The American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) now offers accreditation for forensic examination laboratories, following the publication of the National Research Council’s report, “Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward.” The program covers forensic examination, including DNA, fingerprints and crime scene examination, as well as forensic engineering, failure analysis and accident analysis. […]

A study conducted by Roland Berger of 50 top drug industry executives showed a pattern of large pharmaceutical companies moving away from development of patented drugs as concern about the returns from future innovation mounts. The survey showed significantly different approaches to diversification, with 67% viewing diversification as a potential solution. France’s Sanofi-Aventis is among […]

IMS Health forecasts the global pharmaceutical market will reach $880 billion in 2011, growing 5%–7%, compared with 4%–5% in 2010. The overall market is projected to rebound, but factors that prohibit growth, including major patent expirations and payer mechanisms to curb drug spending, will be stronger than ever. Drug sales in the 17 pharmerging countries […]

Contract research organizations (CROs) are increasingly entering into long-term contracts with pharmaceutical companies under which they provide multiple services. GlaxoSmithKline has just announced negotiations with Parexel International for such a partnership and stated that it plans to reduce the number of the CROs it works with from 30 to a few. Parexel also has long-term […]

A September report by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) shows that innovative activity and demand for intellectual property rights decreased during the global economic crisis, but is now returning. In 2008, the number of patent application filings increased 2.6%, the slowest rate since the early 2000s, but the number of Chinese patent applications grew […]