The director of The University of Nottingham's new £25m Centre for Biomolecular Sciences has been honoured by the Pharmaceutical Sciences World Congress (PSWC) for his research.
Kevin Shakesheff, Professor of Tissue Engineering in the School of Pharmacy at the University, will receive his award at the Third World Congress of the Board of Pharmaceutical Sciences. The event takes place in The Netherlands from 22 to 25 April.
The Pharmaceutical Sciences World Congress addresses global pharmaceutical needs by bringing together scientists from across the world. Academics, industry and regulatory authorities from many countries meet to promote the worldwide development of safer and more effective medicines.
Professor Shakesheff receives the PSWC Research Achievement Award for his recent work researching the application of injectable polymers in regenerative medicine.
Professor Shakesheff said: "This Award reflects the international standing of our University in interdisciplinary research and Pharmacy. Over the past 10 years at Nottingham we have invented new delivery systems for proteins and cells thanks to close interactions with chemists, clinicians and biologists. The substantial investment in the new Centre for Biomolecular Sciences shows the Universities commitment to this type of long-term collaboration."
The Centre for Biomolecular Sciences (CBS) is the University's largest scientific research centre of excellence, housing 300 researchers from eight major research groups to develop innovative new techniques for a range of medical and scientific disciplines. CBS brings together world-class teams from core disciplines such as pharmacy, chemistry, molecular medical sciences, mathematics, human development and medical & surgical sciences, to work together in areas including: novel small and large drug molecule design; molecular target identification for cancer therapy, infection control and regenerative medicine; stem cell and tissue engineering technologies for therapy and laboratory models of human tissue; and mathematical and computational modeling of molecules, cells and tissues.
Professor Shakesheff and co-workers have filed numerous patents for novel medical systems that promote the regeneration of tissue within patients. Two Nottingham based companies Regentec Ltd and Critical Pharmaceuticals Ltd have been formed to exploit these inventions.
The official opening of the new £25m CBS research building will take place on Friday 11 May.
Notes to editors: The University of Nottingham is Britain's University of the Year (The Times Higher Awards 2006). It undertakes world-changing research, provides innovative teaching and a student experience of the highest quality. Ranked by Newsweek in the world's Top 75 universities, its academics have won two Nobel Prizes since 2003. The University is an international institution with campuses in the United Kingdom, Malaysia and China.
More information is available from Professor Kevin Shakesheff, Professor of Tissue Engineering on +44 (0)115 951 5104, Kevin.shakesheff@nottingham.ac.uk or Tara de Cozar, Internal Communications and Media Relations Officer in the Public Affairs Office at The University of Nottingham, on +44 (0)115 846 8545, tara.decozar@nottingham.ac.uk