Our international, multidisciplinary research spans life, physical and clinical sciences focused on investigating mechanisms of drug efficacy and toxicity. Our aim is to develop new, and improve existing, therapies for the benefit of patients.

We are a Queen’s Anniversary award-winning department internationally recognised for excellence in innovative research.

Our expertise lies in several areas of clinical and fundamental pharmacology and therapeutics and our state-of-the-art facilities enable scientists and clinicians to seamlessly work together in collaborative research.

Our aim is to improve patient care through the development of better medicines that are safe and effective.

Staff in the Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics

Our challenges

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/systems-molecular-and-integrative-biology/research/groups/infection-pharmacology/

Infection pharmacology

Our focus is to investigate the mechanisms influencing anti-infective distribution, activity and toxicity with the aim of improving therapies.

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/research/research-themes/personalised-health/

Personalised medicine

Our world leading personalised health research paves the way for uniquely treating individuals based on their genetics and other health data

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/mrc-centre-for-drug-safety-science/

Immunopharmacology

We undertake basic and clinical research to characterize drug interactions with immune cells and identify novel drug targets.

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/mrc-centre-for-drug-safety-science/

Drug Safety Science

Improving patient safety by developing an in-depth understanding of adverse drug reactions

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/systems-molecular-and-integrative-biology/research/groups/antimicrobial-pharmacodynamics-and-therapeutics/

Antimicrobial pharmacodynamics and therapeutics

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing threat and there has been a global push to address to develop new drugs. We study how antimicrobial agents are distributed in the body (pharmacokinetics) and their effect on killing microorganisms (pharmacodynamics).

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/systems-molecular-and-integrative-biology/research/groups/neuropharmacology/

Neuropharmacology, neurosciences, neurogenomics

The central nervous system (CNS) is one of the last great challenges to medical science. Its complexity and relative inaccessibility are reasons why the mechanisms behind most brain and spinal cord diseases are still unknown.

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/centre-of-excellence-for-long-acting-therapeutics/

Long acting therapeutics and nano-medicines

We aim to broaden understanding of long-acting medicines, create new interventions and accelerate the research and development of new therapies.

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/health-and-life-sciences/lccs/

Cardiovascular Pharmacology

We are committed to developing new personalised treatments and pathways that can be utilised in treating cardiovascular disease and similar conditions. This is aimed at improving patient outcomes, and bridging the gap between primary, secondary and tertiary care systems.

Centres of Excellence

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/centre-of-excellence-for-long-acting-therapeutics/ Syringe being filled from a bottle

Centre of Excellence for Long Acting Therapeutics (CELT)

The Centre of Excellence in Long-acting Therapeutics (CELT) aims to broaden understanding of long-acting medicines, create new interventions and accelerate the research and development of new therapies.

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/mrc-centre-for-drug-safety-science/ Scientist in lab

Centre for Drug Safety Science (CDSS)

The Centre for Drug Safety Science aims to inform the future design of medicines, act as a catalyst for future research, provide an environment for cross-disciplinary collaboration and for training the next generation of drug safety scientists.

Case studies

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/research/research-themes/infectious-diseases/mother-to-child-transmission-of-hiv/ Mother holding baby.

Reducing the rate of mother to child transmission of HIV

DolPHIN 2 is a multinational project led by the University of Liverpool which aims to reduce the rate of mother to child transmission of HIV through research into a new HIV drug called dolutegravir (DTG).

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/research/research-themes/personalised-health/managing-toxicity-when-treating-cancer/ xray

Managing toxicity when treating cancer with next-generation drugs

We are researching the newest next-generation drugs – actual biological structures themselves that bind to and stimulate the immune system – to treat patients with more advanced, malignant cancers and dealing with the toxicity that can accompany these novel therapies.

Facilities

Centre for Proteome Research

The Centre of Proteome Research (CPR) develops and applies advanced proteomics technologies to address questions across the biological and biomedical sciences, operating as both a research hub and a Shared Research Facility (SRF) within LIV-SRF. The technological innovations within the research centre, and the demonstrable application across the biosciences feeds directly into the state-of-the-art capabilities and methodologies as a SRF.

Liverpool Bioanalytical Facility

The Liverpool Bioanalytical Facility (BAF) is a GCLP-accredited laboratory established and managed by senior academic pharmacologists within ISMIB in collaboration with the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. The BAF supports diverse clinical studies ranging from small Phase 0-1 first-in-man studies, to large multicentre randomised clinical trials. Their mission is to support research which optimises the deployment and development of therapy for infectious diseases, and to maximise drug effectiveness within individuals and within populations.

Human Liver Research Facility

The Human Liver Research Facility (HLRF) enables wider access to human liver materials for research purposes. Established in 2022, HLRF builds on a successful 10+ year collaboration between academic staff in the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics and the Hepatobiliary Unit at Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (LUHFT).

Accreditations and partnerships

Our local and global partnerships provide vital support to our research activity.

Wellcome Trust

The Wellcome Trust exists to improve health by helping great ideas to thrive. Wellcome is an independent global charitable foundation.

Liverpool Health Partners

Liverpool Health Partners' mission is to improve population health outcomes and economic productivity in Cheshire and Merseyside.

National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)

NIHR is the nation's largest funder of health and care research and provide the people, facilities and technology that enables research to thrive.

Athena SWAN Silver Award

We're proud to hold the Athena SWAN Silver Award, recognising our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.