Evotec, Merck KGaA Enter CNS Development Pact

Evotec AG, through the NEU(2) consortium, has signed an agreement with Merck KGaA to develop pre-clinical candidates for an undisclosed neurological disease. Evotec will provide drug discovery expertise covering in vitro biology, medicinal chemistry and in vitro and in vivo pharmacology. Evotec will apply its drug discovery expertise and technologies to identify small molecules for the selected target to be further optimized and progressed through lead optimization to a pre-clinical candidate.

Dr. Mario Polywka, chief operating officer of Evotec commented: “We are proud to be part of the NEU(2) consortium and we are extremely pleased that Merck KGaA selected Evotec to collaborate on this interesting Drug Discovery Program which is a further recognition of our CNS disease expertise.”

The NEU(2) consortium includes, among others, Merck KGaA, Evotec AG, European ScreeningPort GmbH, Bionamics GmbH, and the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, and is the result of a nationwide “BioPharma” strategy competition of The Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The consortium aims to promote partnerships between academic institutions and pharma and bipharma companies in an effort to strengthen the pharmaceutical value chain in Germany. The NEU(2) consortium focuses on the development of novel therapies against neurological diseases with a specific focus on multiple sclerosis.