China's appeal as a location for clinical trials is well documented, but there are some hurdles to clear before a pharma company can successfully tap into its resources.

Alan Morgan offers an overview of Europe's rapidly evolving CRO landscape.

Sarah Houlton outlines the deals, collaborations and controversies that shaped the pharmaceutical industry in 2007, and examines how the land lies as we prepare for 2008.

Increased investment in pharmacovigilance can maximise your portfolio value.

The US may still be leading the world pharma race, but a recent survey shows that innovation in biotechnology has secured the UK's position as the number two place to conduct pharmaceutical research. Martyn Postle reports.

The global pharmaceutical market is set to double in value by 2020. But the industry must transform itself if it is to capitalize on the forthcoming opportunities, says Steve Arlington.

China's pharmaceutical market place may have been booming of late, but companies wishing to sustain growth in the country must ensure their intelligence is up to the minute, report Songjun Luo and Brian Chapman.

Accurately predicting the future success of a novel therapeutic compound in today's burgeoning oncology market is perhaps best achieved by consulting a really good crystal ball. Alternatively, R&D managers can plot a drug's strengths and weaknesses against the emerging universe of insights into the molecular basis of disease and factor in the challenges of increasingly rigorous data review, high drug development price tags, unpredictable development timelines, and a wary post-launch reception from cost-cutting reimbursement regulators in every major pharmaceutical market.

Over the past four decades, Ireland has developed a thriving pharmaceutical sector, thanks to a government policy designed to promote inward investment. It is now the world's largest net exporter of pharmaceuticals, with 29 plants approved by the US FDA. Initial pharma manufacturing operations in the 1960s focused on primary manufacture, and formulation into finished dosage forms followed later. However, as costs rise and it is becoming ever cheaper to manufacture medicines in places such as India and China, the country is trying hard to move up the value chain, into research and development.