Evotec signs agreement with British Biotech
Evotec OAI has signed a medicinal chemistry optimisation programme agreement with British Biotech. It centres on British Biotech's antibiotic metalloenzyme inhibitor (MEI) research programme, which is focused on inhibitors of peptide deformylase (PDF). British Biotech has started a Phase I study of its lead PDF inhibitor, BB-83698, the first-ever clinical evaluation of this potential new class of antiinfective drugs. British Biotech is co-developing BB-83698 and other PDF inhibitors with US company GeneSoft Pharmaceuticals.
Under the Evotec/British Biotech collaboration, a team of Evotec chemists will design and synthesise additional PDF inhibitors, which British Biotech will use in screening in its search for novel antiinfective drug candidates.
Targeting bacterial metalloenzymes is a novel approach to the treatment of infectious disease since certain of these enzymes, including PDF, have been found to be essential for bacterial survival. In research and preclinical studies, British Biotech's PDF inhibitors have shown high potency against bacteria that cause pneumonia and other serious infections, including strains resistant to current antibiotics.
Evotec will apply its lead optimisation and medicinal chemistry techniques to help optimise the drug-like and ADMET properties of the substances identified in screening.
'Through our powerful technologies and expertise in medicinal and computational chemistry we are looking forward to increasing the speed and efficiency as well as lowering the attrition rates in the search of new drugs,' said Joern Aldag, ceo of Evotec.