AvantGuard Secures $2M Phase IIB Grant to Combat Biofilms
- johnny3283
- 13 hours ago
- 6 min read
We're excited to announce that AvantGuard Inc. has been awarded a $2 million Phase IIB grant from the National Institutes of Health to advance the development of polyvantoin chlorine, our innovative polymer-based disinfectant designed to address antimicrobial-resistant biofilms in healthcare settings. This funding represents a major milestone in our mission to tackle antimicrobial resistance and validates our innovative approach to one of healthcare's most pressing challenges.
Polyvantoin chlorine combines a chloramine with an N-halamine monomer (Avantamine™) and hydrophilic monomers to create a uniquely stable and effective disinfectant.
The HAI Challenge: A Growing Crisis
The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) affect hundreds of millions of patients worldwide each year, with prevalence estimated at 5-12% in high-income countries and 5-19% in lower-income countries.1 In the U.S. alone, approximately 1.7 million HAIs occur annually, resulting in 99,000 deaths (more than prostate and breast cancer combined) and an estimated $35 billion in healthcare costs.2
The role of environmental contamination is significant: about 20-40% of all HAIs are estimated to be linked to cross-contamination from healthcare workers' hands and environmental surfaces.3,4 Biofilms, in both wet and dry forms, contribute to 75% of bacterial infections in healthcare environments, including persistent reservoirs in sink drains.5,6
Healthcare settings already struggle with Clostridioides difficile, but now face the emerging threat of Candida auris (now Candidozyma auris), a multidrug-resistant yeast and the first fungal pathogen listed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as an urgent threat.7-9 Up to 20% of patients colonized with C. auris develop invasive infections, with mortality rates reaching 40% within 30 days.10-12
What makes C. auris particularly dangerous is its persistence. It colonizes human skin, sheds into the environment to re-contaminate surfaces in less than four hours, survives on inanimate surfaces for prolonged periods, and resists or rebounds quickly from routine disinfectants—largely because it forms protective biofilms.13-17
Our Solution
Polyvantoin chlorine is our polymer-based disinfectant that stabilizes chlorine in solution, delivering powerful antimicrobial activity with enhanced safety. This addresses a critical limitation: while chlorine-based disinfectants are understood to be highly effective, they're often used at concentrations not strong enough for some pathogens because of their damaging corrosive effects on surfaces. The stability of the chlorine-nitrogen bond in polyvantoin chlorine mitigates these corrosive effects compared to other chlorinated disinfectants.
This stability enables two key advantages. First, polyvantoin chlorine allows for regular use of high chlorine concentrations that are more effective against fungal and bacterial biofilms. Second, the chlorine remains stable after drying on a surface for weeks, providing residual efficacy that keeps surfaces free of pathogens.
Our testing demonstrated consistent minimum inhibitory concentrations across different C. auris clades, Candida species, other fungi, and the ESKAPE pathogen set. Polyvantoin chlorine is effective against biofilms in a CDC bioreactor-based EPA protocol for biofilm claims for Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and antibiotic-resistant C. auris. The chloramine chemistry enables effective residual disinfection, and at high concentrations, polyvantoin chlorine shows unusually low corrosivity towards stainless steel and is less corrosive than peracetic acid against plastics.
Perhaps most importantly, there's no history of chlorine resistance among pathogenic organisms, making resistance development highly unlikely.
Preliminary Data
Our preliminary data shows that polyvantoin chlorine:
is safe for skin contact showing no dermal irritation on a rabbit model at 2.4% chlorine concentration
has similar minimum biocidal concentrations and planktonic efficacy compared to other chlorinated disinfectants
is effective against biofilms in a CDC bioreactor-based EPA protocol for biofilm claims for P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, and antibiotic-resistant C. auris
has residual properties that make it an effective residual disinfectant
shows unusually low corrosivity towards stainless steel and is less corrosive than peracetic acid against plastics
is stable in solid form for 3-5 years.
What This Funding Enables
The $2 million NIH grant will support three critical development aims:
Product Optimization: We'll conduct further testing on Clostridium difficile as well as wet and dry biofilms of both mono- and mixed species bacterial and fungal biofilms. We will continue testing additive packages and formats to meet claims for a sporicidal and residual disinfectant.
Final Product Formulation: We will package polyvantoin chlorine into effervescent tablets and verify the solid and liquid stability, as well as perform comparative corrosion testing.
Regulatory Pathway: We will perform the chemistry characterization, toxicology, and efficacy testing needed for an EPA submission.
Beyond Disinfection: Broader Market Implications
While residual surface disinfection is the focus of this grant, Avantamine chemistry extends well beyond surfaces, demonstrating significant residual activity and safety on skin. This NIH funding opens opportunities across several high-value markets, specifically enabling the development of long-lasting antiseptics and possibly wound care products, considering the stability and safety of the chlorine in the polymer.
The funding supports formulation optimization and regulatory planning that will lay the groundwork not only for surface disinfectant approval but also for additional applications across our product pipeline. The versatility of Avantamine chemistry, whether formulated as a disinfectant, antiseptic, wound care product, or surface coating, positions AvantGuard to address multiple segments of the infection prevention market simultaneously.
What's Next
This NIH grant represents more than funding. It's validation of our scientific approach and recognition of the critical need for innovative solutions to antimicrobial resistance. We'll be executing on our three development aims, working closely with regulatory authorities, and building toward EPA approval.
The HAI crisis continues to accelerate, but with this support, we're positioned to deliver the first effective residual disinfectant solution. We're not just developing another antimicrobial product; we're working to break transmission cycles, protect vulnerable patients, and demonstrate a new approach to infection prevention that doesn't contribute to resistance.
We're grateful to the NIH for recognizing the potential of this work and excited about the path ahead. Stay tuned for updates as we advance through these critical development milestones.
References
1. Allegranzi B, Nejad SB, Combescure C, et al. Burden of endemic health-care-associated infection in developing countries: systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet. 2011;377(9761):228-241. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(10)61458-4
2. Almeida S-L. Health Care-Associated Infections (HAIs). Journal of Emergency Nursing. 2015;41(2):100-101. doi:10.1016/j.jen.2015.01.006
3. Weber DJ, Rutala WA. Self-disinfecting surfaces: Review of current methodologies and future prospects. American Journal of Infection Control. 2013;41(5):S31-S35. doi:10.1016/j.ajic.2012.12.005
4. Weinstein RA. Epidemiology and control of nosocomial infections in adult intensive care units. The American Journal of Medicine. 1991;91(3):S179-S184. doi:10.1016/0002-9343(91)90366-6
5. Potera C. Antibiotic resistance: biofilm dispersing agent rejuvenates older antibiotics. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; 2010.
6. Sharma S, Mohler J, Mahajan SD, Schwartz SA, Bruggemann L, Aalinkeel R. Microbial biofilm: a review on formation, infection, antibiotic resistance, control measures, and innovative treatment. Microorganisms. 2023;11(6):1614.
7. Centers for Disease C, Prevention. Antibiotic resistance threats in the United States, 2019. 2019. 2019/11. http://dx.doi.org/10.15620/cdc:82532
8. Vallabhaneni S. Investigation of the first seven reported cases of Candida auris, a globally emerging invasive, multidrug-resistant fungus—United States, May 2013–August 2016. MMWR Morbidity and mortality weekly report. 2016;65
9. Forsberg K, Woodworth K, Walters M, et al. Candida auris: The recent emergence of a multidrug-resistant fungal pathogen. Medical mycology. 2019;57(1):1-12.
10. Schelenz S, Hagen F, Rhodes JL, et al. First hospital outbreak of the globally emerging Candida auris in a European hospital. Antimicrob Resist Infect Control. 2016;5:35. doi:10.1186/s13756-016-0132-5
11. Southwick K, Ostrowsky B, Greenko J, et al. A description of the first Candida auris-colonized individuals in New York State, 2016-2017. American journal of infection control. 2022;50(3):358-360.
12. Briano F, Magnasco L, Sepulcri C, et al. Candida auris candidemia in critically ill, colonized patients: cumulative incidence and risk factors. Infectious diseases and therapy. 2022;11(3):1149-1160.
13. Ruiz-Gaitán A, Moret AM, Tasias-Pitarch M, et al. An outbreak due to Candida auris with prolonged colonisation and candidaemia in a tertiary care European hospital. Mycoses. 2018;61(7):498-505. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/myc.12781
14. Welsh RM, Bentz ML, Shams A, et al. Survival, persistence, and isolation of the emerging multidrug-resistant pathogenic yeast Candida auris on a plastic health care surface. Journal of clinical microbiology. 2017;55(10):2996-3005.
15. Sexton DJ, Bentz ML, Welsh RM, et al. Positive correlation between Candida auris skin-colonization burden and environmental contamination at a ventilator-capable skilled nursing facility in Chicago. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2021;73(7):1142-1148.
16. Huang X, Hurabielle C, Drummond RA, et al. Murine model of colonization with fungal pathogen Candida auris to explore skin tropism, host risk factors and therapeutic strategies. Cell host & microbe. 2021;29(2):210-221. e6.
17.Adams E, Quinn M, Tsay S, et al. Candida auris in healthcare facilities, New York, USA, 2013–2017. Emerging infectious diseases. 2018;24(10):1816.
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