Evotec teams up with Harvard, HHMI on diabetes drugs

Underscoring just how hot academic partnerships have become, Germany's Evotec has forged a research collaboration with Harvard and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute that will focus on new diabetes drugs. Their initial goal will be to identify the physiological mechanisms and targets that regulate beta cell replication. "We are convinced that (the partnership) will lead to the development of a pipeline of exciting drug candidates in diabetes," said Dr. Cord Dohrmann, CSO of Evotec. "Existing therapies have proven largely ineffective against the progression of most degenerative diseases including diabetes. We are enthusiastic about exploring new mechanisms that have the potential to restore beta cell function and produce first-in-class therapeutics for the treatment of diabetes in collaboration with Harvard and HHMI." Evotec release