Ecron Acunova, the Bangalore-based contract research organisation (CRO) formed in late 2007 through Manipal Acunova’s acquisition of Ecron, a European CRO headquartered in Germany, has formed a global strategic alliance with US counterpart Essential CRO.
The alliance will give
pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, diagnostic and nutritional study sponsors access to 18 countries in key emerging sectors for clinical research, Ecron Acunova said. It creates a network encompassing Ecron Acunova’s home base in India, its US office in Princeton, New Jersey and an est
ablished presence in 14 countries across Europe as well as Essential CRO’s operational headquarters in Gurnee, Illinois.
The two companies have already been partners for a number of years, winning “key global projects in the eight figure range” from leading medium-sized biotechnology co
mpanies and large pharmaceutical sponsors in more than 14 countries during the past six months, Ecron Acunova pointed out. The “magnitude of project size and positive sponsor feedback on the combined team execution have been instrumental in establishing this alliance”, it added.
“This
alliance provides immediate global capability to our sponsors through highly experienced best-in-class operations that have been harmonised between the partners without our undergoing the years or cost of such development independently,” commented Lee Jones, president and chief executive officer of Essential CRO.
D A Prasanna, founder of Ecron Acunova, said the two full-service CROs together offered more than 20 years’ experience of conducting clinical trials for marketing authorisations in the US and the European Union, and the rapid patient recruitment rates available in India and Central and Eastern Europe.
“Essential’s therapeutic database of over 4,500 studies makes its feasibility truly unique, and its global patient recruitment expertise has unmatched results,” he claimed.
Sponsors would also reap the benefit of “speedy completion of early development studies with Ecron Acunova’s PK/PD [pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic], central lab and biometric services under one roof”, Prasanna noted.
