Evotec launches “PRROTECT”, a pre-competitive initiative to be better prepared for future pandemics

• INTEGRATED PLATFORM APPROACH TO RESPOND TO THE CHALLENGES OF PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS, RAPID RESPONSE AND DELIVERABILITY
• PRROTECT COMBINES FIRST-IN-CLASS PROGRAMMES ACROSS THERAPEUTIC MODALITIES, ACCELERATED R&D TIMELINES FOR HIGHLY EFFECTIVE NEUTRALISING ANTIBODIES WITH AI/ML PREDICTION TOOLS (J.HAL^℠) AND MANUFACTURING PLATFORM (J.POD^®)

Hamburg, Germany, 15 June 2021: Evotec SE (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: EVT, MDAX/TecDAX, ISIN: DE0005664809) announced today that the Company has launched an initiative for pandemic preparedness (“PRROTECT”). PRROTECT leverages a comprehensive set of novel projects and technologies to be better prepared for and respond faster to viral pandemics of the future.

Virus outbreaks that can develop into dynamic pandemics are a permanent global threat. Besides preventive measures and vaccines, highly effective therapeutics are the backbone of any pandemic response. Evotec’s PRROTECT initiative includes the development and delivery of superior novel therapeutics to curb the next viral pandemic. Based on the Company’s distinctive set of global capabilities, Evotec is uniquely positioned to develop next-generation therapeutics across all modalities including small molecules, protein degraders, antibodies and immuno-modulators, but excluding vaccines. 

PRROTECT will be an open pre-competitive network initiative designed to offer the best protection against future pandemics by including three lines of preparation: 

• Preparedness against viral threats, i.e. the pre-development of a multimodality pipeline of therapeutic candidates against the most threatening viruses as defined by the World Health Organisation (“WHO”)
• Rapid response technologies to accelerate de novo R&D timelines of highly effective neutralising antibodies using AI & ML platforms (e.g. J.HAL^℠)
• Flexible manufacturing network with highly intensified production facilities (J.POD^®) to provide therapeutic antibodies quickly wherever needed

Dr Werner Lanthaler, Chief Executive Officer of Evotec SE, commented: “COVID-19 has taught us that any pandemic response is incomplete without effective therapeutics. Preparing for the next pandemic rather than reacting to an outbreak can accelerate the response time until effective therapeutics are available dramatically. We want to see the launch of PRROTECT as an open invitation to all interested network partners globally to join forces now, so that no generation has to experience the level of unpreparedness that we all suffered from in the last 2 years ever again.”

Dr Thomas Hanke, EVP and Head of Academic Partnerships, added: “A post-COVID-19 viral pandemic is likely. To substantially curb its impact on human health, a collaborative approach between academic researchers and drug developers in the biotech and Pharma industries around the globe to discover and pre-develop novel broad and quick-acting anti-viral therapies will be key.”

Evotec has already established relationships with academic, Pharma, and public stakeholders in the field of anti-infectives and is currently in discussions with a number of partners on potential opportunities to collaborate on the PRROTECT platform. Furthermore, through its leading expertise in the area, Evotec already has a portfolio of anti-viral therapeutics that is ready to be advanced to other viruses, and the Company expects first clinical data of PRROTECT projects to become available already in 2022. 

About PRROTECT
To prepare against future pandemics, Evotec has initiated the global networking initiative PRROTECT (pandemic Preparedness and Rapid RespOnse TEChnology PlaTform). PRROTECT builds on Evotec’s existing anti-viral therapeutics portfolio and leverages the Company’s platform to further broaden its existing modalityagnostic pipeline against viral threats, while at the same time accelerating R&D timelines for neutralising antibodies, and creating a flexible manufacturing network to deliver such therapeutics in the event of a future pandemic.