Drug Delivery Group
The Drug Delivery Group aims to enhance the bioavailability, efficacy and patient acceptability of medicines, while advancing novel platform technologies for controlled and targeted drug delivery.
Group lead
Professor Sheng Qi
Sheng is Chair in Pharmaceutics at the University of Liverpool. Her research focuses on pharmaceutical materials science, drug delivery and formulation development, spanning fundamental studies of pharmaceutical materials through to the creation of innovative drug delivery systems and medical device technologies.
Her work applies advanced materials and processing science to improve medicine bioavailability and therapeutic outcomes, with research interests including controlled drug delivery, long-acting injectables, intravesical drug delivery, drug-eluting contact lenses and microfactory technologies for personalised medicine manufacturing. Through interdisciplinary collaborations her group also develops antimicrobial and antibiofilm surface technologies for applications in food, packaging and medical devices.
Sheng has a strong track record in translating research into clinical, industrial and societal impact. She has co-founded three start-up companies in the materials, packaging and food processing sectors and has successfully built collaborations across academia, healthcare and industry.
Team members
Ibrahim Alshehri
Ibrahim is a PhD candidate in the Drug Delivery Group at the University of East Anglia, supervised by Professor Sheng Qi. His research focuses on pharmaceutical materials science and crystal engineering, specifically the use of polymers to control cocrystallisation as a route to improving the solubility and bioavailability of poorly water-soluble drugs.
His work applies solution crystallisation and freeze-drying to engineer cocrystals of poorly soluble drugs , with a range of coformers. Through bulk solid-state characterisation, including powder X-ray diffraction, FTIR spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry, he investigates how polymers direct crystallisation outcomes and stabilise the resulting solid forms, with the aim of enabling the rational design of cocrystals with enhanced pharmaceutical performance.
Alongside his experimental work, Ibrahim has developed a computational pipeline that draws on the Cambridge Structural Database to predict and validate cocrystal formation through hydrogen-bonding synthon analysis. By bridging laboratory formulation science with data-driven crystal engineering, his research supports the translation of materials innovations into more effective and manufacturable medicines.
Dr. Dannielle Cox-Pridmore
Dannielle holds a Molecular Biology B.Sc. from Cardiff University, a Stem Cells and Regeneration M.Sc. from the University of Bristol and Southmead Hospital, and an Electronic Engineering Ph.D. from the University of Surrey and National Physical Laboratory, focusing on bioelectronics and tissue engineering.
After completing her Ph.D., she worked as a postdoctoral scientist at the University of Surrey, developing lab-on-a-chip measurement platforms. In 2024, she joined the University of East Anglia, focusing on sustainable antibacterial and antibiofilm solutions in collaboration with the Quadram Institute and Norwich University Hospital.
Her interdisciplinary research interests lie in the field of biology and engineering, drawing from her academic, industrial, and clinical experience to address complex challenges.
Dr Christopher David
Dr Christopher David is a pharmacologist specialising in advanced drug delivery systems and the immunological evaluation of nanomedicine and long-acting therapeutics. He obtained his BSc in Medical Biochemistry and MSc in Nanomedicine from Swansea University in 2011 and 2012, respectively, before completing a PhD in Pharmacology at the University of Liverpool in 2017, where he investigated how nanoparticle physicochemical properties influence their biological interactions. He has since built close to a decade of postdoctoral experience at the University of Liverpool’s Centre of Excellence for Long-Acting Therapeutics and within EU-funded consortia, leading method development, immunoassay optimisation, and in vitro models to support translational drug delivery research. His broader expertise spans microparticulate and nanoparticulate formulation, in vitro release and immunotoxicity testing, and the regulatory science required to guide nanobiomaterials toward clinical application.
Chloe Linham
Chloe completed her BSc (Hons) in Pharmacology at the University of Portsmouth in 2024, which included an industrial placement year in the materials science department at GSK. She is now undertaking her PhD as part of the Microbes, Microbiomes and Bioinformatics Doctoral Training Programme at the University of East Anglia and the Quadram Institute, and as a visiting researcher at The University of Liverpool. Her research encompasses materials science, pharmacology, and microbiology with the aim to create a novel intravesical treatment to combat AMR in complex UTIs. Chloe’s project is an iCASE studentship with Uropharma LTD.
Luke Nelson
Luke Nelson is a PhD researcher within CELT Global Health at the University of Liverpool. He holds an MRes in Chemistry from the University of Sheffield, with research experience in polymer chemistry and analytical characterisation. His PhD focuses on developing programmable long-acting injectable drug delivery systems capable of controlled, on-demand release for chronic diseases. His research interests include polymer and formulation science, controlled release technologies, translational pharmaceutical development, and the design of clinically manufacturable therapeutics that improve patient adherence and healthcare outcomes.
Dr. Chak (Ken) Tam
Ken is a postdoctoral pharmaceutical scientist at the University of Liverpool. Following registration as a community pharmacist, Ken completed a PhD in pharmaceutical formulation, developing 3D-printed oral films and contact lens drug delivery systems. Within the EIC-funded PERaME project, Ken develops point-of-care manufacturing of personalised polypills, combining hot melt extrusion with fused deposition modelling 3D printing to produce multi-drug tablets tailored to individual patients. This work aims to reduce pill burden and improve adherence in elderly polypharmacy patients, and spans polymer and excipient selection and pharmaceutical filament fabrication.