What is "dalbavancin"

n. A lipoglycopeptide antibiotic.

Dalbavancin ( INN, trade names Dalvance in the US and Xydalba in Europe) is a novel second-generation lipoglycopeptide antibiotic. It belongs to the same class as vancomycin, the most widely used and one of the few treatments available to patients infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Dalbavancin is a semisynthetic lipoglycopeptide that was designed to improve upon the natural glycopeptides currently available, vancomycin and teicoplanin.

It possesses in vitro activity against a variety of Gram-positive pathogens including MRSA and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis (MRSE). It is a once-weekly, two-dose antibiotic, the rights to which Actavis acquired when it bought Durata Therapeutics in 2014.

The Food and Drug Administration approved dalbavancin in May 2014 for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSIs) caused by certain susceptible bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus including methicillin-susceptible and methicillin-resistant strains of Streptococcus pyogenes, in intravenous dosage form.