- INCLUDES NEW CELL TYPES FOR STUDYING MOLECULAR DISEASE SIGNATURES FOR DISCOVERY OF DISEASE-MODIFYING THERAPIES FOR NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES
- TRIGGERS US$ 9.0 M PAYMENT TO EVOTEC
HAMBURG, GERMANY / ACCESSWIRE / October 8, 2021 / Evotec SE (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: EVT, MDAX/TecDAX, ISIN: DE0005664809) announced today that its collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) has been expanded to include a new cell type, triggering a payment of $ 9.0 m to Evotec.
The collaboration was initiated in December 2016 with the goal of identifying disease-modifying treatments for a broad range of neurodegenerative diseases. Currently approved drugs only offer short-term management of the patients' symptoms and there is tremendous unmet medical need for therapeutic options that slow down or reverse disease progression. The collaboration pursues an innovative approach to the discovery and development of novel medicines by leveraging Evotec's iPSC platform using patient-derived disease models, which is one of the largest and most sophisticated platforms in the industry.
Since 2016, the companies have expanded the collaboration several times. The latest expansion will enable the companies to investigate the root causes of many neurodegenerative diseases in a cell type specific fashion using cells directly derived from patients. In addition, molecular disease signatures will be used to define detailed molecular disease phenotypes using Evotec's leading panomics platform, EVOpanOmics & EVOpanHunter.
Dr Cord Dohrmann, Chief Scientific Officer of Evotec, commented: "We are delighted that our important collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb will now investigate and target mechanisms driving neurodegeneration more comprehensively through the addition of a new cell type. Through our human iPSC-based approach we believe we have the potential to improve clinical outcomes of neurodegeneration programmes. iPSC technology enables us to directly work on human neurons to explore new drug candidates in the pre-clinical setting."
About Evotec and iPSC
Induced pluripotent stem cells (also known as iPS cells or iPSCs) are a type of pluripotent stem cell that can be generated directly from adult cells. The iPSC technology was pioneered by Shinya Yamanaka's lab in Kyoto, Japan, who showed in 2006 that the introduction of four specific genes encoding transcription factors could convert adult cells into pluripotent stem cells. He was awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize along with Sir John Gurdon "for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent". Pluripotent stem cells hold great promise in the field of regenerative medicine. Because they can propagate indefinitely, as well as give rise to every other cell type in the body (such as neurons, heart, pancreatic and liver cells), they represent a single source of cells that could be used to replace those lost to damage or disease.
Evotec has built an industrialised iPSC infrastructure that represents one of the largest and most sophisticated iPSC platforms in the industry. Evotec's iPSC platform has been developed over the last years with the goal to industrialise iPSC-based drug screening in terms of throughput, reproducibility and robustness to reach the highest industrial standards, and to use iPSC-based cells in cell therapy approaches via the Company's proprietary EVOcells platform.
ABOUT EVOTEC SE
Evotec is a life science company with a unique business model that delivers on its mission to discover and develop highly effective therapeutics and make them available to the patients. The Company's multimodality platform comprises a unique combination of innovative technologies, data and science for the discovery, development, and production of first-in-class and best-in-class pharmaceutical products. Evotec leverages this "Data-driven R&D Autobahn to Cures" for proprietary projects and within a network of partners including all Top 20 Pharma and over 800 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, as well as other healthcare stakeholders. Evotec has strategic activities in a broad range of currently underserved therapeutic areas, including e.g. neurology, oncology, as well as metabolic and infectious diseases. Within these areas of expertise, Evotec aims to create the world-leading co-owned pipeline for innovative therapeutics and has to-date established a portfolio of more than 200 proprietary and co-owned R&D projects from early discovery to clinical development. Evotec operates globally with more than 3,900 highly qualified people. The Company's 14 sites offer highly synergistic technologies and services and operate as complementary clusters of excellence. For additional information please go to www.evotec.com and follow us on Twitter @Evotec and LinkedIn.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This announcement contains forward-looking statements concerning future events, including the proposed offering and listing of Evotec's securities. Words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "might," "plan," "potential," "should," "target," "would" and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements include comments regarding completion of the offering. These forward-looking statements are based on the information available to, and the expectations and assumptions deemed reasonable by Evotec at the time these statements were made. No assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been correct. These statements involve known and unknown risks and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates, which are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond the control of Evotec. Evotec expressly disclaims any obligations or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in Evotec's expectations with respect thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any statement is based.
Media Contact Evotec SE:
Gabriele Hansen, SVP Head of Global Corporate Communications & Marketing, Phone: +49.(0)40.56081-255, gabriele.hansen@evotec.com
IR Contact Evotec SE:
Volker Braun, SVP Head of Global Investor Relations & ESG, Phone: +49.(0)40.56081-775, volker.braun@evotec.com
SOURCE: Evotec AG
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