Evotec SE and Novo Nordisk have announced a strategic collaboration on the discovery and development of innovative therapeutics for patients with chronic kidney disease.

The two companies will jointly identify and develop novel targets based on comprehensive medical and molecular data sets of thousands of chronic kidney disease patients. The collaboration intends to pursue the most relevant human disease biology in a therapeutic modality-agnostic approach to develop first-in-class therapeutics for patients suffering from CKD.

“We are proud to collaborate with Novo Nordisk in this field of very high unmet medical need. Based on a better understanding of disease-driving molecular mechanisms we aim to develop disease-modifying therapies, which are urgently needed,” commented Dr. Cord Dohrmann, chief scientific officer of Evotec. 

“Building on our excellent existing relationship with Evotec, we are very excited to embark on this new collaboration in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Collaborating on cutting-edge science, with a human data-centric approach, gives us a unique opportunity to discover novel treatments for the benefit of people living with CKD,” added Dr. Marcus Schindler, SVP of global drug discovery at Novo Nordisk. 

Under the terms of the agreement, Evotec and Novo Nordisk will share responsibilities during drug discovery and pre-clinical development. Novo Nordisk will be responsible for the clinical development and commercialization of the products. Evotec will receive an undisclosed upfront payment, research funding and milestone potential of more than €150 million ($179.4 million) per product as well as tiered royalties on net sales.