Evotec SE has reached important scientific progress within its neuroscience collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb triggering a research payment of $20 million to Evotec. A target-based program has progressed into late pre-clinical development, further contributing to the pipeline of discovery to clinical-stage programs in neurodegeneration that the partnership has generated.
 
Evotec and Bristol Myers Squibb entered their strategic neuroscience collaboration in December 2016 to identify disease-modifying treatments for a broad range of neurodegenerative diseases. Currently approved drugs mainly offer short-term management of the patients’ symptoms and there is a significant unmet medical need for therapeutic modalities that slow down or prevent disease progression.
 
A first program, EVT8683, was in-licensed by Bristol Myers Squibb in September 2021 as BMS-986419. Following a successful Phase I study, Bristol Myers Squibb announced that a Phase II study for BMS-986419 is scheduled to commence in 2024. In March 2023, Bristol Myers Squibb and Evotec extended and expanded this partnership for an additional 8 years.
 
Dr. Cord Dohrmann, Chief Scientific Officer of Evotec, said: “We are excited to further expand our pipeline with another high-potential program progressing into late pre-clinical development, demonstrating the exceptional productivity of our neuroscience partnership with Bristol Myers Squibb and our shared commitment to innovation and patient care. Together with Bristol Myers Squibb we have been able to advance a growing portfolio of programs to critical inflection points, bringing us closer to our joint goal of delivering new therapeutic options for patients suffering from devastating neurological disorders.”