German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim, life science company Evotec and in-vitro diagnostics provider bioMérieux have joined forces to fight Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR).
The three companies have formed a joint venture, dubbed Aurobac Therapeutics, which will develop both next-generation antimicrobials and diagnostics against AMR.
Based in Lyon, France, the €40m joint venture received €30m funding from Boehringer Ingelheim as the lead investor and €5m each from Evotec and bioMérieux.
Aurobac is expected to combine the capabilities of its three founding companies to develop a new precision medicine approach, from diagnosis to cure.
Evotec will leverage its expertise in infectious diseases, bioMérieux’s in diagnostics and Boehringer Ingelheim its drug discovery and clinical development capabilities.
Aurobac aims to shift the strategy associated with antibiotic treatment regimens which are currently based on broad-spectrum and unfocused medicines, to a precision approach.
The new approach would use targeted modalities, together with rapid and actionable diagnostics to quickly identify pathogens and their resistance patterns, said Boehringer.
bioMérieux chairman and CEO Alexandre Mérieux said: “bioMérieux has a strong expertise in antimicrobial resistance. We supply the most comprehensive integrated diagnostic solutions to support an appropriate use of antibiotics.
“Our role within the joint venture is to develop and commercialise diagnostic tests, including Companion Diagnostics, which deliver rapid, reliable and actionable results.
“This participation in Aurobac is perfectly aligned with bioMérieux’ full commitment to sustain antibiotic efficacy for future generations.”
Boehringer Ingelheim said that its participation in Aurobac builds on its broader pandemic preparedness initiative, which includes a €50m investment in its AMR action fund.
bioMérieux has more than 55 years of diagnostics expertise with more than 75% of its research and development budget focused on antimicrobial resistance.
In addition, 80% of its turnover is related to the fight against AMR through a complete diagnostic solution facilitating antibiotic therapy decision-making.
Evotec has created an advanced platform to address infectious diseases and has proven experience in multiple agent classes.
Evotec CEO Werner Lanthaler said: “The grim prospect of a post-antibiotic era has many causes but only one solution: The development of new, targeted, and effective antimicrobial therapies.
“We are excited to launch Aurobac together with our partners at Boehringer Ingelheim and bioMérieux, to combine our complementary strengths.
“By leveraging Evotec’s multimodality approach to infectious diseases, we are confident that Aurobac will be able to generate much-needed progress to tackle the global challenge of AMR.”
