News
UCC Futures – Future Pharmaceuticals
We are now recruiting under Future Pharmaceuticals, the next phase of UCC Futures. Building on established expertise across the pharmaceutical sciences and engineering, and cognizant of the location of the University at the heart of a globally significant cluster of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies, UCC Futures – Future Pharmaceuticals advances interdisciplinary collaboration among world-leading scientists and engineers advancing knowledge to underpin the discovery, development, and manufacture of pharmaceuticals, spanning small molecules to biopharmaceuticals.
Modern medicines are increasingly based on complex active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and biologics, each of which must be designed, synthesized and produced at scale in a reliable, reproducible, safe and sustainable manner, and in compliance with stringent regulatory requirements. New emerging modalities increase the complexity of component materials and processes, while the time pressures to get new medicines to market are ever increasing. The cost of such medicines is an issue of increasing public concern, bringing to fore the importance of research and development, state-of-the-art advances in manufacturing excellence, and associated data science. Future Pharmaceuticals brings together complementary expertise in synthesis, biocatalysis, solid state characterization, drug-target discovery & characterization, molecular biology, drug formulation and delivery, advanced process control, process optimization, machine learning, underpinned by advanced analytical techniques, leading to interdisciplinary approaches to complex challenges in lead discovery, formulation selection, and process development. Crossing traditional discipline boundaries is critical to ensure effective collaboration with the pharma sector. Future Pharmaceuticals leverages extensive infrastructure across the key Schools (Chemistry, Pharmacy, Engineering & Architecture, Biochemistry & Cell Biology, Microbiology, CUBS) and research centres and institutes (APC, Tyndall, ABCRF,) including advanced NMR and LC-MS, continuous flow systems, etc. Future Pharmaceuticals will advance understanding of the development and production of new medicines at scale to ensure they are available to patients, ensuring that affordable products are designed to ensure efficacy and safety and, in a patient-centric approach.
Collaboration with strategic partners at a national level include NIBRT, the National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT - National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training) and SSPC, the SFI Research Centre for Pharmaceuticals, and substantive engagements with industry through collaborative research projects, support for PhD students, participation in research-lead teaching, adjunct appointments etc.
Applications are currently sought for 7 positions across a number of disciplines that support the ambitions of UCC Futures - Future Pharmaceuticals. The appointment of researchers of excellence, from Lecturer to Professor, across multiple Schools will connect disciplines and promote interdisciplinary research opportunities across all Colleges, particularly within the College of Science, Engineering & Food Science and Tyndall National Institute.