ACRO to Help Lead Clinical Trials Transformation Initiative

Washington, DC-May 6, 2008-The Association of Clinical Research Organizations (ACRO; www.acrohealth.org), which represents the clinical outsourcing industry to regulators, biopharmaceutical clients, policymakers, and the public in the United States and worldwide, today announced its leadership role in the recently formed Clinical Trial Transformation Initiative (CTTI). The goal of the CTTI is to modernize the mechanics of clinical trials and to increase their efficiency and productivity.

The CTTI was established by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in collaboration with Duke University as part of the FDA’s Critical Path Initiative. Alberto Grignolo, corporate vice president and general manager of Parexel Consulting, a business unit of Parexel International, will represent the association on the CTTI Executive Board, which is comprised of experts from the FDA, National Institutes of Health (NIH), academia, biopharmaceutical companies, CROs, and other organizations.

“ACRO is excited to be a part of this important effort to further enhance the clinical trial process,” said ACRO Executive Director Doug Peddicord.“We are pleased to have an industry leader like Dr. Grignolo participating on behalf of the association to share the CRO perspective and the expertise of our members with the consortium.”

“CTTI has an important charge as it looks to establish models for clinical trial innovation in areas such as study design, operating procedures, and metrics for evaluation,” said Dr. Grignolo.“I look forward to representing the CRO industry and working with the wide range of stakeholders involved to help make this initiative successful for all who participate in the clinical trial enterprise, including study participants, investigators, regulators, sponsors, and CROs.”