MedImmune, Evotec Expand Diabetes Alliance

Evotec AG has expanded its collaboration with MedImmune after reaching a key milestone, triggering a payment of $653,000. MedImmune has been granted a commercial license and the companies will extend their diabetes and beta cell regeneration collaboration through 2013.
 
Under the agreement, MedImmune has exclusive access to a defined set of biologic targets that have the potential to prevent or reverse disease progression in diabetic patients. Evotec will receive additional research payments to support in vitro and in vivo experiments. Evotec is eligible to receive $331.9 million in further milestones and payments, as well as royalties on product sales.
 
Dr. Cord Dohrmann, chief scientific officer of Evotec, said, “Together with our colleagues at MedImmune and AstraZeneca we have been highly productive in driving forward the development of EVT770 as well as additional molecules in the portfolio. We are proud that we have already achieved the second milestone in this collaboration and are very much looking forward to expanding our efforts and thereby laying the foundation for continued success.”
 
Dr. Cristina Rondinone, vice president and head of MedImmune’s Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease Center of Excellence, said, “We are excited to expand our collaboration with Evotec. Diabetes has reached epidemic levels and it is one of the biggest causes of mortality worldwide. Therefore, it is critical that we develop novel and highly effective therapies to slow down and ultimately stop the development of diabetes.”