MEDIA RELEASE PR40573
QPS Announces the Acquisition of Xendo Drug Development
NEWARK, Del. and GRONINGEN, Netherlands, July 27 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
This European Acquisition Expands QPS' Global Capabilities
QPS Holdings, LLC, a leading full-service GLP/GCP-compliant contract research
organization providing testing services to support preclinical and clinical research
and development, announced the completion of its acquisition of Xendo Drug
Development BV (XDD), headquartered in Groningen, The Netherlands. XDD, a European
contract research organization (CRO), will be known as QPS Netherlands BV and become
a wholly-owned subsidiary of QPS Holdings, LLC.
With the completion of this acquisition, QPS further expands its global range of
linearly integrated resources and services:
-- Drug discovery and development from preclinical to clinical studies for
IND and NDA regulatory submissions.
-- 300 clinical pharmacology beds on three continents - 24 in the
Netherlands, 24 in Taiwan and 240 in the USA - one of the world's
largest phase 1 site offerings.
-- Start-up time for phase 1 clinical trials is four to six weeks,
compared to several months in other European countries. Moreover, phase
2 can follow phase 1 without interruption. Many international
pharmaceutical and biotech companies have conducted first entry into
man (FIM) studies in the Netherlands. This is due to Netherlands'
favorable regulatory environment, streamlined protocol approval process
and lower cost of managing trials.
-- One of the world's largest capacities in bioanalysis for small
molecules and biologics, with global bioanalysis facilities in the USA,
Europe and Asia.
-- Complete ADME package for regulatory submissions from preclinical
studies to radiolabeled human mass balance (including microdosing)
studies.
-- CNS drug research and development, such as Alzheimer therapy, from
patient stratification, to the clinic, to in vivo imaging, to PK/PD
correlation and efficacy evaluation, with clinical genotyping and
specialized biomarker assay capability to support the pursuit of
targeted therapies and personalized medicines.
XDD has state-of-the-art large and small molecule bioanalytical laboratories and
a dedicated 24-bed clinical pharmacology unit (CPU) located at University Medical
Center Groningen (UMCG). Established in 2004, this CPU has performed over 100
clinical pharmacology studies - many of them first entry into man (FIM) studies -
across all major therapeutic areas. This location provides comprehensive safety
monitoring with 24/7 access to hospital-based crash teams and clinical specialists.
XDD also offers an extensive database of healthy volunteers as well as special and
patient populations.
"Pooling our strengths will enable XDD and QPS to serve our clients even better.
Our leading capability in conducting high quality bioanalysis and phase 1 studies,
combined with our well established expertise in ADME, genotyping and drug development
process will make QPS an ideal drug development partner for our pharmaceutical and
biotech clients worldwide," said Ben Chien, Chairman, and CEO of QPS holdings.
"Joining the QPS organization enables XDD to realize its ambitions for global
growth. In terms of activities, size and location, QPS and XDD are a perfect fit. Our
combined operations in Asia, Europe and the US position us ideally to expand our
portfolios in the increasingly consolidated pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector,
our primary market," said Koos Koops, XDD's former chief executive officer. Koops
will head the XDD - QPS Netherlands division of QPS.
"As both QPS and XDD facilities share the same high standards and customer
service philosophy, this merger will further strengthen our ability to provide our
clients with quality, services, and competitive pricing worldwide," stated Ben Chien.
About Xendo
Established in 1999, XDD is a European CRO with extensive experience conducting
and staffing international Phase I to Phase IV clinical trials across a broad range
of therapeutic areas for a wide variety of clients. XDD employs over 100 people, and
provides early & late phase clinical development, data management, biometrics,
medical writing, bioanalysis and resourcing solutions services. Further information
About QPS
Founded in 1995, QPS (http://www.qps-usa.com) has bioanalysis and DMPK facilities
at its Newark, DE, USA headquarters, a laboratory in Taipei, Taiwan, and phase 1
facility in Springfield, Missouri. QPS has been providing quality services in
regulated and non-regulated bioanalysis (LC/MS/MS, immunoanalytical, and
hybridization-ELISA), DMPK, protein biomarkers, pharmacogenomics and pharmacogenetics
markers, and phase 1 studies to its clients worldwide.
SOURCE: QPS
CONTACT: Ben Chien, Ph.D.,
Chairman, President & CEO of QPS,
+1-650-599-9445;
or Koos Koops, MSc,
CEO of Xendo Drug Development,
+31-0-50-3048000
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