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Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences, UK : Fellow

Nature Scientific Reports : Editorial Board Member

Journal of Pharmaceutics : Founding Associate Editor

BMC Journal of Pharmacology and Toxicology : Associate Editor

Journal of Therapeutic delivery : Editorial Board Member

Letters in Drug Delivery : Editorial Board Member

Pharmaceutica Analytica Acta : Editorial Board Member

Multimodal Role of Amino Acids in Microbial Control and Drug Development

Evaluation of anti-biofilm activity of acidic amino acids and synergy with ciprofloxacin on Staphylococcus aureus biofilms

Conceptualisation, Development, Fabrication and In Vivo Validation of a Novel Disintegration Tester for Orally Disintegrating Tablets

Delivery of Poorly Soluble Drugs via Mesoporous Silica: Impact of Drug Overloading on Release and Thermal Profiles

High‐throughput screening of excipients with a biological effect: a kinetic study on the effects of surfactants on efflux‐mediated transport

Dr Afzal-Ur-Rahman Mohammed's research interests include: formulation development and optimization of orally disintegrating tablets; formulation  and stability testing of oral liquid nano medicines; particle engineering through controlled dry particle coating technology; development of cell culture based models - buccal absorption, intestinal absorption, taste assessment, gene expression using microarrays.

Dry Particle Coating Technology

Tablets

Pharmacy

Pharmaceuticals

Stability Testing

Aston Research Explorer Profile

Journal of Pharmaceutics & Drug Delivery Research Profile

ORCiD Citations

ResearchGate Citations

Coating method

Coating apparatus and method

aston-university-partnership-with-medicine-manufacturer-improves-oral-medicine-formulation-development-process

Professor, Pharmacy

Lecturer in Pharmacokinetics

Aston University and medicine manufacturer Catalent formed a Knowledge Transfer Partnership to identify more effective formulation additives The new selection matrix makes choosing the right additive quicker and the medicine development process shorter The project has been rated as ‘outstanding’ by Innovate UK   A partnership between Aston University and contract medicine manufacturer Catalent has led to a faster process to identify the best ingredients for optimal medicine formulations, and has been rated as outstanding by Innovate UK.

Catalent is a global leader in enabling pharma, biotechnology and consumer health partners to optimise product development, launch and full life-cycle supply for patients around the world. Its proprietary Zydis orally dissolving tablet (ODT) technology enables the absorption of drugs or active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) through the mouth tissues, which is much faster than absorption through the gut. However, many APIs have poor pre-gastric absorption and need to be combined with suitable excipients, or additives, to bind the active ingredients and speed up the process of dissolving and absorbing via the pre-gastric route. 

Identifying suitable excipients for the formulation is difficult, and so the Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) between Aston University and Catalent was set up to develop a faster, more efficient approach.

A KTP is a three-way collaboration between a business, an academic partner and a highly qualified researcher, known as a KTP associate. The UK-wide programme helps businesses to improve their competitiveness and productivity through the better use of knowledge, technology and skills. Aston University is a sector leading KTP provider, with 80% of its completed projects being graded as very good or outstanding by Innovate UK, the national body.

The project was led by Aston University’s Afzal Mohammed, professor of pharmaceutics in the School of Pharmacy and associate dean (impact and knowledge exchange) for the College of Health and Life Sciences, who has expertise in the design and optimisation of orally dissolving tablet formulation. He was supported by other colleagues from Aston Pharmacy School including Dr Daniel Kirby, whose main area of research is the formulation of age-appropriate medicines for the extremes of life, Dr Affiong Iyire, who has research expertise in mucosal drug delivery, and Dr Raj Badhan, who is a pharmacokinetics expert with research interests in analytical approaches to predict oral drug absorption. Dr Ruba Bnyan, who has a master’s degree and a PhD in pharmaceutical drug formulation, as well as experience in cell-based models, was the KTP associate for the project.

The KTP partners developed a selection matrix, whereby, based on the API properties, Catalent formulation scientists can quickly identify excipients that will improve the absorption of the drug through the mouth. Adopting this novel tool allows for quicker and more efficient drug development and has the potential to increase the number of Zydis ODT candidates in the pipeline for future development. 

Desmond Wong, product development supervisor at Catalent, said:

“This project has exceeded our initial expectations and has the potential to accelerate product development for our clients. Our strong relationship with the Aston University team on this KTP project highlights the transformative potential of collaborative research and its impact on pharmaceutical innovation.”

Professor Mohammed said:

“This has been a very successful project, which has been rated as ‘outstanding’ by Innovate UK. We plan to put it forward for a KTP award and are looking forward to continuing working with Catalent on our next KTP project.”

For more information on the KTP visit the webpage. 

Aston University partnership with medicine manufacturer improves oral medicine formulation development process

aston-university-partners-with-paediatric-pharmaceutical-company-to-facilitate-student-research

  • Aston University MSc Pharmaceutical Sciences, Drug Delivery and MPharm students work with industry professionals on research projects • Proveca pharmaceutical specialises in the development and licensing of medicines for children • Students will attend workshops led by Proveca and receive coaching on their research proposals. Aston University has partnered with pharmaceutical company Proveca to help support and facilitate final research projects being undertaken by its MSc Pharmaceutical Sciences, Drug Delivery and MPharm students. 

The partnership between the College of Health and Life Sciences at Aston University and Proveca began with a contract research project during which Professor Afzal Mohammed worked with Proveca to explore the development of drug formulation.  

Proveca is a pharmaceutical company specialising in the development and licensing of medicines for children. The company has now come on board to support and supervise at least five final year research projects and will help steer the students in the next steps in their lab research. 

The company will also support a wider number of students by running workshops, educating them on the current challenges of drug formulation development and providing coaching on how to write a research proposal. 

Professor Afzal Mohammed, associate head of pharmacy at Aston University, said:
“This is a fantastic opportunity to enhance the student experience and build on our excellent industry focused teaching and research”.  The projects are due to start in January 2023 and Proveca has agreed to sponsor the final project prize open to all of our MSc Pharmaceutical Sciences, Drug Delivery and final year MPharm students. 

Dr Simon Bryson, CEO and founder of Proveca Ltd, said: “We are delighted to be building on our relationship with Aston University, having collaborated over several years on a range of successful projects including PhD sponsorship and supervision, visiting lecturing and MPharm research awards. 

“The partnership brings together the academic excellence of Aston University with the paediatric pharmaceutical expertise of Proveca which will ultimately drive innovation in paediatric medicines to improve child health.”

For more information about the School of Pharmacy at Aston University please visit our website. 

Aston University partners with paediatric pharmaceutical company to facilitate student research

aston-university-partners-with-catalent-to-support-the-development-of-new-orally-disintegrating-tablet

  Aston University researchers based in the College of Health and Life Sciences have been awarded a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project by Innovate UK, to bring its academic and scientific expertise to assist Catalent in the development of its Zydis® technology, the leading orally disintegrating tablet (ODT). 

The Zydis ODT fast-dissolve formulation is a unique, freeze-dried oral solid dosage form that disperses almost instantly in the mouth with no water required. It helps delivering treatments to patients and consumers who have difficulty swallowing conventional pills, or where rapid onset of action is desirable.

The aim of the KTP partnership is to develop and prove an accurate predictive decision-making tool to pre-determine accurate levels of absorption enhancer for each Zydis product, potentially facilitating faster pharmaceutical development, improving efficiency, and reducing time to market.

A Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) is a three-way collaboration between a business, an academic partner and a KTP Associate. The UK-wide programme helps businesses to improve their competitiveness and productivity through the better use of knowledge, technology and skills. Aston University is the leading KTP provider within the Midlands.

Academic lead on the project is Professor Afzal Mohammed, who is also chair in Pharmacy in the College of Health & Life Sciences (HLS) and a member of the Aston Pharmaceutics Group (APG) at Aston University.

Afzal said: “This is a great opportunity for us to share and translate our academic experience in cell based models, excipient and formulation characterisation to develop an evidence based predictive tool that has the potential to expedite product development at Catalent.”

Ralph Gosden, head of Zydis product development at Catalan, added: 

"We are excited to be working with Aston University on this project. Their expertise in drug transportation, cell biology, data analysis and model cell line design, coupled with its world-class facilities means that together, we will be able to achieve significant improvements in efficiency, and accelerate new product development.”

Professor Mohammed will be supported by other colleagues from the Aston Pharmaceutics Group, including, Dr Dan Kirby, who has experience in drug delivery and improving patient acceptability of dosage forms gained through original research; Dr Affiong Iyire who has research expertise in the formulation of drugs for pre-gastric absorption and innovative cell models; and Dr Raj Badhan, who is a pharmacokinetics expert with vast knowledge of in silico methods.

The outcomes of the project will be integrated into Aston University’s curriculum through teaching case studies, thereby developing well equipped graduates.




Aston University partners with Catalent to support the development of new orally disintegrating tablet

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