EPSRC-SFI jointly funded project on
Table Top Manufacturing of Tailored Nanosilica for Personalised Medicine [SiPM]
2021-2024
A collaboration between Siddharth V. Patwardhan,* Solomon Brown*  and Vivek V. Ranade**
*Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield.
** Bernal Institute, University of Limerick.

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Overview    Background    Aims   Programme   Updates

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Overview

 

We aim, for the first time, to develop the science for distributed table top on-demand manufacturing of drug delivery systems at scale needed for personalised medicine (PM) by combining controlled green synthesis with novel intensified reactors/devices.

• Personalised medicine (PM) delivers individually suitable treatment (not one-size-fits-all).
  Current manufacturing is unsuitable for PM (they are slow/inflexible, capital intensive and unsustainable).
  
• Small-scale, localised, high-speed and automated “factory-in-a-box” platforms are urgently needed to realise PM.
• Despite recent research on redefining the manufacturing of API and formulations, challenges in manufacturing of excipients or drug delivery systems for PM are not yet addressed.

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Background

 

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Aims

 

Green synthesis developed during SP’s EPSRC Fellowship and earlier work on intensified reactors will be used as a starting point. We select ibuprofen (as a model drug) and doxorubicin (a well-studied anti-cancer drug) as the drugs and bioinspired silica (BIS) as the delivery system given its proven benefits. In particular, the aims are to:

1. Develop quantitative knowledge for drug delivery systems (DDS) to enable Quality by Design (QbD).
2. Generate knowledge about the dependence of CQAs of produced DDS on reactor design and operating process parameters.
3. Create a ‘factory in a box’ for synthesising DDS with desired CQAs by applying a priori selection of device design and operating conditions.

For details, see https://gow.epsrc.ukri.org/NGBOViewGrant.aspx?GrantRef=EP/V051458/1.

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Research Programme, partners and expected outcomes

 

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Updates

 

• The kick-off meeting took place on 28th January 2021 where all partners and team-members shared information on their expertise relevant to this project.
• Dr. Gwen Chimonides is appointed as a senior technician to support this project.
  
• Dr. Rob Milton is appointed as a PDRA to focus on machine learning.
  
• Dr. Carlos M Brambila Renteria is recruited as a PDRA focussing on the materials aspects. 
  
• This proposal was ranked at the top of the sub-panel.

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