Pharmaceutical Sciences

Research within this group is focused around the following three key areas:

Drug Discovery
Active programmes in this group seek to identify new drug molecules for a number of conditions including cancer and infectious diseases such as tuberculosis. The approach uses well established drug screening programs from natural sources and compound libraries to their best advantage, coupled to in silico techniques, lead target optimisation and synthesis-characterisation.

Drug Development
An understanding of the critical product attributes that impact on in vivo performance is key to the production of safe and effective medicines. Thus, a key driver for our research is the development of new basic science and technology underpinning the development of new pharmaceutical products. Research includes the structure and properties of drugs and excipients, biopharmaceutical characterisation, pharmaceutical processing and technology and formulation and analysis.

Drug Delivery
The development of novel drug delivery systems can offer safer, more convenient or more effective medical treatments. Dermal, ocular, oral and CNS drug delivery programs are supported by expertise in biopharmaceuticals and solid-dose formulation. In vivo studies involve nanomedicines, to overcome poor oral bioavailability, gene delivery, to treat various cancers, and gamma scintigraphy imaging to monitor dose transit.

The group is actively commericalising its research and is building on its links with the NHS in particular as it works to establish a Centre for Medicines Innovation to deliver improved medicines particularly for vulnerable patient groups. The group also has active links with industry including Pfizer, Allergan, Schering Plough, Johnston Matthey, GSK and AstraZeneca.

Major, current grant funding within the group includes a Small Molecule Cancer Drug Discovery Programme Grant from Cancer Research UK, an EPSRC Science and Innovation award in Physical Organic Chemistry and further significant funding by Cancer Research UK in the Formulation Unit.

Group Leader
Professor Alastair Florence
Email: alastair.florence@strath.ac.uk

Staff involved

Professor Alastair Florence, Dr Anne Boyter, Dr Geoff Coxon [tuberculosis, medicinal chemistry], Dr Christine Dufes [cancer therapy, tumour targeting, gene and drug delivery], Dr Ruangelie Edrada-Ebel, Dr Val Ferro, Professor Sandy Gray, Professor Gavin Halbert, Professor Alan Harvey, Dr Blair Johnston, Professor Ravi Kumar, Professor Simon Mackay, Dr Fiona McInnes [drug delivery, formulation, biopharmaceutics], Professor Alex Mullen, Dr Iain Oswald, Dr Veronique Seidel [natural products chemistry, antibiotic discovery], Dr Oliver Sutcliffe, Dr Alison Thomson, Dr Andrew Urquhart, Dr Chris van der Walle, Dr David Watson, Dr Nial Wheate, Professor Clive Wilson.

Postgraduate Research Opportunities