Mr Fang Xiang, Director of NIM (China), at the opening ceremony of PPTD-2016, organized jointly by the NIM and the BIPM

Over 400 participants attended the "Protein and Peptide Therapeutics and Diagnostics: Research and Quality Assurance (PPTD-2016)" workshop held in Chengdu (China) from 1 to 3 June 2016, which was organized jointly by the NIM (China) and the BIPM. It brought together metrology institutes, academic researchers, IVD and reagent manufacturers, regulators and pharmaceutical industry and clinical and government laboratories to present developments in measurement methods and standards for characterizing therapeutic proteins and peptides and establishing metrological traceability for in vitro diagnostics for accurate patient care.

The three day workshop attracted over 75 presentations and 40 posters; covering three sessions:

1. Advanced Methods for Peptide and Protein Drug Characterization and Quality Assurance
2. Standards and Advances in Peptide and Protein Diagnostics
3. Advances and Challenges in IVD Standards and Research

The workshop was organized under the auspices of the Joint Committee for Traceability in Laboratory Medicine (JCTLM). It focused on the importance of measurement standards and metrology both for supporting in vitro diagnostic and pharmaceutical industries as well as underpinning innovative research and the development and quality of new products. The programme covered a considerable range of topics, with examples ranging from: the impact of standardization of enzyme measurements as well as HbA1c for diabetes control; characterization and standards requirements for therapeutic peptides; reference materials and the characterization of monoclonal antibodies; and the requirements for standards to underpin personalized medicine.