Evotec, Inserm, Lille University Hospital and Inserm Transfert enter collaboration to identify novel therapeutic targets in obesity and metabolic diseases

Hamburg, Germany, 30 May 2024:
Evotec SE (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: EVT, MDAX/TecDAX, ISIN: DE0005664809; NASDAQ: EVO) today announced that the Company entered a partnership with Inserm, the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research, Lille University Hospital and Inserm Transfert (the private subsidiary of Inserm) to identify novel therapeutic targets and diagnostic and prognostic markers in obesity and metabolic diseases.

Lille University Hospital is the sponsor of the clinical study entitled ABOS / DIABOMICS (Biological Atlas of Severe Obesity). In the framework of this study, started in 2012, Lille University Hospital develops and maintains the ABOS Biobank composed of a biobank and different associated databases dedicated to the study of obesity and its comorbidities.

Obesity, a medical condition characterised by an excess accumulation of fat cells and uncontrolled ectopic fat deposition in the body, is currently recognised as one of the most important public health problems. It is estimated that over one billion adults globally will be affected by 2030. The strategic partnership between Evotec, Inserm, Lille University Hospital and Inserm Transfert aims at identifying novel multi-modality therapeutic targets. Evotec will gain access to a large patient cohort with severe obesity for the longitudinal assessment of metabolic outcomes after bariatric surgery-induced weight loss. The cohort consists of more than 8,000 human samples. Evotec will support the recruitment of 200 additional subjects within the next two years.

Under the agreement, Lille University Hospital will provide human biological samples and associated clinical data from its ABOS biobank and will collect specific human biological samples for the collaboration. Evotec will perform various omics studies on cohort samples to generate large omics data sets including transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics data to better understand the etiology of metabolic diseases like metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (“MASH”), obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. These PanOmics data will feed into Evotec’s proprietary translational molecular patient data platform E.MPD, which serves as the central data repository for molecular patient data. The data will be analysed by all parties to identify and validate key mechanisms of obesity and other metabolic diseases.

Dr Cord Dohrmann, Chief Scientific Officer of Evotec, commented: “We are excited to enter this partnership with Inserm and Lille University Hospital accessing a cohort of obese patients that is extremely well characterised. Currently over 40% of the US population suffers from obesity. The condition is a major health threat as it is connected to a plethora of other medical conditions such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, congestive heart failure, kidney disease and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This collaboration will help to understand obesity as a disease, something not achieved despite recent breakthroughs. Expanding our understanding of the key molecular mechanisms driving disease progression will allow us to identify and develop more effective but also safer treatment options than currently available.”

Prof. Francois Pattou, Translational Research Laboratory for Diabetes, Inserm UMR 1190 (under the joint supervision of Inserm, University of Lille and Lille University Hospital), PhD at Lille University Hospital, and Chairman of the Scientific Committee of Lille University Hospital ABOS Biobank, added: “Collaborating on cutting-edge science with a human data-centric approach gives us a unique opportunity to discover novel treatments for the benefit of patients living with obesity and metabolic diseases. The strong know-how and capabilities from Evotec will enable us to further strengthen and advance our research efforts within obesity and metabolic diseases based on human-relevant biology, to contribute to our overall mission of improving human health for all.”

Prof. Bart Staels, Nuclear receptors, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes Laboratory, Inserm UMR 1011 (under the joint supervision of Inserm, Lille University Hospital, University of Lille and Institut Pasteur of Lille), said: “We are very excited about the collaboration and are confident that the combination of Evotec's excellent expertise and our commitment to therapeutic innovation, translational research, and multidisciplinary approaches, will open up new possibilities in discovery and development of novel drugs targeting obesity and metabolic diseases, with the potential to make a difference for patients living with these conditions.”

Noémie Pellegrin, Director of Industry Partnerships and Entrepreneurship of Inserm Transfert, adds: We are delighted with this research partnership, which capitalises on the wealth of know-how within the Inserm laboratories, the quality data from Lille University Hospital and the cutting-edge molecular translational technologies developed by Evotec. This collaboration will advance our understanding of obesity and associated metabolic diseases through the identification of key molecular mechanisms and new therapeutic targets.

About Obesity
Obesity is defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health. A body mass index (“BMI”) over 30 is obese. However, BMI categories for defining obesity vary by age and gender in infants, children, and adolescents. The issue has grown to epidemic proportions and obesity constitutes a major public health challenge that undermines social and economic development. The worldwide prevalence of obesity nearly tripled between 1975 and 2016. The World Obesity Federation estimates that by 2020 around 770 million adults globally were affected by obesity, and that figure is anticipated to exceed one billion by 2030. Once associated with high-income countries, obesity is now also prevalent in low-and middle-income countries, including among lower socio-economic groups. Overweight and obesity are caused by many factors including behaviours like eating patterns, lack of sleep or physical activity, and some medicines, as well as genetics and family history. Obesity is a chronic health condition that raises the risk for heart disease and is linked to many other health problems, including MASH, type 2 diabetes and cancer.

About E.MPD
E.MPD, Evotec’s translational molecular patient database, is one of the largest and highest quality molecular databases globally. Evotec’s integrated technology platforms show that the best way to effectively treat disease is to identify underlying disease mechanisms and find the most suitable therapy on the basis of molecular data guiding all experimental processes towards early disease relevance. Therefore, data aggregation, integration, and the precise analysis of data is the critical path to effective and affordable medicine in the future.

E.MPD serves as the backbone for data-driven partnerships that will lead to innovative new medicines, better patient stratification, and potentially pave the way towards a new paradigm of more effective diagnostic and preventative healthcare. Through gathering and analysing patient-derived data in combination with AI/ML tools, Evotec is also able to better predict both safety and efficacy indicators in drug development.

About Inserm
Founded in 1964, Inserm is a public scientific and technological institute which operates under the joint authority of the French Ministries of Health and Research. The institute is dedicated to biomedical research and human health, and is involved in the entire range of activities from the laboratory to the patient’s bedside. It also partners with the most prestigious research institutions in the world that are committed to scientific challenges and progress in these fields. www.inserm.fr

About Lille University Hospital
With over 16,000 professionals and 10 hospitals on a single campus, the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Lille is one of the four largest university hospital centers in France, and one of the largest in Northern Europe. As a regional referral centre as well as teaching, innovation and research hospital, it serves the 6 million inhabitants of the Hauts-de-France region. Lille University Hospital is strongly committed to the development of therapeutic innovation and clinical research. Its research strategy focuses on the early diagnosis and treatment of multi-factorial diseases, including cancer, neuroscience, cardiovascular, metabolic, inflammatory and infectious pathologies. For further information: www.chu-lille.fr, X/Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Inserm Transfert
Inserm Transfert, the private subsidiary of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm), is responsible for value creation of Inserm and its academic partners’ innovations in human health and promotes long-term technology transfers in line with international best practices. Inserm Transfert SA was founded in 2000, and manages, under a Public Service Management Contract (Concession de Service Public) the entire innovation value chain and the transfer of knowledge from Inserm's research laboratories to industry, from invention disclosure to industrial partnerships and startups incorporation. Inserm Transfert also offers services relating to setting up and managing national, European and international projects, as well as supporting the technology transfer of clinical research and health data/databases and cohorts. For more information: www.inserm-transfert.com

About Evotec SE
Evotec is a life science company with a unique business model that delivers on its mission to discover and develop highly effective therapeutics and make them available to the patients. The Company’s multimodality platform comprises a unique combination of innovative technologies, data and science for the discovery, development, and production of first-in-class and best-in-class pharmaceutical products. Evotec provides high value pipeline co-creating partnerships and solutions to all Top 20 Pharma and over 800 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, as well as other healthcare stakeholders. Evotec has strategic activities in a broad range of currently underserved therapeutic areas, including e.g. neurology, oncology, as well as metabolic and infectious diseases. Within these areas of expertise, Evotec aims to create the world-leading co-owned pipeline for innovative therapeutics and has to-date established a portfolio of more than 200 proprietary and co-owned R&D projects from early discovery to clinical development. Evotec operates globally with more than 5,000 highly qualified people. The Company’s sites in Europe and the USA offer highly synergistic technologies and services and operate as complementary clusters of excellence. For additional information please go to www.evotec.com and follow us on X/Twitter @Evotec and LinkedIn.

Forward-looking-statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements concerning future events, including the proposed offering and listing of Evotec’s securities. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “potential,” “should,” “target,” “would” and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements include comments regarding Evotec’s expectations for revenues, Group EBITDA and unpartnered R&D expenses. These forward-looking statements are based on the information available to, and the expectations and assumptions deemed reasonable by Evotec at the time these statements were made. No assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been correct. These statements involve known and unknown risks and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates, which are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond the control of Evotec. Evotec expressly disclaims any obligations or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in Evotec’s expectations with respect thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any statement is based.

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