In a recent editorial we expressed concern about the lack of new drug development in the field of antibiotics and about the announcement that Pfizer Inc. is moving its antibacterials unit to Shanghai, China. Tough regulatory standards and a lack of profit motivation have reduced the flow of antibiotic research and development to a relative trickle.

Antibiotics taken for a few days don't deliver the same revenues as long-term use drugs, such as blood pressure and cholesterol-control medications. Drug producers have moved research dollars to the drug-development fields with potential blockbuster profits. Tougher approval standards, some of them debatable, add to the reluctance to invest in antibiotic research.

Pfizer's move overseas appears to be in direct response to these market and regulatory pressures.

Now comes word of a potential new approach. Brad Spellberg, an infectious-disease specialist at UCLA, is proposing to use 9,000 square feet of incubator space at the Yale Science Park in New Haven for antibiotic research. He'd like to see 25 top-level research scientists who otherwise will be leaving Pfizer, and likely the state because of the Shanghai move, transfer into this proposed not-for-profit program.

Mr. Spellberg envisions a private-public partnership with $150 million in government investment over 10 years. He is asking Pfizer to provide at least one potential antibiotic candidate to kick off research. Pfizer would retain the rights to any drug that shows promise. Ultimately, other pharmaceutical companies could seed potential antibiotic candidates with the research center.

While this idea needs further development, it has great potential not only for antibiotic research, but for Connecticut economically. The already busy administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy should stick its nose into this matter.

An estimated 70,000 people die annually in U.S. hospitals after developing infections resistant to existing antibiotic drugs. If the current for-profit model is not meeting this vital health need, it's time to look for alternatives. Dr. Spellberg suggests an intriguing one.