EASAC leads initiative on "Antimicrobial drug discovery, greater steps ahead ..."

Hannover & Halle (Saale), Germany: As part of a major new initiative, the European Academies's Science Advisory Council (EASAC) organized a workshop on "Antimicrobial Drug Discovery, Greater Steps Ahead" together with the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina. The meeting took place in Hannover, Germany, on 6-8 March 2014, and was partly supported by the Volkswagen Stiftung. The agenda included, among others, contributions by Nobel Laureate Professor Ada Yonath (Israel) and Professor Dame Sally Davies, the UK Chief Medical Officer.

The aim of the workshop was to attempt a radically different approach to antimicrobial drug research and explore new paths by bringing together a group of outstanding European scientists who are not specialists in antibiotic research. Together with a group of selected experts in the field they spent an intensive and relatively unstructured 2-day brainstorming, seeking new impetus and direction for antimicrobial treatment. To foster a totally open discussion during this encounter, scientists employed by the pharmaceutical industry were not invited to this workshop. The workshop report will be available shortly. For more information, please contact the EASAC Secretariat:
 

Link to press release