Collaborative clinical research that addresses the health needs of low and middle-income countries (LMICs) has become more frequent recently. Such research includes therapeutic and diagnostic trials for neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), and is often conducted by non-commercial groups. Compliance with these international codes may seem a daunting task for small, non-commercial research units working in the NTD domain in LMICs, especially when they assume the role of “sponsor,” i.e., the custodian of compliance with legal and ethical frameworks. In this PLOS collection, we share the experience of clinical research on NTD-related syndromes conducted by the NIDIAG consortium (https://www.nidiag.org/) between 2010 and 2015 in Cambodia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Mali, Nepal, and Sudan. This viewpoint article summarises the main lessons learnt when implementing Good Clinical (Laboratory) Practices (GCLP) in NTD clinical research.
