Alimentiv and Summit Clinical Research are joining forces to improve clinical trials in the tricky indication of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).
The two clinical research companies will work together to overcome trial challenges that include optimizing end-point assessment, minimizing screening failures and improving recruitment rates.
Summit, a San Antonio, Texas-based CRO with over 100 clinical trial sites across the U.S., Europe and Latin America, has experience supporting dozens of NASH trials. Canadian CRO Alimentiv is best known for its gastroenterology-focused global clinical trials and central image management, such as liver biopsies.
“Collaborating with Summit allows us to deliver on our promise to transform human health for NASH patients by powering the growing number of NASH compounds through the development pathway more quickly and efficiently,” Hershell Thompson, Alimentiv’s chief clinical solutions officer, said in a Nov. 3 press release.
NASH is a form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease characterized by chronic inflammation and accumulation of fat in the liver. An estimated 35 million globally suffer from the disease that currently does not have a FDA-approved treatment—although many biotechs are trying.
Both companies have a history of partnerships in the gastrointestinal space. Last year, Summit joined up with Big Pharma-backed artificial intelligence startup PathAI to help drug developers work on clinical trials for NASH, while a month ago Alimentiv announced a partnership with Satisfai Health and Virgo Surgical Video Solutions to leverage AI and precision imaging in the gastrointestinal clinical trial arena.