Basilea Pharmaceutica has announced the initiation of a community-acquired pneumonia trial further expanding the development program for ceftobiprole in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development.

Ceftobiprole is the first of a new class of broad-spectrum anti-MSRA cephalosporin antibiotics. It is specially designed to bind the penicillin-resistant targets in gram-positive cocci, resulting in potent bactericidal activity towards methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae (PRSP). Ceftobiprole has demonstrated a broad-spectrum profile targeting other gram-positive as well as gram-negative pathogens.