Company believes that it is well positioned to tackle the unique requirements of developing vaccines in China.
PPD has opened a vaccine clinical research center in Taizhou, China. Through the center, PPD will provide clinical-monitoring services to global and local biopharmaceutical companies seeking to develop vaccines in China.
Located at the Taizhou China Medical City, the center will help biopharmaceutical companies address unique requirements for conducting vaccine clinical trials in the country. Vaccine studies in China are conducted by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention instead of at Phase I clinics or by investigators at hospitals. Additionally, these trials require thousands of patients for enrollment, compared to hundreds for studies conducted in other countries. Yet, China has a short recruitment period for vaccine trials, PPD points out.
“The vaccines market is one of the fastest growing segments in the industry, and in China the clinical trial market is growing at about 20 percent each year,” according to Simon Britton, PPD’s vp of clinical development for Asia Pacific. “Our strong expertise in vaccine clinical research and large presence in China make us well positioned to help our clients ensure adherence to global standards while addressing unique requirements for monitoring vaccine studies.”
PPD opened its first office in China in 2003 and says that it is now the largest contract research organization in the country with nearly 1,100 employees. Its acquisitions of Excel PharmaStudies and BioDuro last year strengthened the company’s drug discovery and development services in the country.