Bayer, Nuvisan to open small molecule research center
Bayer plans to shift a significant portion of its Berlin-based small molecule research activity to Nuvisan. The latter company provides clinical study, laboratory and contract manufacturing services.
Joerg Moeller, head of research and development for Bayer AG’s Pharmaceuticals Division and member of its executive committee, said the firm hopes to build a “strong, full-fledged research unit” with Nuvisan.
“Nuvisan shares our vision that the new research center can become an important player in research partnering based on the joint know-how and capabilities of our highly qualified scientists,” Moeller said.
The new research entity housed at the center reportedly will create 400 jobs in the area. Capabilities across the drug discovery chain include lead discovery, medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics, investigational toxicology, and animal management.
Dietrich Bruchmann, Nuvisan CEO and managing partner, said the capabilities of the German facility will empower a “high-performance research team” by offering access to specialized technology.
“The acquisition of the research unit and its location at the Bayer R&D campus will create an operational hub in the scientific excellence cluster in Berlin and allow us to significantly accelerate the drug development process from discovery to clinical trials,” Bruchmann said.
According to Bayer, the partnership will enable the company to focus its efforts on R&D flexibility and productivity. Bayer intends to continue additional research activities and corporate functions at its Berlin-based Pharmaceuticals Division.
The arrangement marks the latest in a series of partnerships Bayer has formed with other entities in the past few months. In late January 2020, the firm inked a five-year deal with Schrodinger to develop molecule-design software. A few weeks earlier, Bayer expanded its work with Evotec on developing women’s health drugs.
