Quotient Bioresearch Ltd. has acquired Charles River Laboratories’ Edinburgh clinical research facility. This represents the sixth acquisition in approximately three years for Quotient.

The Charles River facility, formerly Inveresk Clinical Research, will combine with Pharmaceutical Profiles, which Quotient acquired in December 2008, to form a new strategic business unit within Quotient. The group will be known as Quotient Clinical.

The Edinburgh clinical unit will combine with Pharmaceutical Profiles to offer a suite of integrated services stretching from First-in-Human (FIH) through to Phase IIa patient studies. Founded almost 20 years ago, the clinical unit is an industry leader in FIH studies. It was awarded Supplementary Accreditation status by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in January 2009, demonstrating its experience and capabilities to conduct FIH trials for small molecules and biologics.

Quotient Clinical will have a workforce of approximately 160 medical, scientific and clinical staff across the two facilities in Edinburgh and Nottingham. With an existing strong customer base in the U.S., Europe and Japan, the principal focus of Quotient Clinical is “to provide a unique and comprehensive range of early development services to a broad range of pharmaceutical and biotechnology customers,” according to a company statement.

Paul Cowan, chairman and chief executive officer of Quotient, remarked, “The creation of Quotient Clinical represents the next step in expanding the range of specialised services we offer pharmaceutical and biotech customers worldwide. We are delighted to have completed the acquisition of the Charles River Edinburgh clinical facility. With the Inveresk heritage we are bringing a world-class facility and clinical experience to Quotient Clinical.”

Quotient Clinical will be headed by Mark Egerton, formerly chief executive officer of Pharmaceutical Profiles.