March 15, 2009 (Vol. 29, No. 6)
In discussing why his company recently opened a 60,000 sq-ft preclinical facility in Shanghai, Chris Perkin, corporate senior vp and president of Canadian and Chinese preclinical services at Charles River Laboratories, notes that China is rapidly “evolving as a center of innovation in research and development.” In the past, China was mainly viewed as a country where low-cost pharmaceutical manufacturing could be carried out.
Perkin says Charles River is providing its clients with services and support needed to accelerate their drug development programs in China.
“Initially, what they need is discovery support through to the investigative new drug submission,” he explains. “We’ll be one of the first major Western CROs to open a Western-style GLP facility in China.”
