PhD students & Postdocs

At SweDeliver's absolute core, an international group of PhD students and postdocs are working with access to technology and supervision from prominent researchers in both academia and industry.

Ilse Dubbelboer, Researcher

Researcher bio Ilse Dubbelboer is a pharmacist from the Netherlands. She did her PhD in pharmacokinetics, biopharmaceutics and physiologically based pharmacokinetic modelling.

Research project Modified release formulations enabling colonic absorption of poorly solubles.

Project aim With focus on the intestinal mucus and the composition thereof, Ilse Dubbelboer is working with collection of intestinal mucus and analysis of –omics data, with in vitro diffusion and dissolution studies on the side.

The aim is to develop and use physiologically relevant in silico and in vitro models and thereby increase the understanding of important physiological aspects affecting colonic release and absorption of poorly soluble compounds.

Vahid Forooqi Motlaq, PhD student

Researcher bio Vahid Forooqi Motlaq completed his Bachelor’s program at Baháʼí Institute for Higher Education in applied chemistry. His Master’s degree was in polymer and colloid science at the department of chemistry, University of Oslo. In 2018, Vahid started his PhD studies at Uppsala University’s pharmaceutical physical chemistry group.

Research project Amphiphilic properties of drug molecules and their self-assembly in presence of phospholipids

Project aim To investigate the self-assembly properties of amphiphilic drugs in presence of cell membrane components e.g. phospholipids, receptor proteins, cholesterol etc., and finding the correlation between the chemical structure of drug molecules and their aggregates properties.

Determining the influence of the presence of the amphiphilic drug on the structural deformation of the bilayer membrane is another part of my PhD project.

Julia Parlow, PhD student

Researcher bio Julia Parlow graduated from the master program in Pharmacy at Uppsala University in the spring of 2017. After that she worked at a pharmacy and since autumn 2018 she is a PhD student in the Pharmaceutical Physical Chemistry resarch group at Uppsala University

Project Novel In Vitro Models for Subcutaneous Administration of Drugs: Transport Properties

Project aim To develop methods to study the transport of drug molecules in biorelevant synthetic models of human SC extracellular matrix, and to use the methods to clarify the key factors governing the transport with respect to interaction with the constituents of the matrix and the interstitial fluid.

Yassir Al-Tikriti, Postdoctoral position

Researcher bio Yassir Al-Tikriti is a pharmacist with a B.Sc. degree in pharmacy from Baghdad University. In 2012, Yassir earned a Master's degree in pharmaceutical science from Uppsala University, with the main field of the study being in drug discovery and development. He received his PhD in 2022 at SweDeliver and the Department of Medicinal Chemistry.

Project In Vitro Methods for Enhanced Understanding of Peptide Transport in Subcutaneous Tissue

Project aim To Generate data that aids in modeling drug absorption after in vivo administration. The focus is on identifying specific molecular properties that influence the diffusion and transport of peptide drugs within subcutaneous tissue.

Ellen Brunzell, PhD student

Researcher bio Ellen Brunzell received her master of science degree in pharmacy from Uppsala University summer of 2020. She wrote her master thesis at Uppsala University in the pharmaceutical physical chemistry research group, and in autumn 2020, Ellen joined the same group as a PhD student

Project Self-Assembly of therapeutic peptides

Project aim To characterize the structure of self-assembled peptides by using small-angle scattering measurements, mainly X-ray and neutron scattering. By comparing our results with in vivo methods, the structure of peptide aggregates and its correlation with biological effects can be investigated.

Dávid Juriga, Researcher

Researcher bio Dávid Juriga earned his PhD in 2016 at Semmelweis Universitet, Budapest. He has since been an Assistant Professor at Semmelweis University’s Department of Biophysics and Radiation Biology and a Guest Researcher at the University of Groningen, before being recruited to SweDeliver and Professor Per Hansson’s group at the Department of Medicinal Chemistry in September 2023.

Research project Investigation of the relationship between the in vitro properties of different subcutaneously administered peptides and their bioavailability and absorption in vivo

Project aim To establish the correlation between in vitro and in vivo experiments by using subcutaneously administered peptides that are promising in cancer therapy. By understanding the key parameters, the development of the in vitro model system to mimic the complexity of the adipose tissue is also in the focus of the project.

Anton Norberg, PhD Student

Researcher bio Anton Norberg is a licensed pharmacist after graduating from Uppsala University in 2023. In the summer of 2021, Anton completed the SweDeliver summer research internship at APL. After graduation, he worked at the Cytiva R&D department as a research engineer. In autumn 2023, Anton was recruited to a PhD student position at Per Hansson's research group at the Department of Medicinal Chemistry

Project Subcutaneous administration of biotherapeutics: In vitro properties and bioavailability and absorption rate in vivo

Project aim Increased knowledge of factors affecting the subcutaneous tissue interactions of peptide and protein drugs and to evaluate the predictive capacity of in vitro methods regarding absorption and bioavailability of subcutaneously administered drugs.

Shahina Akter, PhD student

Researcher Bio: Shahina Akter graduated in Pharmacy from Heinrich Heine University Duesseldorf (HHU) in Germany. She received her Master's degree in Industrial Pharmacy, focusing her master’s thesis on Molecular simulations of membrane permeability. After finishing her masters Shahina Akter joined the Uppsala University Drug Delivery group as a PhD student.

Research Project: Influence of intestinal colloidal structures and self-assembly on lipid-based formulations for enhancing peptide drug bioavailability.

Aim: To develop a hybrid of the small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and the simulation methods to analyse complex intestinal colloidal structures and lipid-rich water-based formulations.

Prosper Emeh, PhD student

Researcher Bio: Prosper Emeh holds a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Nigeria and has practiced Clinical Pharmacy for two years. He then earned a Master of Science in Nanomedicine for drug delivery from Université Paris Cité. He developed his master’s thesis at Université Catholiqué du Louvain, where he explored the use of permeation enhancers to improve oral peptide absorption in an inflammatory bowel disease context.

Research project: Effects of molecular characteristics of macromolecular drugs and selection of permeation enhancer on oral absorption.

Project aim: To study the impact of the physicochemical characteristics of beyond-the-rule-of-5 (bRo5) drugs and that of permeation enhancers, elucidating their interactions and the interplay with gastrointestinal barriers towards improving oral bioavailability and reducing variability.

Rebekkah Hammar, PhD student

Researcher bio Rebekkah Hammar studied Pharmaceutical Sciences and the German State Examination in Pharmacy programs at LMU Munich. Her bachelor thesis (2017) focused on theranostic inorganic nanoparticles. During her exchange semester in Umeå (2018), she studied microbial impacts on climate change and photocatalyzed synthesis of novel antibiotics. She then moved on to work with photoswitchable tubulin inhibitors in her master thesis (2020). As part of her licensing as a pharmacist, she interned at Roche in Regulatory Affairs (2021) before starting her PhD in Drug Delivery focusing on intracellular drug bioavailability in the colon.

Research project Influence of intra- and extracellular free drug concentrations in the human colon on local and systemic drug exposure

Project aim To create a PBPK model of drug bioavailability in the colonic environment by determining drug distribution in a) colonoids and b) microbiota models.

Xiguo He, PhD Student

Researcher bio Xiguo He holds her master of science degree in pharmaceutical modelling from Uppsala University, 2021. After graduating from the in vitro, in vivo and in silico modelling background, she returned to the Drug Delivery group as a PhD student to begin the journey of engineering nanoparticles for antibiotics. The project is performed in collaboration with Uppsala Antibiotic Center.

Research project A nanosized drug delivery platform for optimal intestinal absorption of poorly permeables with focus on oral antibiotics

Project aim To improve the oral bioavailability of antibiotics using nanoparticles that are stable in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT), efficient solubilizers of poorly soluble antibiotics and highly membrane-permeable, with the purpose to increase the drug delivery to the systemic circulation.

Shakhawath Hossain, researcher

Researcher Bio Shakhawath Hossain holds a PhD degree from the University of Saskatchewan (2015) in modelling and simulation of in vitro tissue culture processes. He then worked as post-doctoral researcher in the Mid Sweden University (2015-2018) in the area of bio-polymer (cellulose) network mechanics. He started working at the department of pharmacy at the Uppsala University as post-doctoral researcher from 2018 and currently working there as a researcher since February 2020.

Research Project Investigation of oral absorption of macromolecules using in silico techniques

Project aim The primary aim of this research project is to improve the understanding of oral absorption of macromolecule using in silico modelling techniques e.g. molecular dynamics (MD). Much of the research focus was to explore the interaction of permeability enhancers (PEs) with different components of intestinal fluids and cell membrane in order to understand different PEs ability to enhance the permeability of macromolecules across the cell membrane. The interaction of macromolecules is also important for the development of an effective formulation. Therefore, the aggregation behavior of different peptide molecules is also studied in this project using the MD simulations.

Rosita Kneiszl, PhD student

Researcher bio Rosita Kneiszl holds her master of science degree in pharmacy from Uppsala University, 2016. Rosita performed her Master's degree project at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's hospital, Boston, US, autumn 2015. After graduating, she was a leadership trainee in one of Sweden's largest retail pharmacies, and worked as a quality control pharmacist. In January, 2019, Rosita returned to academia and became a PhD student at Uppsala University.

Research project Mechanistic modeling of peptide drug permeability

Project aim Studying the interactions between oral peptide drugs, permeation enhancers, and biological model membranes with the use of computational tools, the aim is to quantify and characterize binding and transport of peptide drugs across lipid bilayers.

Benyamin Naranjani, PhD student

Researcher bio Benyamin Naranjani is a PhD student in the Drug Delivery group at Uppsala University, Sweden. With an engineering background, his research interest focuses on numerical simulations of fluid flow.

Research project Combined computational modeling at different scales to understand peptide drug and excipient co-localization

Project aim To develop a model for multiscale analysis of intestinal motility-driven fluid transport. This method will be implemented to scrutinise improvement of biologics absorption through colocalisation with permeation enhancers.

Hannah Pohlit, Researcher

Researcher bio Hannah Pohlit studied biomedical chemistry at University of Mainz before conducting her PhD project with focus on degradable and protein-loaded poly(ethylene glycol) nanocarriers for allergy therapy. Within her PhD studies she synthesized the polymer, formulated the nanoparticles and did the physical and biological characterization.

Hannah moved to Sweden and Uppsala University for a short postdoc in Jöns Hilborn’s group at the polymer chemistry division where she tailor-made hydrogels for cell cultures. In 2018, Hannah was recruited to a postdoctoral position in Maria Tenje’s group, focusing on thin hydrogel membranes for cell cultures in microfluidic devices (organ-on-chip applications). In autumn 2022 Hannah Pohlit joined SweDeliver and Alexandra Teleki’s research group.

Marco Tjakra, PhD Student

Researcher Bio Marco Tjakra has studied Biomedical Engineering in Chongqing University, China and graduated with Master of Engineering degree in 2020. His previous research involves signalling pathway in the neurovascular unit with relation of hemodynamic force and toxicology. During bachelor study in Atma Jaya Catholic University of Indonesia, he was investigating antimicrobial compound from essential oil to combat oral biofilm forming bacteria. He was graduated in 2016 with Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology.

Research Project Diffusion, dissolution, and release mechanisms for dosage forms delivering drugs to the colon: Importance of colonic mucus as a barrier to drug absorption (Project performed within COLOTAN).

Project Aim To improve the understanding of drug dissolution, diffusion, and absorption from the human colon with a focus on the role of the colonic mucus layer. The obtained results will be used to design drug delivery decision trees for colonic drug delivery as well as improved in silico models for drug absorption from the colon.

Mingjun Wu, PhD student

Researcher bio: Mingjun Wu received her BSc in Pharmacy from Sun Yat-sen University, followed by a MSc in Pharmaceutical Science at Uppsala University in the summer of 2022. She conducted her master’s project which focused on quality control attributes of 3D printed oral dosage forms in the Drug Delivery group. In autumn, Mingjun joined the same group as a PhD student.

Research project: In vivo dissolution in colon of poorly soluble drug substances

Project aim: The project aims to improve the understanding of the colonic dissolution of poorly water-soluble compounds. The acquired knowledge will be used to develop physically relevant in silico and in vitro models of drug absorption.

Maryam Tofiq, PhD student

Researcher bio Maryam Tofiq received her Master of Science degree in Pharmacy at Uppsala University with a degree project in Pharmacokinetics. She started her doctoral studies at Uppsala University in September 2018.

Research project Microstructure-property relationships of agglomerates formed by dry granulation

Project aim With focus on how the microstructure and mechanical properties of agglomerates formed by dry granulation can be controlled by formulation measures, a central part of Maryam’s project is the assessment of the compression mechanics of agglomerates and if such compression parameters can be used to predict the tabletability of the granules.

Anna Simonsson, PhD student

Researcher bio Anna is a pharmacist and got her Master of Science in Pharmacy from Uppsala in 2015. Anna wrote her master thesis in pharmacognosy at the School of pharmacy in London, and has been working as a pharmacy manager in both Norway and Sweden. In October 2020 Anna joined the Pharmaceutics research group at Uppsala University, as a PhD student.

Research project. Blend state-blend property relationships of adhesive mixtures for inhalation powders.

Aim. The aim of the project is to investigate effect of carrier morphology on blend state-blend dispersibility relationships. The aim is further to investigate the role of the mixing process for blend state and blend state-blend dispersibility relationships. Finally, the possibility to develop screening methods for assessing dispersibility and segregation will be explored.

Marilena Marinaki, PhD student

Researcher bio Marilena Marinaki has a Diploma in Environmental Engineering from the Technical University of Crete. After her studies, she was working as a research assistant in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering of Uppsala University. In December 2020, she joined the Pharmaceutics research group at Uppsala University, as a PhD student.

Research project Understanding the compression–decompression cycle for pressure shaping of agglomerates.

Project aim The aim of the project is to provide an understanding at the particle scale of the processes that control the structure and properties of granules formed by application and subsequent removal of pressure. The goal is to first develop protocols for analytical powder compression focusing on the unloading stage and secondly to develop contact models and modelling procedures that enable the full loading–unloading cycle to be simulated at the particle scale.

Mayura Talwelkar Shimpi, Postdoctoral position

Researcher bio Mayura Talwelkar Shimpi is a researcher with experience in crystal engineering of various organic molecules, using experimental and computational approach. She conducted her PhD studies at Luleå University of Technology in the field of applied physics, before being recruited to a postdoctoral position at Prof. Anja-Verena Mudring's research group. In October 2022, Mayura Talwelkar Shimpi joined SweDeliver and Prof. Göran Frenning’s research group in Pharmaceutical physics.

Research project Enhanced spray-dried formulations of inhaled drugs.

Project aim Spray drying is a flexible singe-step technique for the preparation of micron-sized particles suitable for inhalation. With adequate processing parameters and excipients, spray drying is gentle enough to retain the biological activity of peptides, oligonucleotides and other biologics. Spray-dried particles can be used in carrier-free formulations, potentially enabling higher doses of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) to be delivered to the lung.

Our overall aim is to provide a solid scientific understanding of important aspects of spray-dried formulations of inhaled drugs that ultimately will enable enhanced spray-dried formulations to be developed. Of particular interest is to investigate the potential of “novel” excipients for achieving physiochemical stability of a range of API modalities, including small molecules and large biologic molecules.

Nicklas Bunta Sundin, PhD student

Research bio: Nicklas Bunta Sundin completed his master's thesis in Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics in 2018 and thus obtained his master's degree in drug development. After his studies, he worked as a lecturer in social pharmacy at the same university until March 2024 when he started his doctoral studies

Research project: Using novel excipients to improve stability and performance of inhalations powders prepared by spray drying

Project aim: To investigate new excipients and optimize formulation possibilities with a focus on spray drying. The project will primarily focus on creating stable formulations containing biomolecules (e.g. proteins, enzymes, peptides, etc.) as it would sometimes be beneficial from a formulation perspective to be able to administer biomolecules via the lungs.