EVOTEC, ROCHE FORM ALLIANCE TO JOINTLY DISCOVER NEW DRUGS

Swiss drugmaker Roche and German drugmaker Evotec have formed an alliance to jointly discover and develop compounds against a target for central nervous system (CNS) diseases and other indications, the companies announced.

The companies will collaborate to identify inhibitors involved in the potential treatment of a range of diseases.

"We have been working with Roche for many years in an atmosphere of mutual respect -- in service agreements and in-licensing of CNS drugs -- and are looking forward to now partnering one of our CNS discovery projects into this joint effort," said John Kemp, executive vice president for research and development at Evotec.