Ricerca has always had a strong presence in Japan, Phillip Cassidy, director, metabolism at the preclinical CRO, told Outsourcing-Pharma. Partnering with LSP will help boost Ricerca’s presence in Japan, as well as increasing penetration in Korea and other Asian markets.
Business generated by Ricerca in the region varies, according to Cassidy. Ricerca recently acquired assets from MDS, including a facility in Taipei, Taiwan, and is now making a concerted effort to increase business in Asia.
Cassidy said that LSP’s strong scientific knowledge and understanding of the local market were factors in Ricerca’s decision to partner with the Japan-based company.
“Their business model is unique and is embraced by the Japanese industry with a cost-effective and rapid turnaround time for laboratory studies”, explained Mark Crane, vice president of business development and marketing at Ricerca.
Crane added that the partnership will give LSP “a significant advantage” by granting it access to Ricerca’s radiolabelled synthesis, animal and plant metabolism, environmental fate, mammalian toxicology and microbiology.
Hiroko Suzuki, executive director at LSP, stated that he believes the “collaboration will largely help our customers develop new compounds and products for tomorrow and will provide higher value to meet customer needs”.
MDS assets
Ricerca finalised the acquisition of units from MDS last month, enhancing the CRO’s discovery and preclinical services portfolio by adding capabilities including molecular profiling, pharmacology and drug safety assessment.
Ian Lennox, chairman and CEO of Ricerca, said: “Our expanded organisation is a research partner clients can rely on to think strategically about projects, anticipate needs and rapidly deliver study results.”