معرفی
Henrik Franzyk is an Associate Professor in the Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology within the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen. His research focuses on peptide-based drug design, particularly antimicrobial compounds and drug delivery systems for addressing antibiotic resistance.
Dr. Franzyk received his MSc Engineering (Chemistry) in 1991 and PhD (Natural Products Chemistry) in 1993, both from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU). His academic career began with postdoctoral positions at Carlsberg Laboratory (1994-1996) working with Prof. Morten Meldal on peptide chemistry, followed by a postdoc at Colorado State University (1997), and research positions at DTU before joining the University of Copenhagen in 2000.
His primary research interests include:
- SAR studies of peptide-based/peptidomimetic antibacterial compounds as well as potentiators and conjugates of antibiotics
- Bacterial delivery of antibiotics (including AMPs and antisense PNA oligomers)
- Improved macromolecular drug delivery (targeting peptides and cationic lipids for nanoparticles with siRNA/mRNA; lipid adjuvants for vaccines)
- Mechanisms and structural optimization of immunomodulating peptides and peptidomimetics
- Solid-phase synthesis method development
Dr. Franzyk's recent publication record demonstrates a consistent focus on antimicrobial peptides and peptidomimetics with applications against multidrug-resistant bacteria. His work emphasizes structure-activity relationships, particularly how hydrophobicity affects antibacterial activity and selectivity. Many publications explore novel approaches to overcoming resistance through peptide-based antibiotics, efflux pump inhibitors, and bacterial delivery systems, with significant contributions to cyclic lipopeptide antibiotics and peptide/peptoid hybrid oligomers.
His research is supported by major grants including:
- Novo Nordisk Foundation (Center for Peptide-Based Antibiotics - CEPAN)
- Norwegian Research Council (A platform for development of peptide-based antimicrobials)
- Danish Research Council (Exploration of efflux pump inhibitor conjugates)
- European Union funding (SPRINGBOARD and ENABLE projects)
Dr. Franzyk actively supervises students at all levels, including current PhD student Johan Storm Jørgensen working on novel cyclic lipopeptide antibiotics. His laboratory, part of the Peptide-based Drug Research group, collaborates extensively with national and international partners including Oslo University Hospital, University of Copenhagen departments, and several European research institutions.
