Evotec and IR Pharma have formed an exclusive strategic alliance to provide integrated drug discovery solutions to pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the field of respiratory diseases.

The alliance expands Evotec's drug discovery platform into the area of respiratory diseases through IR Pharma's expertise in in vitro and in vivo respiratory pharmacology. Evotec can now offer fully-integrated respiratory- and inflammation-focused drug discovery programs to its partners, from target to nomination of pre-clinical development candidates.

"IR Pharma has outstanding expertise in the respiratory disease area including disease relevant in vivo models, and coupled with our world-leading discovery engine and commercial reach, we are sure we can bring outstanding value to existing and future partners and collaborators in these demanding disease areas,” said Dr. Mario Polywka, COO at Evotec.

Maria Belvisi, director at IR Pharma, added, "We have a range of highly validated models, focusing on asthma, cough and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), which ideally complement Evotec's platform, thus enabling a fully integrated approach to drug discovery in this challenging area."

No financial details were disclosed.