Medpace ID&V Experts Share Highlights from GAMRIC 2026
In September 2026, Medpace infectious diseases and vaccines experts attended GAMRIC in Lisbon, Portugal. The conference brought together leading researchers and industry professionals from around the world to share insights and explore the latest breakthroughs and ongoing challenges in developing new therapeutics, diagnostics, vaccines, and preventative approaches to address AMR.
Continue reading for insights from Medpace medical and operational experts on several key themes that emerged from GAMRIC 2026.
GAMRIC Core Scientific Pillars:
Accelerating Innovation in the AMR Pipeline
Researchers and industry leaders emphasized the urgent need to advance novel therapeutics to address resistant pathogens. Discussions focused on overcoming scientific, regulatory, and development challenges that can slow progression from discovery through clinical development. The importance of collaboration among sponsors, CROs, academics, and public health organizations emerged as a recurring theme.
Advancing Rapid and Precise Diagnostics
Innovative diagnostics are being developed to improve patient outcomes through earlier identification of pathogens. This in turn supports treatment decisions, improving appropriate use of antibiotics and strengthening efforts to combat antimicrobial resistance.
Prevention as a Critical AMR Strategy
Preventative approaches including vaccines and interventions remain a growing focus to reduce infection and decrease reliance on inappropriate use of antimicrobial therapies.
Global Collaboration and Coordination
AMR remains a global health challenge requiring coordinated action across regions and stakeholders, including researchers, academics, developers, and industry professionals from around the world. This reinforces the importance of cross-sector partnerships, data sharing, and integrated development strategies to accelerate innovation and expand patient access to new solutions. Translating this coordinated scientific effort into viable products, however, requires sustainable investment.
Funding and Sustainable Investment in AMR Innovation
While scientific advances continue to generate promising new therapeutics, diagnostics, and preventative strategies, the financial challenges associated with bringing AMR products through development and commercialization remain a key challenge.
Discussions emphasized the importance of public-private partnerships, incentive programs, and innovative reimbursement models to encourage continued investment and ensure developers can advance urgently needed solutions for resistant pathogens. AMR experts broadly agreed that addressing funding gaps will be critical to maintaining a robust innovation pipeline and delivering new treatment options to patients worldwide.
Non-dilutive funding remains a lifeline for AMR developers, particularly emerging biotechnology companies:
- CARB-X: Demonstrates the value of early-stage funding in advancing a broad global portfolio of antibacterial products toward clinical and commercial milestones. Since 2016, CARB-X has funded 122 early-stage projects in 14 countries, three of which have reached the market. Its portfolio spans therapeutics, vaccines, and other preventatives, including novel approaches to biofilm-associated infections.
- BARDA: Provides critical later-stage support through mechanisms designed to advance priority medical countermeasures and reduce development risk. A founding CARB-X funder, BARDA also backs later-stage programs through Project BioShield contracts and long-running development partnerships, including support for a first-in-class oral antibiotic approved by the FDA in 2025.
- Wellcome: Supports both early innovation and later-stage investment through partnerships intended to strengthen the AMR development pipeline. A CARB-X co-founder, Wellcome also committed £50 million to the AMR Action Fund, which invests in late-stage antibacterial developers.
- Gates Foundation: Advances vaccines, biologics, and other interventions with particular relevance to high-burden settings and underserved populations. Gates partners with CARB-X on vaccines and biologics for low- and middle-income countries, such as neonatal sepsis vaccines, and its Medical Research Institute licensed two candidates for drug-resistant tuberculosis in 2022.
Together, these initiatives provide essential support across the development continuum; however, closing the gap between early-stage innovation and sustainable commercialization will also require effective pull incentives, reimbursement reform, and durable market-based solutions.
A Sustainable Ecosystem
Scientific breakthroughs continue to emerge, yet relatively few novel antimicrobials successfully reach patients. Many smaller biotechnology companies struggle to finance late-stage development, while commercial returns often fail to match the investment required to bring new therapies to market. GAMRIC sessions highlighted how the AMR development ecosystem must support not only research, but also sustain the entire development pathway, from early research through clinical trials, regulatory approval, commercialization, and global access.
As discussed throughout GAMRIC, this ecosystem increasingly requires coordination across disciplines, including solutions such as diagnostics, surveillance systems, regulatory strategy, and clinical execution. Progress depends not only on scientific innovation, but also on the ability to translate that innovation into well-designed, efficiently executed programs. For emerging biotechnology companies, access to experienced infectious disease experts who are involved early can help avoid common pitfalls and create a clearer path toward key milestones.
Advancing AMR programs from scientific promise to clinical and commercial viability requires a CRO partner that can provide integrated expertise, informed guidance, and coordinates support across the following critical functions:
- Early development strategy
- Regulatory planning
- Clinical pharmacology
- Protocol design
- Global feasibility
- Site network engagement
- Clinical operations
- Data management
- Biostatistics
- Medical monitoring
A CRO such as Medpace, with specialized infectious disease expertise and integrated clinical development capabilities, can help bridge the gap between scientific innovation and clinical execution, creating efficiencies that support progress throughout the development lifecycle.
Unable to connect with us during GAMRIC? We welcome the opportunity to collaborate. Contact our ID&V experts to discuss how Medpace can support your clinical development strategy.
A Leading Global CRO for Infectious Diseases & Vaccines
Medpace’s specialized cross-functional team of experts have extensive experience executing global trials in antivirals, antibacterials, antifungals, vaccines, and immunotherapies spanning adult and pediatric patients, as well as special at-risk populations. Our experienced medical leadership team, integrated laboratories and clinical trial management system, and extensive site and investigator relationships produce a truly seamless drug development process.
In the past 9 years, Medpace ID&V experts have contributed to:
