Covance and MDS Pharma Services both recently earned standard and supplementary accreditation for the conduct of clinical pharmacology in Europe by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

Covance received accreditation for its Leeds, United Kingdom, clinical research unit, which conducts first-in-human studies.

MDS Pharma’s phase 0 to phase IIa research facility in Belfast, Northern Ireland, was accredited earlier this month. MDS Pharma, which is the CRO division of MDS, recently sold its late-stage contract research operations to focus on discovery through phase IIa clinical services.

MHRA’s voluntary accreditation program, which is valid for two years, was created to ensure that research facilities conducting early-stage clinical trials meet stringent safety standards.