PPD, Inc. is opening a new lab in Suzhou, China, to support China-based biopharma companies and Western pharmaceutical companies managing research studies in China. The 67,000-sq.-ft. facility is expected to be fully operational in 2021, offering bioanalytical, biomarker and vaccine services to support trials across all phases of pharmaceutical development. The company anticipates adding approximately 350 positions as a result of the expansion.

The bioanalytical lab offering in Suzhou will include services for small molecules, biologics, and cell and gene therapies. The lab will encompass multiple technology platforms across a wide range of applications, including ligand-binding immunochemistry, liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and flow cytometry. The lab will specialize in the development and validation of fully compliant robust custom assays for pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) analyses and immunogenicity assessments in both preclinical and clinical studies.

The biomarker lab offering will include services across regulatory compliance environments and fit-for-purpose situations. Analysis will be performed with molecular genomics, flow cytometry, ligand binding and LC-MS/MS to support both preclinical and clinical studies. Through PPD’s alliance with NeoGenomics Labs enhanced immunohistochemistry and molecular test menus will be offered. NeoGenomics operates an oncology-focused clinical trials testing lab in the same building as the PPD Laboratories’ central lab in Singapore and plans to establish a similar arrangement in PPD’s new Suzhou facility.

The vaccine sciences lab will provide a full range of testing services specifically designed for vaccine development trials. The lab will employ immunoassays, cell-based assays and multiplexed functional assays for vaccine efficacy and molecular assays for infectious disease monitoring. The lab’s services will span technology assessment and method development to immunogenicity and concomitant studies.