Preclinical testing of antimicrobials for cystic fibrosis lung infections: current needs and future priorities

A workshop was held by the PIPE-CF strategic research centre to consider preclinical testing of antimicrobials for cystic fibrosis (CF). The workshop brought together groups of people from the CF community to discuss current challenges and identify priorities when developing CF therapeutics. This paper summarizes the key points from the workshop from the different sessions, including talks given by presenters on the day and round table discussions. Currently, it is felt that there is a large disconnect throughout the community, with communication between patients, clinicians and researchers being the main issue. This leads to little consideration being given to factors such as treatment regimes, routes of administration and side effects when developing new therapies, that could alter the day-to-day lifestyles of people living with CF. Translation of numerical data that are obtained in the laboratory to successful outcomes of clinical trials is also a key challenge facing researchers today. Laboratory assays in preclinical testing involve basing results on bacterial clearance and decrease in viable cells, when these are not factors that are considered when determining the success of a treatment in the clinic. However, there are several models currently in development that seek to tackle some of these issues, such as the organ-on-a-chip technology and adaptation of a hollow-fibre model, as well as the development of media that aim to mimic the niche environments of a CF respiratory tract. It is hoped that by summarizing these opinions and discussing current research, the communication gap between groups can begin to close.