Mark Parry
Intertek
Mark Parry has worked with Intertek for over 20 years after graduating from Cambridge University and currently works as the Senior Scientific Director supporting the wide range of analytical, formulation, product development, and research activities across the company.
Mark has worked in a range of pharmaceutical analysis and formulation development areas with a focus on inhaled and nasal drug products. Mostly working in the pre-approval stages, Mark’s background includes extensive experience with product and formulation development, as well as method development and validation, IVBE studies, and pharmaceutical development activities for a wide range of clients across the pharmaceutical industry.
Mark is a member of the EPAG cascade impactor and nasal working groups, as well as the JPAG organising committee. He routinely presents at conferences as well as contributing to articles, research papers, and posters on a range of respiratory topics.
Snezana Radivojev
G.ST Antivirals GmbH.
Snezana Radivojev finished her PhD in the field of Inhalation Biopharmaceutics, focused on the establishment of in vitro-in silico correlations through the development of new and/or improved of current in vitro and in silico methodologies. The project was done in a collaboration between Medical University of Graz, Research Center Pharmaceutical Engineering GmbH and two industrial partners. She holds the BSc degree in Chemistry (University of Novi Sad) and Dipl. -Ing degree in Chemical and Pharmaceutical Engineering from Graz University of Technology. Following graduation, she continued her career as a Head of Pharmaceutical Development at G.ST Antivirals GmbH. She is passionate about supporting early career researchers to follow their ideas, be open to networking and research collaborations.
Marie Hellfritzsch
Sandoz Development Centre
Marie is currently a scientist at Sandoz in the development of inhalation products. She is a pharmacist by training. After finishing her studies, she completed her diploma with a topic on medication of COPD patients in collaboration between the FSU Jena and University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus in Dresden. In 2021, she finished her PhD in the field of respiratory immunisation at Kiel University at the Department of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics. During her studies and PhD, Marie had the opportunity to collaborate with different people, e.g., with Ben Forbes’s group at Kings College London (thanks to the DDL Early Career Development Grant), Camilla Foged’s group at University of Copenhagen (thanks to the Nordic POP Mobility Grant) and Daniela Traini’s and Paul Young’s group at Woolcock Institute of Medical Research in Sydney. In 2019, she co-founded the DDL New Researcher Network with Snezana Radivojev and Magda Swedrowska to develop a broad community of early career scientists to help facilitate discussions surrounding research ideas/challenges, exchanges, joint projects and personal and professional development. Marie’s passions include not only science, but also the people behind science and the development of early career researchers.
Alison Lansley
University of Brighton
Alison Lansley is a Principal Lecturer in Pharmaceutics at the University of Brighton (UoB). She obtained her degree in Pharmacy and PhD in mucociliary clearance from the UoB and then undertook post-doctoral positions at UCLA (cellular control of ciliary activity) and, subsequently, King’s College London (the use of airway cell lines as drug absorption models of the lung) where she then took up a lectureship. Following a career break, she was awarded a Daphne Jackson Fellowship which she undertook at the University of Sussex before accepting her current position at the UoB. Her research interests include the use of in vivo-reflective in vitro models to study the effect of mucus on drug/particle deposition behaviour and absorption in the respiratory tract, factors affecting mucociliary clearance and inhalation toxicity.
Francesca Buttini
University of Parma
Francesca Buttini is currently holding an Associate Professor position at the Food and Drug Department, University of Parma (Italy) and where now she is leading the unit dedicated to design of drug products for inhalation. Since 2014, she was appointed as Visiting Lecturer at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Science of King’s College London (UK). Combining her background in pharmaceutical technology, regulatory aspects, and device design, she is executing research programs aimed to deliver medicinal products that take into consideration the patient, industrial and regulatory requirements.
As a result of her research achievement, she obtained in 2017 the DDL Emerging Scientist Awards from the UK Aerosol Society.
Francesca’s research is mainly focused on dry powders for inhalation also as a tool of peptides and probiotics delivery. However, she is also involved in research projects on the current transition of MDIs towards new sustainable propellants.
Up to date, she has published more than 90 original papers, and she is the inventor of 9 patents.
She is a founder of PlumeStars, an innovative small-medium company, dedicated to development of orphan drug products to treat lung and systemic disease by inhalation therapy.
William Ganley
Nanopharm, an Aptar Pharma company
Will is a Physical Chemist with a PhD from the University of Bristol. He started his career as a postdoc at the University of Bath. His focus was on advancing physical characterisation and simulation techniques for dry powder inhaler formulations, aiming to better understand the connection between physical attributes and delivery to patients. In 2019 he joined Nanopharm as the Head of Computational Pharmaceutics where he led the development of a number of statistical and mechanistic modelling methodologies, notably Nanopharm’s Simhalation PBPK platform. In addition, he supports Nanopharm’s customers in product development and regulatory strategy. He is now a senior member of the Specialist team progressing and promoting Nanopharm’s scientific excellence in inhaled and nasal drug product development. Will has authored a number peer reviewed publications on pharmaceutics, statistics and physical chemistry and has presented his work at numerous international conferences.
Rebecca Fransson
AstraZeneca
Dr. Rebecca Fransson is an Associate Director within Advanced Drug Delivery, Pharmaceutical Sciences at AstraZeneca in Gothenburg, Sweden. Rebecca joined AstraZeneca in 2014 and has since then been supporting drug projects with inhaled biopharmaceutics assessments. In her research she has been focusing on dissolution and delivery of inhaled drug products. She has also worked with and contributed to the development of Lung-SIM, an in silico tool for physiologically based biopharmaceutics predictions for inhaled drug delivery. Currently she is leading a team of experts in biopharmaceutics, supporting oral and inhaled projects from the pre-clinical stage up to phase 2 clinical development.
Marcel Hoppentocht
PureIMS
Marcel Hoppentocht is Head of Program Management at PureIMS. In view of his broad interest and organisational capacities this role suits him well. He is an avid visitor of DDL for many years and was able to present his work here at several occasions. He studied Pharmacy at the University of Groningen and started working as a PhD student in the inhalation group of the Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmacy of this University in 2009. This group developed air classifier technology for dry powder inhalation which finds application in the Novolizer®, Genuair® and Twincer® dry powder inhalers. Main topic of his research was dry powder inhalation of antibiotics and this ultimately led to the development and clinical validation of a new dry powder inhaler called Cyclops®. He continued as a post-doctoral researcher for two years during which he was project leader of formulation and inhaler development within the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) iABC project dedicated to developing inhaled antibiotics. Thereafter, he was involved in the founding of PureIMS to further develop and valorise Cyclops® to improve the quality of life of patients
Lea Ann Dailey
University of Vienna
Lea Ann Dailey is a pharmacist by training and completed her PhD at the Philipps University of Marburg, Germany, on the topic of biocompatibility testing of polymeric nanoparticles for the controlled release of drugs in the lung. She continued working in the field of formulation science for inhalation therapies at Nektar Therapeutics (now Novartis, San Carlos, CA, USA), followed by positions at King’s College London, UK, the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Germany, and the University of Vienna. Her research has focussed on the design of dosage forms for the delivery of anti-infectives to the lung as well as the biocompatibility assessment of novel excipients for inhaled products.
Gregor Anderson
Pharmacentric Solutions
Greg set up Pharmacentric Solutions in late 2017 offering consultancy services specialising in packaging and device strategies and solutions for the Pharma industry. He advises both small and large Life Science companies on topics such as sustainability, human factors, design for manufacture and leveraging new technologies. Prior to this he spent 30 years working at GSK with his last role there being Senior Device and Packaging Director.
His career started at Smiths Industries Medical Systems as a device designer where he focused on surgical equipment development working closely with healthcare professionals. He then joined the R&D Device Development Unit at Glaxo and worked on the conceptualisation, design and scale-up of various injectors and key inhaler device platforms and the ongoing lifecycle for these novel inhalers. In 2009 Greg moved to GSK Manufacturing as Head of Global Technical Packaging. More recently he has focused on supporting the launches of the Ellipta inhaler, respiratory training devices and also researching and preparing GSK’s respiratory and packaging strategy for Emerging Markets. In 2016 he joined the Medicines Manufacturing Industry Partnership and wrote and published the UK Pharma roadmap for Innovation and Technology. He holds over 40 patents and has expertise in ideation and conceptualization, integration of sustainable technologies and patient centric design and has presented papers on these topics globally. Greg sits on the UK Institute of Materials Packaging Board representing Pharma. He has a B.Sc. in Industrial Design, a M.Sc. in Polymer Science & Engineering and a Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing.
Jeremy Clarke
GlaxoSmithKline
Jeremy is a Senior Fellow in GSK’s Global Manufacturing Technical Function supporting technology transfer, industrialisation and filing of late stage development candidates in the respiratory portfolio, life cycle management programmes for marketed products and external advocacy in the science and regulation of orally inhaled drug products (OIPs). Jeremy is a Fellow of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, a member of the Board of Directors of IPAC-RS and co-chairs the Inhalation Focus Group of the Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences. A pharmacist by training, Jeremy obtained his PhD in non-aqueous colloid & interface science at the Welsh School of Pharmacy, University of Cardiff. Following his doctorate studies, Jeremy joined Ciba-Geigy (Novartis) working on OIPs, where he advanced to leadership of the formulation development group. Subsequently, Jeremy joined Vectura where, as Director of Respiratory Development, he had responsibility for both in-house and contract development programmes for OIPs. Jeremy then joined Pfizer at Sandwich as matrix/line leader with responsibility for development of new products and technologies for both OIPs and IR/MR oral solid dosage forms.
Shyamal Das
University of Otago
Dr Shyamal Das is a Senior Lecturer in Pharmaceutical Science at the University of Otago since 2013. He pursued a Research Fellowship at Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences after obtaining his PhD degree from the same Institute in 2009. He also received research training at the Imperial College of London, the University College of London and the University of Sydney. He also worked in a pharmaceutical industry after his undergraduate degree in pharmacy.
Dr Das leads the research on pulmonary drug delivery of powders in New Zealand. His particular interests are (i) Solid surface characterization for understanding powder behaviour (ii) Particle engineering approaches (eg, spray drying, dry coating, crystallization and milling) to develop efficient and stable powder formulations, (iii) Dissolution of drugs in the lung and subsequent absorption and toxicity. He has published many papers and presented in >50 conferences on fundamental understanding in these areas.
Dr Das has been successful in receiving grants and fellowships as principal applicant including the prestigious nationally competitive grant from Health Research Council of New Zealand and grants from pharmaceutical industries. He has established collaboration with several established research groups worldwide. He has examined PhD theses from Australia, New Zealand, Asia and the UK (eg, Imperial college of London) and consulted to Pharmaceutical industries.
Dr Das is also a passionate teacher. He won the OUSA 2016 Teaching Excellence Award -Top Five Teacher 2016
Jason McConville
The University of New Mexico
Dr. McConville is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of New Mexico and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Technology at the University of Bonn. He earned an Applied Chemistry degree from the University of Coventry in 1994, before working as a researcher in the field of aerosol drug delivery at the University of Bath, in the Centre for Drug Formulation Studies (CDFS). In 1999, he moved to Scotland and received his Ph.D. at the University of Strathclyde in 2002, working on chronopharmaceutical drug delivery. He then worked as a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Texas at Austin, before later being appointed to the rank of an Assistant Professor in 2006. Here his work was centered on administration of antifungals and cancer chemotherapy agents, via inhalation. Dr. McConville joined the faculty at the University of New Mexico in 2012, and his current research interests focus on using new technologies to improve patient compliance and health outcomes with inhalation, oral, and thin film delivery technologies. Dr. McConville serves as the Associate Editor of Special and Themed Editions for Drug Development and Industrial Pharmacy, on the Editorial Advisory Board of Inhalation, and the Journal of Biopharmaceutics and Therapeutic Challenges, and as a Scientific Advisor for the International Pharmaceutical Excipients Council of the Americas.
Jolyon Mitchell
Jolyon Mitchell Inhaler Consulting Services Inc
Dr. Jolyon Mitchell, PhD, FRSC (UK), CChem. CSci, is the CEO of Jolyon Mitchell Inhaler Consulting Services Inc., specializing in the laboratory evaluation of all types of orally inhaled products (OIPs). He was formerly Scientific Director of Trudell Medical International, a company manufacturing devices for delivering inhaled medications. His interests include all aspects of laboratory testing of inhalers, including the development of methods that mimic patient use. In the role of Scientific Adviser to the International Pharmaceutical Consortium on Regulation and Science (IPAC-RS), he has helped pioneer simplified but powerful methods for determining aerodynamic size-related parameters of importance for inhaler-generated aerosols through the Abbreviated Impactor Measurement (AIM) and Efficient Data Analysis (EDA). He also has an active role in EPAG, currently participating in their CFD and Device Resistance sub-team. He played a major part in standards development for ISO 20072:2009, ISO 27427:2010, and CAN/CSA Z264.1-02:2002 (rev. 2008). He was appointed to the 2010-2015 and 2015-2020 sessions of the USP Expert Committee: General Chapters – Dosage Forms, and currently co-chairs the Aerosols subcommittee. He is an adjunct professor at the University of Western Ontario and an affiliate professor at University of Hawaii. He is on the Editorial Advisory Board for Inhalation, has published more than 400 articles and contributed to five books relating to aerosol technology and inhaler products in particular.
Darragh Murnane
University of Hertfordshire
Darragh is theAssociate Dean for Enterprise in the School of Life and Medical Sciences at the University of Hertfordshire, where he also carries out his research in the Centre for Topical Drug Delivery and Toxicology (TDDT). He trained as a pharmacist initially, gaining a BSc. (Pharm.) from Trinity College Dublin and then a PhD in Pharmaceutical Technology from King’s College London.
Darragh’s research focuses on improving drug delivery products for topical administration of medicines to patients, particularly for inhaled aerosol therapies. In TDDT the research collaborations revolve around developing an understanding of how inhalable particles can be manufactured and processed such that a stable formulation and product can be developed. Through academic and industrial collaboration, he also investigates the factors affecting on-demand generation of a therapeutic aerosol by the patient. This involves assessment of the biological exposure behaviour and responses after inhalation, and the development of advanced analytical techniques to assess product performance and use by patients.
Steve Newman
Scientific Consultant
Steve Newman is a Scientific Consultant based in Norfolk, UK. He has a BA in Physics from the University of Oxford (1971), an MSc in Radiation Physics from the University of London (1974), and a PhD in the Faculty of Medicine of the University of London (1982). Steve was a Medical Physicist at the Royal Free Hospital, London, UK, from 1971 to 1982. From 1982 to 1991 he was a Principal Physicist and Honorary Senior Lecturer in the Department of Thoracic Medicine, Royal Free Hospital and School of Medicine, London, UK. From 1991 to 2004, Steve was a Director and Chief Scientist of Pharmaceutical Profiles, a company based in Nottingham, UK. Steve has published over 250 research papers, invited articles and book chapters. These publications are mostly concerned with aspects of pulmonary and nasal drug delivery. He has given numerous lectures both at international conferences and within the pharmaceutical industry. In 2009, he was principal author and editor of “Respiratory Drug Delivery: Essential Theory and Practice”, published by RDD Online and Virginia Commonwealth University. Steve is a Fellow of the Institute of Physics in the UK (F Inst P). He acts as a reviewer for many medical and pharmaceutical journals, and is a member of the editorial boards of the Journal of Aerosol Medicine and Pulmonary Drug Delivery, and Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery. In 2007 he received the Thomas T Mercer award, jointly presented by the International Society for Aerosols in Medicine and the American Association of Aerosol Research, for “excellence in pharmaceutical aerosols and inhalable materials”.
Steven Nichols
Specialist Consultant-OINDP
Dr. Steven Nichols is a Specialist Consultant OINDPs and their devices and has 30 years of industrial experience in inhaled and nasal product development.
Founder of European Pharmaceutical Aerosol Group (EPAG).
Expert Group Membership (Current and Past)
Member of the European Pharmacopoeia “Inhalanda” working group.
Member of the European Pharmacopoeia ‘HFA propellants’ working group
Member British Pharmacopoeia, Committee of Experts – Pharmacy.
Chair British Pharmacopoeia ‘Inhaled products’ working party (formed 2011)
Member of ISOTC 84/JWG 5 – Pulmonary delivery device group that developed standard ISO 20072 ‘Aerosol drug delivery device design verification – Requirements and test methods’. (activity completed).
Has made over 50 presentations at International Conferences and has many papers published in peer reviewed journals.
Mårten Svensson
Emmace Consulting
Mårten Svensson is currently holding a position as CEO at Emmace Consulting which he founded in 2011. Prior to this position, he worked at AstraZeneca as for thirteen years as Associate Principal Scientist within Inhalation Technology and has during this time worked with particle sizing using different approaches such as lung dose prediction models, Impaction methodology, fast screening methods, various automation projects and device development of dry powder inhalers. For several years, he has been a member in industry-wide organizations such as the EPAG as well as the Cascade Impactor Working Group of IPAC-RS.
He has a PhD in surface and colloid science and has published numerous articles, posters, and book chapters.
Sarah Neugebauer
Research Center Pharmaceutical Engineering
Sarah Neugebauer is a pharmacist by training. During her PhD at the Graz Technical University (AT) she explored glass beads as new model carries in dry powder inhalers (DPIs) and gained expertise in particle engineering via surface modification and detailed material characterization. She currently holds the position of Senior Scientist at Area II “Advanced Products and Delivery” at the Research Center Pharmaceutical Engineering (RCPE) in Graz (AT), where she is leading the Inhalation group and coordinating the different activities in this field. Her research focus is on tailoring DPI formulations via mechanistic understanding of the interplay of material properties, formulation properties, adhesive-cohesive force balance and drug detachment.
Sarah has joined the conference abstract review panel for Drug Delivery to the Lungs (DDL) in 2016.