Can the analysis of an electrocardiogram (ECG) waveform be programmed into a computer chip? That’s the claim of Freescale Semiconductor and Monebo Technologies. “We have the technology to provide detailed information to the clinician, enabling physicians to monitor heart patients from a remote location, and also analyze and interpret ECG data from any device, including those used for pharmaceutical clinical trials,” said Dale Misczynski, president and CEO, Monebo.Here’s the release.

The global clinical trials industry is worth an estimated $50 billion in 2008, with a rate of growth of 10 percent. That figure is from Visiongain, a British research firm with no functional website. It’s explored the global market in a new $6,000 research report. Selected topics include: contract research opportunities; concerns for outsourcing clinical trials to CROs; and ways to improve cost-effectiveness of clinical trials. Here’s a link to order the report.

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Piper Jaffray upgraded WuXi PharmaTech from neutral to buy with a $22 price target. The stock has fallen 18 percent in the last few weeks. Piper Jaffray calculates that the Chinese CRO is trading at a 16-times-earnings multiple, a discount to the typical 20-times-earnings multiple of CRO firms in the U.S., where financial statements are subject to government oversight. d9A2t49mkex

The Association of Clinical Research Organizations (ACRO) and the Metrics Champion Consortium (MCC) announced the appointment of two representatives from ACRO to the MCC board of directors. “We value the knowledge and perspective ACRO’s representatives will bring to MCC’s board of directors,” said Guy Mascaro, MCC president. “ACRO’s support for our organization is an important step in building a collaborative environment where sponsors and CROs can work together to improve clinical trial performance.”

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PharmaNet, continuing its restructuring, reported improving finances. Revenues rose 9.8 percent to $119.7 million. The company swung into the black for the period, in contrast to a loss a year ago, recording a $2.1 million profit. No top executives were quoted in its earnings release.

Covance reported strong quarterly earnings. Revenues for the period were $436.9 million, a gain of 14.6 percent. Profits rose 23 percent to $50.8 million. Here’s the company statement. Chairman Joseph Herring told Wall Street: “Clinical orders in the quarter were robust, including two awards totaling $70 million from top 10 pharmaceutical companies, which named us their primary provider earlier in the quarter. One of the projects was a $40 million win covered under the primary provider agreement. And the other project, worth $30 million, was a competitive win outside of the five primary therapeutic categories.” Here’s a full transcript at Seeking Alpha. This article from Business Week touts Covance and Thermo Fisher Scientific as investments.

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