Evotec has achieved preclinical proof-of-concept in its strategic alliance with Sanofi in the field of diabetes, triggering a €3.0 million milestone payment to Evotec.

Evotec and Sanofi signed their collaboration in August 2015 with the goal of developing a beta cell replacement therapy based on functional beta cells derived from human stem cells. In addition, the companies aim to use human beta cells for high-throughput drug screening to identify small molecules or biologics beneficial for beta cell activity.

Dr. Cord Dohrmann, chief scientific officer of Evotec, said, “Diabetes represents one of the major threats to global healthcare systems and we are committed to discover new treatment options together with our colleagues at Sanofi. We are very pleased to have achieved this very important milestone that represents a major step forward towards developing a new therapeutic option for diabetes patients.”