Evotec Partners With Plectonic to Advance T Cell Engager Platform

Solid tumor indications have resisted conventional T cell engager strategies for years, Evotec SE and Plectonic Biotech are now combining two distinct platform technologies in a preclinical collaboration designed to address that gap directly. The agreement pairs Evotec's proprietary BiTco costimulatory CD2 bispecifics platform with Plectonic's logic-gated DNA-protein immunotherapy technology, LOGIBODY®, to generate proof-of-concept data on a next-generation T cell engaging modality.

The mechanistic rationale is specific. LOGIBODY® molecules require simultaneous binding to a predefined multi-antigen tumor signature before triggering T cell activation, a logic-gated architecture intended to reduce off-tumor activation and widen the therapeutic window. Evotec's BiTco platform contributes a non-blocking CD2 antibody targeting a unique epitope that preserves natural CD2 interactions, providing costimulatory signaling to enhance T cell persistence and delay exhaustion within the tumor microenvironment. Neither platform has been combined at this preclinical stage before.

For CDMOs and contract manufacturers tracking the bispecific and multispecific biologics pipeline, the manufacturing implications are worth noting early. LOGIBODY® molecules are DNA-protein therapeutics, a hybrid modality that sits outside standard monoclonal antibody or conventional bispecific production workflows. Scaling such constructs will require process development teams to evaluate novel conjugation chemistries, analytical characterization strategies, and release testing frameworks not yet codified in mainstream ICH Q10 or 21 CFR Part 211 guidance. The BiTco component, as a bispecific antibody, carries its own upstream and downstream complexity around heterodimer assembly and aggregation control.

Solid tumors account for approximately 90 percent of all cancers, according to Evotec CSO Dr. Cord Dohrmann, making the clinical unmet need substantial. Plectonic has demonstrated LOGIBODY® modularity in preclinical studies across both liquid and solid tumor models using dual-targeting and costimulatory strategies. Evotec published preclinical BiTco data prior to this collaboration, establishing CD2-mediated costimulation proof-of-concept in T cell engager combinations.

The collaboration is structured around preclinical proof-of-concept generation; no financial terms, milestone structures, or commercialization rights were disclosed in the announcement.

The preclinical dataset this collaboration produces will be the first measurable indicator of whether logic-gated multispecific recognition and CD2 costimulation can be integrated into a manufacturable, clinically translatable solid tumor modality.

Source: Evotec SE via evotec.com, 2 September 2026.