At the end of 2015, JPIAMR will launch a rapid-action call for leading scientists in the field to establish international research networks.
The research networks will establish scientific synergies and produce guidelines, recommendations or best practice frameworks, among other outputs that will be of value to the broader AMR research community. These will be made available through the JPIAMR website.
More information will be available at the end of September.
During the First Innovative Enterprise Week in Riga, the EIB Group and the European Commission (EC) have launched three new financial products to boost the competitiveness of innovative companies in Europe under the “InnovFin – EU Finance for Innovators” programme.
JPIAMR particularly welcomes ‘InnovFin Infectious Diseases’ which will support that new drugs, vaccines and medical and diagnostic devices, also in the AMR field, are made available faster to people who need them. These financial products allow projects with a higher risk factor to receive loans. EUR 100m has been allocated initially to each of the three products to kick-start the initiatives.
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On 12 May 2015, JPIAMR closed its 2nd call for proposals with 16 first stage proposals submitted. Proposals came from 10 different organisations in 9 countries; Argentina, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and the US. This call was looking for proposals to repurpose neglected antibiotics and characterise antibiotics, or antibiotic and non-antibiotic combinations to overcome bacterial antibiotic resistance. The call topic was one of the highlights of discussion at the recent Uppsala Health Summit, 2-3 June 2015, which brought together leading players in the field to discuss future actions to combat AMR.
The proposals are now going through the peer review process and successful first stage proposals will be invited, at the end of June, to submit full proposals by 25 August 2015. The final awarded projects will be announced in November 2015.
On 8 June 2015, world leaders gathered at the G7 meeting voiced strong support for the the World Health Organization’s (WHO) first Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). In line with JPIAMR’s vision and goals, WHO’s Global Action Plan which recognises a two-fold approach to combating AMR:
The G7 group outlined the One Health approach, which encompasses all areas of human and animal health, as well as agriculture and the environment, and acknowledged the need for a holistic approach, alongside concrete measures, to retain the effectiveness of antimicrobial agents.
These are all commitments in line with JPIAMR’s ambitions and the initiative fully supports the ‘One Health’ approach. Investing in research and taking on a holistic approach is key to combat antimicrobial resistance.
On 2nd June 2015 in Brussels, JPIAMR took part in the meeting ‘Societal Stakeholders in Joint Programming’ organised by the Joint Programming Initiative on More Years, Better Lives. The meeting discussed different ways of engaging stakeholders in the different societal challenges tackled by Joint Programming. Engaging stakeholders is crucial to make Joint Programming a success. Each JPI is organised slightly different, but stakeholder engagement to form a collaborative platform is at the core of each JPI.
On 19 May 2015, MEPs adopted a resolution to tackle the increase of drug-resistant diseases. The recommendations, written by Italian MEP Piernicola Pedicini (EFDD), welcomed the Joint Programming Initiative on Antimicrobial Resistance (JPIAMR). The AMR initiative allows Member States to agree on research needs to avoid duplication, and calls for increased alignment of research funding to combat antimicrobial resistance.
“25,000 citizens die every year in Europe owing to the growing resistance to existing antimicrobials, so we must stimulate research into new types of substances. In the veterinary sector, online sales of antimicrobials and their prophylactic use should be prevented”, said Pedicini further emphasizing the need for the JPI to align research efforts in a holistic manner.
“We are very pleased that JPIAMR’s work is recognised at a political level and that research has been highlighted as crucial in the combat against AMR,” said Mats Ulfendahl, Chair of JPIAMR’s Management Board. “Innovative collaborative research into understanding all areas of resistance is the only way to ensure sustainable solutions,” he continued.
Human antibiotics: diagnose before prescribing
The measures proposed to ensure that antibiotics are used more responsibly include:
MEPs also urge pharmaceutical companies to invest in developing new antimicrobial agents, and ask the European Commission to consider proposing a “legislative framework” to encourage the development of new antibiotic drugs.
Veterinary antibiotics: restrict preventive use
MEPs also advocate responsible use of antimicrobials in veterinary medicine, including medicated feed, by allowing their use only for treatment after veterinary diagnosis.
The use of veterinary antibiotics should therefore gradually be restricted to therapeutic purposes, by progressively eliminating their use for prophylactic ones. The use of metaphylaxis, i.e. the mass medication of animals to cure sick ones on farms whilst preventing the infection of healthy ones, should also be kept to a minimum, say MEPs.
The resolution was adopted with 637 votes for, 32 against and 10 abstentions.
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The first assessment window to win the Longitude Prize closed on 31 May 2015 and the judging panel will now begin assessing the first round of entries. The Longitude Prize is a £10m prize fund that will reward a competitor that can develop a point–of–care diagnostic test that will conserve antibiotics for future generations and revolutionise the delivery of global healthcare. The test must be accurate, rapid, affordable, easy–to–use and available to anyone, anywhere in the world. It will identify when antibiotics are needed and, if they are, which ones to use.
The judging panel will decide which among the submitted diagnostic prototypes will go on for further testing. If an entry passes the testing phase, it will then go to the Longitude Committee, which will decide whether you are the winner of this historic prize.
The Longitude Prize opens a second round of submissions in four months time. If you have a diagnostics prototype for detecting infectious disease and would like to apply in the next round, find more information here
On 2-3 June 2015, JPIAMR’s Laura Marin, Bertrand Schwartz and Ghada Zoubiane will be at the Uppsala Health Summit to discuss ‘A world without antibiotics’. The summit calls for a concerted effort to tackle the antibiotic crisis.
‘Antibiotic Resistance is a complex problem driven by many interconnected factors. As such, single, isolated interventions have little impact. Coordinated action is required to minimize emergence and spread.’
JPIAMR fully endorses this sentiment and through our work, we are coordinating international research actions to find new ways of reducing antimicrobial resistance and developing new treatments for infectious diseases. We provide a platform where innovative collaborative activities can be developed which covers all areas of the problem from surveillance via diagnostics all the way to changing behaviour.
With this in mind, JPIAMR has special interest in the workshop ‘Environmental Dimensions of Antibiotic Resistance’. Taking a holistic approach where all aspects of the causes of antimicrobial resistances are taken into account is the only way to turn the tide. During the workshop, JPIAMR will join discussions on environmental risk management of emissions of antibiotics from pharmaceutical manufacturing, of emissions of human sewage/municipal wastewater and of emissions from agricultural sources.
Come and speak to Laura, Bertrand or Ghada at the Uppsala Health Summit to find out more about the Joint Programming Initiative on Antimicrobial Resistance. We offer opportunities for new members and collaborators to take part in an international platform and connect with world-wide experts in the AMR field. We also offer funding opportunities for researchers.
Ministers of Health and health leaders from the WHO regions gathered at the World Health Assembly on 19 May in Geneva to sign a ‘Call to Action’ on antimicrobial resistance. By forming an ‘Alliance of Champions’, 14 countries signed up to promote political awareness, engagement and leadership on antimicrobial resistance among Heads of State, ministers and global leaders.
“The increase in awareness and discussion on antimicrobial resistance in recent times demonstrate that the world is waking up to the severity of this global problem. We must work together to combat AMR. JPIAMR, with its national research funding organisation members welcome this ‘Call to Action’ as greater world wide activity will also highlight the importance of innovative research to solve the problem of AMR,” said Mats Ulfendahl, Chair of JPIAMR’s Management Board.
JPIAMR works to align international research resources and to mobilise multi-national initiatives to come up with innovative approaches to combat AMR.
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Call to action on May 19 2015
On 12 May 2015 at the Latvian Presidency event on Infectious Diseases in Riga, participants debated the efforts on infectious diseases and AMR research in the Baltic area. JPIAMR’s Laura Marin from the International Secretariat and Ioana Ispas, JPIAMR’s Romanian Management Board representative talked in the session ‘European context of research and how to enhance collaboration between Western, Central and Eastern European research’.
