The ARSP EGASP Study Group contributed to a new multi-country WHO EGASP analysis evaluating gepotidacin, a first-in-class oral antimicrobial candidate for gonorrhoea. The study tested 2,912 Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates collected across eight EGASP sentinel countries (Cambodia, Indonesia, Malawi, the Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, Uganda, and Vietnam) from 2021–2024, including 125 (4.3%) ceftriaxone-resistant isolates. Gepotidacin showed high in-vitro activity overall (MIC range <0.016 to 4 mg/L; MIC₅₀ 0.5 mg/L; MIC₉₀ 1 mg/L), supporting its continued clinical development as a potential new oral treatment option. The study also identified a notable prevalence of ParC D86N (35.5% overall; higher in some settings), underscoring the importance of careful introduction and ongoing phenotypic and genomic resistance monitoring before and after rollout.

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High in vitro activity of the novel antimicrobial gepotidacin against Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates in eight WHO Enhanced Gonococcal Antimicrobial Surveillance Programme countries in three WHO regions, 2021–24