Our research

Our research mainly covers bioanalysis - determination of drugs and metabolites in biological systems - with a particular focus on separation methods (UHPLC, SFC, CE) linked to mass spectrometry (Q-TOF MS, QqQ MS).

Chemical analysis is a central part of many disciplines within life science. As an example, high-quality chemical analysis data is often a prerequisite to calculate pharmacokinetic parameters, as a basis for clinical diagnoses, toxicological assessments and forensic conclusions. During pharmaceutical development, chemical analysis is required to determine chemical structure, purity, stability a o.

In the academic subject of analytical pharmaceutical chemistry, basic studies of chemical analysis principles are conducted with the aim to increase our understanding of relevant physico-chemical mechanisms. This knowledge contributes to developing more sensitive and selective analysis methods for complex sample materials. The methods are applied in interdisciplinary collaborative projects where chemical analysis is a central part of knowledge acquisition.

Our research group works with three main research directions: Drugs in the environment, Drug metabolism and doping control and Metabolomics. All with an interdisciplinary touch:

Drugs in the environment

Pharmaceutical drugs are developed to have an effect on biological systems even at low concentrations. Thus, emissions can effect and cause toxic harm to entire ecosystems.

To conduct ecotoxicological assessments and identify which products are formed naturally or during wastewater treatment, we use sensitive and selective chemical analysis methods. We also study how medicinal substances are transformed in different aquatic systems.

Drug metabolism and doping control

Pharmaceutical substances are metabolized through enzymatic reactions in various organs of the body. In many cases, the drug metabolites are more pharmacologically active than the parent substance or somtimes even toxic.

Our group study, among many things, metabolites that provide extended detection time during doping control. We also focus on investigating the metabolism of potential doping substances that are not registered as drugs, but are available via the internet.

Metabolomics

Metabolomics involves the simultaneous study of all small molecules in a biological sample. We focus a large part of our research on ensuring high data quality and developing new and improved methods.

We also collaborate with other groups in projects that aim to improve mechanistic understanding, prognostics and diagnostics for various forms of cancer.