. A useful
approach could be to target government support onto research that has a broad application
across TB tools and/or to selectively support specific platform technologies. Five key areas
stand out:


Basic research into the human immune response to TB infection, and into disease
models of latency, persistence and re-activation, since these underpin both drug and
vaccine development (see above);
Improved TB diagnostics, without which clinical trials of new TB drugs and vaccines
will be extremely difficult and expensive (see above);
6.8-37
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis



R&D of surrogate markers of cure and protective immunity, vital if we are to reduce
the cost and length of clinical trials (see above);
Adjuvant development is a prime candidate for EU support, since much of this work
is conducted within the industry sector (major and biotech) and the resulting
technologies can be applied by industry to other vaccines, including those for
Western markets. A useful EC intervention would be to incentivise and financially
support industry adjuvant research (methods of ensuring this research is applicable
to TB are discussed in the Drugs section above). Incentives could be rapidly put in
place, and results could be expected in less than 5 years.
Alternative vaccine delivery systems. Again, this is an area where EU academic
institutions are already active; where under-funding is a problem; and where the
impact of oral or nasal vaccines, over injectables, is substantial.
In the mid-to-long term, funding will also be needed to manufacture vaccine lots for largerscale clinical trials. Manufacture will almost certainly need to be done by, or in collaboration
with industry, which has the technical know-how to scale up production and to handle high
volumes of potentially infectious biological material. At this stage, suitable incentives will be
needed to encourage and reward industry participation in this commercially less competitive
area.
Conclusion
The expanded European Union now has a substantial and increasing TB burden of more
than 50,000 cases per year, around 10% of whom have TB which is already resistant to one or
more of our existing drugs. Globally, TB control is also threatened by the upsurge in HIV-TB
co-infected patients, who are straining current TB tools and approaches to the limit.
Although new tools and approaches are being developed in all areas – including basic
research, drugs, diagnostics and vaccines - progress is being delayed by lack of targeted
funding and support, in particular from the EU which now provides less than 5% of global
funding for new TB tools. The U.S. is driving the TB R&D agenda, particularly for new
drugs, with the preponderance of research and development now being funded by the U.S.
government and U.S. philanthropists, and with U.S.-based industry and academic groups
being the main collaborators (and beneficiaries of R&D contracts).
The EU could redress this situation by selecting optimal areas for investment, based on
current funding gaps, the potential impact of any intervention, the likelihood of rapid
results, and the opportunity for the chosen approach to support EU industry and academic
institutions. Based on these criteria, the following areas are considered optimal:
1.
Adaptation of existing tools :
 Diagnostics (little support, including from US)
 Clinical trials of existing antibiotics for a TB indication.
 Depot and slow-release preparations of existing TB drugs (almost no support)
2.
Application of well-established technologies to further investigate and develop
known or suspected anti-TB compounds including:
6.8-38
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis



Establishing an EU consortium to prioritise and co-ordinate screening of known
compounds in order to discover new TB drug leads
Outsourcing relevant development work to industry (through public funding of
PPPs to cover outsourced work; or via industry incentives targetted to gaps
identified by public R&D groups or PPPs). Outsourcing areas could include preclinical and lead optimisation work, medicinal chemistry, scale-up production of
screening compounds, analogue development etc, as discussed above
Providing a public facility for compound screening, and possibly medicinal
chemistry, available at no cost to industry and academic groups.
3.
Support for technology research, particularly in areas where industry is the main
player or has a substantial interest:
 Surrogate markers of treatment (for drug trials) and protective immunity (vaccine
trials)
 Adjuvant technologies for vaccines.
4.
Basic and discovery research that will feed into multiple R&D areas
 Latency, persistence and reactivation of TB in the human host
 The human immune response to M.tuberculosis
 Discovery research into new diagnostic and drug approaches.
In addition, the EU should continue its support for the work of the TB Structural Genomics
Consortium (which has provided breakthroughs in all R&D areas) and for clinical trial
capacity-building in developing countries.
An EU decision to support research in these areas would deliver badly-needed new tools to
manage tuberculosis within its own borders and elsewhere. Importantly, it would also
establish a distinctive European model for R&D funding. Features of this model would be:
 A systematic, rather than ad-hoc, approach to promising R&D candidates;
 Co-ordinated academic research in key areas;
 Constructive use of PPPs as a conduit to identify gaps in the development pipeline,
allowing R&D funding to be targeted to industry or academic groups who are active
in gap areas, rather than lower-priority activities;
 Capacity to link support and rewards for industry, including biotechs and Contract
Research Organisations, to activities that most closely match public health goals.
6.8-39
Chapter 6.8: Tuberculosis
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