Evotec, Haplogen to jointly develop anti-viral compounds

The drugs resulting from the partnership are expected to target a human protein that is vital for the spread of pathogenic viral infection in the host cell.

Haplogen leveraged its proprietary technology in identifying the human protein.

Haplogen CEO Georg Casari said, "This partnership will ensure that our therapeutic program advances with increasing pace to discover molecules for clinical testing in those patients that are at high risk of virus infections."

Under the agreement, Evotec will advance the development of Haplogen’s lead candidates and discover other small molecule inhibitors, using its drug discovery platform.

Evotec chief operating officer Mario Polywka said, "We are delighted to partner with Haplogen to optimize their protein inhibitors. Haplogen’s powerful target discovery technology is an excellent complement to Evotec’s small molecule discovery and development capabilities."

The companies did not reveal the terms of the agreement.