"SweDeliver generates synergy effects I hardly thought were possible"

In the summer of 2020, a selection of Sweden's leading pharmaceutical experts united in national competence center SweDeliver. With academic hub at Uppsala University's Faculty of Pharmacy, a well-composed industrial network and Vinnova funding, prioritized challenges in drug delivery were defined. Four years later, SweDeliver's scientific achievements are attracting attention far beyond our nation's borders. International giants Janssen Pharmaceuticals and Chiesi have joined and with a new milestone in sight, the Center management is already outlining SweDeliver 2.0.

“At new years, we will finish the initial phase of SweDeliver and of course we are in talks about the center's future. Already two years ago, Vinnova's and our Scientific Advisory Board’s evaluations confirmed that we were moving in the right direction. Today, it is apparent that we have succeeded in establishing a firm platform providing necessary knowledge for ongoing research, and with a scientific program that is arousing interest throughout the world of pharmacy, we have every reason to be optimistic about the future, states Center Director Christel Bergström.

A new report on SweDeliver's operations emphasises the centre's strong scientific position. The Oral Drug Delivery Work Package under the leadership of Per Larsson, University Lecturer at the Department of Pharmacy, today ranks among the world's foremost with results of major international impact. The environments with a focus on pulmonary and parenteral drug delivery have experienced a somewhat longer starting distance, but are already attributed to operate at internationally high levels with the potential to climb even higher.

“In dialogue with SweDeliver's industrial partners, we identified the need for in vitro models to calculate how potential drugs act when injected subcutaneously. This was unexplored territory for us, but today we have a full crew, a committed network whose different perspectives generate synergy effects I hardly thought were possible and have developed the models we envisioned. There is still a lot of work to be done, but with SweDeliver we have the infrastructure to succeed,” says Per Hansson, Professor of Pharmaceutical Physical Chemistry and leader of Work Package Parenteral Drug Delivery.

SweDeliver also gets top marks for its outreach work. Here, the strategically important recruitments of Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Chiesi and Recipharm are accentuated. So is the successful collaboration with research centers such as NextBioForm, Uppsala Antibiotic Center and NordicPOP as well as the many scientific arenas that continuously bring the pharmaceutical world to Uppsala. The perhaps most significant gold star is awarded for success in shouldering the center's junior researchers for leading positions in the Nordic life sciences. Several former employees have already started the next phase of their careers and are today found at, among others, AstraZeneca, APL and Recipharm. Next in line is Maryam Tofiq, that Tuesday 7 May defends her thesis Tableting performance of dry granulated particles: Significance and assessment of compression mechanical properties.

“Carrying out my doctoral studies within the SweDeliver framework has been an inspiring and educational journey. Here, young researchers get to interact with companies of different sizes, countries and focus areas, which improves both abilities for scientific communication and project management as well as an understanding of the pharmaceutical world's many spheres and conditions. Therefore, I want to take this opportunity to thank the SweDeliver management and all the wonderful colleagues I have met over the years, concludes Maryam Tofiq.

Text: Magnus Alsne, photo: Mikael Wallerstedt