Evotec and Novo Nordisk form strategic research alliance in diabetes and obesity

• THE ALLIANCE BUILDS UPON EVOTEC’S LEADING DRUG DISCOVERY AND DEVELOPMENT CAPABILITIES IN DIABETES AND RELATED CO-MORBIDITIES
• NOVO NORDISK ACCESSES EVOTEC’S INTEGRATED DISCOVERY AND DEVELOPMENT PLATFORM TO PROGRESS NEW MOLECULES FROM CONCEPT TO IND INCLUDING EVOTEC’S INDIGO PLATFORM

Hamburg, Germany, 22 August 2018: 
Evotec AG (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: EVT, TecDAX, ISIN: DE0005664809) today announced a strategic alliance with Novo Nordisk to discover and develop novel small molecule therapies to treat patients suffering from diabetes and obesity as well as co morbidities such as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (“NASH”), cardiovascular diseases, and diabetic kidney disease.

Evotec will apply its drug discovery platform, especially in ligand-based design, to seek to design novel, safe and efficacious products to address diabetes and associated morbidities. Once suitable pre-clinical candidates are selected, Novo Nordisk will use Evotec’s INDiGO platform to move through pre-clinical studies to enter IND registration.

Dr Mario Polywka, Chief Operating Officer of Evotec, commented: “Novo Nordisk is one of the largest, most successful Pharma companies in the world with a proven leadership position in diabetes and obesity. The integration of our industry-leading discovery and development platform with Novo Nordisk’s deep disease expertise will create a powerful combination that we hope will create a difference for patients with diabetes or obesity. We very much look forward to working with such an innovative partner.”

Dr Marcus Schindler, senior vice president, Global Drug Discovery, Novo Nordisk, added: “Evotec is a highly esteemed company in the field of small molecules and we are very excited about the collaboration. Novo Nordisk is confident that this will open up new possibilities in small molecule drug discovery and development targeting diabetes and obesity with the potential to make a difference for people living with these serious diseases.”

No financial details of the alliance were disclosed.

About Diabetes

Diabetes mellitus (“Diabetes”) is a chronic incapacitating disease associated with severe lifelong conditions which require intensive monitoring and control, such as cardiovascular diseases, kidney diseases, nerve damage and eye diseases. According to the International Diabetes Federation, approximately 425 million people worldwide had diabetes in 2017 (2015: 415 million). Concerning the diabetes market volume, approx. $ 727 bn were spent on the treatment of diabetes in 2017 (2015: $ 673 bn).

About Obesity

Obesity is an excessive fat accumulation that in many cases impairs health and affects more than 650 million adults worldwide. The condition often severely reduces the patient’s quality of life and is a major risk factor for many diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders, and several forms of cancer. According to World Obesity, the global annual medical cost of treating obesity-related diseases was over $ 800 bn in 2017 and is expected to rise to $ 1.2 trn by 2025.

ABOUT NOVO NORDISK

Novo Nordisk is a global healthcare company with 95 years of innovation and leadership in diabetes care. This heritage has given us experience and capabilities that also enable us to help people defeat obesity, haemophilia, growth disorders and other serious chronic diseases. Headquartered in Denmark, Novo Nordisk employs approximately 43,100 people in 79 countries and markets its products in more than 170 countries. For more information, visit novonordisk.com, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Information set forth in this press release contains forward-looking statements, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgement of Evotec as of the date of this press release. Such forward-looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statements to reflect any change in our expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.