BRIEF—Evotec and Celgene expand neurology deal

Germany’s Evotec and USA-based Celgene have expanded an ongoing R&D collaboration in neurodegeneration, with the addition of a new cell type, triggering a payment of $9 million to Evotec.

In December 2016, the firms signed an exclusive five-year broad R&D collaboration, based on Evotec's induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) platform.

The deal is worth a potential $295 million to Evotec. Initial disease areas of focus included amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and multiple other neurodegenerative disorders.