ROCKVILLE, Maryland, June 1, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by ROSZDRAVNADZOR and the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) in April of 2009 with the goals of protecting and improving the quality of medicines, USP conducted specialized courses in Moscow for the staff of laboratory facilities of the Federal Districts and Federal State Agency ROSZDRAVNADZOR's Scientific Center for Expertise of Medical Products. In the framework of the program of Promoting the Quality of Medicines (PQM), funded by the Moscow Office of USAID, USP delivered eight courses on key issues of quality of medicines, which were attended by about 100 Russian specialists.

USP Director of Pharmacopeial Education, John Santell, R.Pharm., indicated that USP and ROSZDRAVNADZOR have been working closely to develop the contents of the courses for Russian specialists and that ROSZDRAVNADZOR and USP anticipate future collaborations under the MOU.

Courses offered were: WHO Good Laboratory Practices/ISO 17025-2005; High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC); Fundamentals of Titration; Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC); Dissolution: Theory and Best Practice; Advanced Dissolution; Effectively Using USP-NF; and Effectively Using USP Reference Standards.

USP is a nonprofit scientific organization that sets standards for the quality, identity, purity, and strength of medicines, food ingredients, and dietary supplements. USP's drug standards are enforceable by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States, and USP standards are used and relied on in more than 130 countries.

For more information, please contact mediarelations@usp.org.

USP - Advancing Public Health Since 1820

The United States Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) is a scientific, nonprofit, standards-setting organization that advances public health through public standards and related programs that help ensure the quality, safety, and benefit of medicines and foods. USP's standards are recognized and used worldwide. For more information about USP visit http://www.usp.org.

CONTACT: Francine Pierson +1-301-816-8588; fp@usp.org

SOURCE: U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention

CONTACT: Francine Pierson of U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention,+1-301-816-8588, fp@usp.org