Merck KGaA eighth EPP spin-off to focus on infertility treatment

2 December 2013

USA-based EMD Serono, one of German drug and chemical group Merck KGaA’s (MRK: DE) biotechnology subsidiaries, has announced the creation of TocopheRx, a Boston-based spin-off company resulting from the Entrepreneur Partnership Program (EPP) launched by Merck Serono in April 2012.

TocopheRx, the eighth spin-off in the EPP, will focus on the development of oral follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) agonists for treatment of infertility, by advancing EMD Serono's preclinical program toward clinical testing. The affiliate of EMD Serono will initially invest $3.2 million in seed funding. MS Ventures, the corporate venture arm of Merck Serono, will manage the investment and will be represented on the company's board of directors.

FSH administration today is a standard hormonal treatment to help women and men with the unfulfilled desire to have children. TocopheRx strives to further investigate the potential role of oral FSH agonists in fertility treatment protocols.

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