Evotec and Roche to jointly develop biomarkers in oncology
The alliance will help Roche with targeted therapeutics for cancer therapy
Evotec) and Roche are to collaborate in novel protein-activity based biomarkers for Roche’s oncology drugs under development.
Evotec will employ its PhosphoScout platform to discover protein-phosphorylation’s that predict favourable dosage and efficacy of targeted cancer drugs in patients. Roche will be responsible for conducting clinical trials as well as assessing the development of companion diagnostics for patient stratification.
Under the initial three-year term Evotec and Roche will conduct multiple biomarker programs for therapeutic antibodies or small molecule inhibitors. Evotec will receive undisclosed up-front and success-based payments for each program.
Evotec’s PhosphoScout platform employs high-end mass spectrometry to identify and quantify thousands of cellular phosphorylation events on a global scale. According to the company, unlike immunoassays, PhosphoScout allows unbiased systems-wide profiling of signalling pathways. Monitoring changes in the cellular phosphoproteome in response to drug treatment not only supports mechanistic understanding of targeted drugs but also enables the discovery of predictive biomarkers.
Mike Burgess, global head of oncology, Roche Pharma Research and Exploratory Development, said the company was pleased to collaborate with Evotec and benefit from the PhosphoScout technology to identify appropriate pharmacodynamics and patient stratification biomarkers: ‘These biomarkers are core to the development of targeted therapeutics for cancer therapy,’ he said.
Dr Werner Lanthaler, ceo of Evotec, said: ‘Biomarker-based personalised healthcare has led to a paradigm shift in cancer therapy..We are proud to partner Evotec’s novel biomarker concept with Roche, the world leading personalised healthcare company, and its Pharma Research and Development Organization.’
