Faculty of Pharmacy to confer four new doctors

On Friday 31 January, the doors to Uppsala University's Grand Auditorium and the solemn winter conferment ceremony will open, an academic tradition celebrating its 425th anniversary. The Faculty of Pharmacy confers four new doctoral graduates: Yassir Al-Tikriti, Jenny Johannesson, Frida Stam and Marcus Wanselius that will receive their hat and diploma from degree conferrer Anja Sandström, Professor of Medicinal chemistry.

“Parts of the ceremony will be presented in Latin, and I just received a private lesson where I have learned, among many things, that the ceremony uses a pronunciation close to what the Romans used around 50 BC. The phrases we practiced include Ego Anja Sandström hanc regiam academiam chemiae pharmacologicae professor. I promise to do my best and look forward to a very solemn moment,” states Anja Sandström, who was conferred in the same auditorium 2003.

The first of the new doctoral graduates to enter the stage is Yassir Al-Tikriti who in June 2022 defended his thesis Microgels as drug delivery vehicles: loading and release of amphiphilic drugs, a work carried out at the Pharmaceutical physical chemistry research group and the SweDeliver national competence center. After one year at Calliditas Therapeutics AB, Yassir returned to Uppsala University’s Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and a postdoctoral position in the fall of 2023.

“For me, this day is a unique opportunity to participate in a ceremony that constitutes an important part of the university's history. I also look forward to having my family and not least my children in the Grand auditorium and let them experience this beautiful academic tradition,” says Yassir Al-Tikriti, who is currently working on the research project In Vitro Methods for Enhanced Understanding of Peptide Transport in Subcutaneous Tissue.

Also receiving the doctoral insignia is Jenny Johannesson, who in June 2023 defended her thesis 3D printing of lipid-based formulations into personalized solid oral dosage forms. Her project provided new knowledge about lipid-based formulations for 3D printing of poorly soluble drugs - in turn an important contribution to the ongoing work to enable individually adapted drugs for seriously ill children. Jenny Johannesson is currently working as a Formulation Scientist/Product Developer at Apotek Produktion & Laboratorier AB.

Marcus Wanselius defended his thesis Development and characterization of an in vitro method for interaction studies between polymers and pharmaceuticals: Aiding in the development of new drug delivery systems in October 2023. In his doctoral project, carried out within the framework of SweDeliver, Marcus developed and characterized an in vitro method for interaction studies between polymers and pharmaceuticals. Today, Marcus Wanselius is a Formulation Scientist at Apotek Produktion & Laboratorier AB.

Frida Stam defended her thesis Inhibition of Insulin-regulated aminopeptidase in the brain: Evaluation of cognitive markers and restorative effects in November 2024. In her work, carried out at the Neuropharmacology and biological addiction research group, Frida Stam used synthetically developed IRAP inhibitors to create what may be a positive effect on damaged brain cells, which could in turn pave the way for the regulation of cell damage in specific brain regions and new treatments for dementia and other brain diseases. Frida Stam currently works as a Lecturer at Uppsala University’s Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences.

text: Magnus Alsne, photo: Mikael Wallerstedt a o