Find Academic Supervisors

• Drug Delivery
• Pharmaceutics
• Nanomedicine
• +5 more

Caitriona M. O'Driscoll is Professor and Chair of Pharmaceutics at University College Cork's School of Pharmacy, Ireland. With over four decades of academic experience, she previously served as Head of the School of Pharmacy at UCC from 2003-2009 and 2010-2013. Her established drug delivery research team spans from pre-formulation through to production and manufacture of prototype delivery systems suitable for clinical trial, with strong industry links underpinning many research projects. Her research interests focus on translational drug delivery with emphasis on 'problem' drugs including poorly water soluble compounds and biopharmaceuticals like peptide/protein drugs, plasma DNA and siRNA. She develops nano-sized delivery constructs that are robust enough to survive processing, stable on storage, and achieve cell/site specific delivery in vivo. Greater than 40% of new chemical entities are poorly water soluble Biopharmaceuticals now approach 50% of all new drugs in development Major barrier is design of efficient delivery systems Special focus on oral drug delivery despite challenges Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong emphasis on targeted nanodelivery systems for cancer therapy, particularly prostate and colorectal cancer, as well as neurodegenerative diseases like Huntington's. Her work demonstrates expertise in cyclodextrin-based nanoparticles, siRNA delivery, and disease-specific formulations that account for conditions like Crohn's disease that affect drug delivery. Scientific awards include: 'Person of the Year award' by Parenteral Drug Association (Ireland Chapter) in 2013 'Award for Professional Excellence' by Helix Health in 2007/2008 'Award for Pharmacist of the Year' by Helix Health in 2007/2008 With €10.5M in career research income and 25 PhDs graduated, Professor O'Driscoll's work has attracted funding from diverse sources including Science Foundation Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, and industry partners. Her research group maintains strong links with Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Process & Chemical Engineering at UCC, creating a unique strength for drug development research from design through to clinical trial. She has served as external examiner for multiple universities and as PhD thesis examiner at institutions worldwide. Her research team operates within UCC's drug delivery group, which has established expertise spanning from pre-formulation through to production and manufacture of prototype delivery systems. The group maintains strong industry connections and offers various PhD positions, focusing particularly on translational research with product-driven applications.

• Pharmaceutics
• Drug Delivery Systems
• Biorelevant Dissolution Testing
• +5 more

Dr. Patrick O'Dwyer is a Lecturer in Pharmaceutics at the School of Pharmacy, University College Cork (UCC). He holds a PhD in Pharmaceutics from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (2020), an MPharm from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (2016), and a BPharm from UCC (2015). His research focuses on advancing drug delivery systems through computational modeling, machine learning, and in vitro methods to optimize lipid-based formulations, co-milling, and amorphous solid dispersions. He leads the EU-funded InPharma and GENEGUT projects and has secured €950,000 from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop AI tools for drug formulations targeting diseases in developing countries. Dr. O'Dwyer supervises multiple PhD students and is a Course Director for the MSc in Pharmaceutical Regulatory Sciences. His honors include the UCC School of Pharmacy Gold Medal and scholarships from the National University of Ireland and Quercus. His work emphasizes regulatory science and bridging academic research with industry applications. Education: PhD in Pharmaceutics, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (2020) MPharm, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (2016) BPharm, University College Cork (2015) Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, UCC (2021) Research Interests: Computational Pharmaceutics, Biorelevant Dissolution Testing, Machine Learning in Drug Formulation, Regulatory Science, and Novel Drug Delivery Systems. Grants: €950k from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (2024) EU-funded InPharma and GENEGUT projects Awards: School of Pharmacy Gold Medal (2015), Dr. H.H. Stewart Scholarship (2015), Abbvie Prize (2015), Quercus Scholarships (2013, 2011). Professional Roles: Member of Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland, PIER, and Course Director for MSc in Pharmaceutical Regulatory Sciences. His research integrates computational tools with experimental methods to address challenges in drug formulation, particularly for tropical diseases. Recent work emphasizes real-time analysis of lipid-based formulations and predictive modeling of co-milling effects. Collaborations include the European Medicines Agency and industry partners like Pion Inc. (UK) Ltd.

Sarah HudsonView profile

Professor

• Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Materials Science
• Drug Delivery Systems
• +8 more

Sarah Hudson is a Professor at the University of Limerick's Department of Chemical Sciences and a Principal Investigator at the Bernal Institute and SSPC (Science Foundation Ireland Research Centre for Pharmaceuticals). She holds a PhD from the University of Limerick (2006) and conducted postdoctoral research at MIT under Prof. Robert Langer. Her expertise spans pharmaceutical formulation science, with a focus on improving drug solubility, stability, and bioavailability through advanced material science approaches. Education: PhD, University of Limerick (2006) Masters by Research, Trinity College Dublin (2000) BA (Mod), Trinity College Dublin (1999) Research Interests: Manipulation of physicochemical properties of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) Thermodynamics of aggregation, crystallization, and precipitation in biorelevant environments Development of formulations to control solution/solid-state behavior of drugs Nanoparticle and hydrogel-based drug delivery systems Articles Trends: Recent work emphasizes drug delivery systems (e.g., hydrogels, SLNs), crystallization control in pharmaceuticals, and antimicrobial peptide formulations. Studies address challenges in bioavailability enhancement and overcoming antimicrobial resistance. Awards: Academic Partner in Enterprise Ireland Commercialisation Grant (2013) Best Post-graduate Web of Science Journal Publication (2007) Disruptive Technologies Award (2019) Advising & Grants: Supervised over 20 PhD/MSc students and postdocs, funded by SFI, Marie Curie ITN, and industry partners (e.g., Janssen, Allergen). Active in SSPC and EU-funded initiatives. Labs/Teams: Leads the Hudson Group within the Bernal Institute, collaborating on projects in drug formulation, nanotechnology, and sustainable pharmaceutical development.

Brendan GriffinView profile

Professor

• Drug Delivery Systems
• Lipid-Based Formulations
• Nanoparticulate Drug Systems
• +3 more

Brendan Griffin is a Professor in Pharmaceutics at the University of College Cork (UCC) School of Pharmacy. He holds a BSc. Pharm. and PhD from Trinity College Dublin (TCD) and has extensive industry experience with Élan and Servier. As Course Director of the MSc in Pharmaceutical Technology and Quality Systems, he focuses on training pharmaceutical professionals to become Qualified Persons (QP). His research centers on optimized drug delivery systems, including lipid-based formulations, nanoparticulate systems, and targeted delivery to the brain and intestinal lymphatics. He leads the InPharma EU grant, an Industrial Doctorate program aiming to eliminate animal testing in formulation development by integrating computational and in vitro tools. His work emphasizes collaboration with industry and preclinical models like pigs to predict oral drug absorption and food effects. Education: BSc. Pharm. (TCD), PhD in Pharmaceutics (TCD). Research Interests: Lipid-based formulations for solubility enhancement and bioavailability Nanoparticulate drug delivery systems Targeted delivery mechanisms Computational models for drug development Regulatory science and quality-by-design approaches Pharmaceutical education and training InPharma Project: This EU Horizon 2020 initiative replaces animal testing with predictive in vitro and computational tools, linking drug discovery to clinical trial modeling. Key focus areas include end-to-end drug development and model-based design. Grants & Collaborations: Coordinates InPharma consortium involving academia and industry partners to advance drug formulation science. Labs/Teams: Associated with APC Microbiome Ireland and the School of Pharmacy’s Pharmaceutics division, focusing on interdisciplinary research in drug delivery and biopharmaceutics.

• Pharmaceutics
• Drug Delivery Systems
• Pharmaceutical Formulation
• +3 more

Professor Abina Crean is a faculty member at the School of Pharmacy , University College Cork , Ireland. With a PhD in Pharmaceutics from Trinity College Dublin, she established a pharmaceutical technology research group at UCC in 2003 and leads projects in pharmaceutical manufacturing, formulation science, and biopharmaceutical delivery systems. BSc Pharmacy, Robert Gordon's University PhD Pharmaceutics, Trinity College Dublin Her research focuses on pharmaceutical excipients , solid oral dosage forms , microneedle systems , and oral bioavailability enhancement . She actively collaborates with pharmaceutical companies and contributes to SFI's SSPC (Science Foundation Ireland Pharmaceutical Research Centre). Recent publications analyze protein stability in microneedles , insulin degradation , excipient behavior , and continuous manufacturing . Her group explores biorelevant testing , quality-by-design strategies , and patient-centric formulations for children and elderly populations. Key collaborations include industry partnerships and academic contributions to European Journal of Pharmaceutics , Molecular Pharmaceutics , and Drug Delivery and Translational Research . She supervises PhD/MSc students in pharmaceutical technology and biopharmaceutical processing .