Hanne Mørck Nielsen

CV

Project Leader and Principal Investigator, Center for Biopharmaceuticals and Biobarriers in Drug Delivery (2017-onward)

Professor, Section Head, Section for Biologics, SUND (2016-onward)

Professor, Section Head, Section for Biologics, SUND

Associate Professor and Section Head, Biologics, SUND, UCPH (2012-)

Associate Professor and Research Group Leader, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, UCPH, (2004-2012)

Total of 2½ year Assistant Professor, interrupted by post doc at ETH Zürich (1999-2003)

Post doc, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zürich) (2001-2002)

Drug Formulation Course Leader, The Royal Danish School of Pharmacy (1998-2000)

PhD, Royal Danish School of Pharmacy, DK and LACDR, Leiden, NL (1995-2000)

MSc (pharm), Royal Danish School of Pharmacy, DK (1989-1995)

Maternity leave for a total of approx. 2 years (2002-2003 and 2005-2006)

Primary fields of research

Drug design and delivery of biopharmaceuticals, specifically related to designing and evaluating drug delivery systems (DDS) efficiently deliver biopharmaceuticals to seriously ill patients. I focus on drug design and delivery of therapeutic peptides/proteins and other challenging hydrophilic drugs like antibiotics and oligonucleotides for them to reach their target in sufficiently high amounts. To advance the field of drug delivery of biopharmaceuticals, interdisciplinary research is essential since only by implementing expertise in various aspects of chemistry, biology, and analysis, in relation to pharmaceutical sciences, we, as researchers, will be able to lead the field towards scientific innovations.

I apply pharmaceutical formulation design implementing expertise on the chemistry of drugs and excipients, processing technologies with expertise on drug design and delivery; namely the biological matrix interaction, uptake, and transport of the active drug molecule to target. Thoroughly understanding the importance of the properties of the DDS, drug, and (expected inactive) excipients and their interactions with biological matrices, is crucial for advancing the design of future (bio)pharmaceutical drugs. Importantly, the effect of drug formulation processing parameters may be decisive for the properties of the DDS and thus the safe use and applicability. Further, analytical processing of samples and quantitative assessment of data obtained by applying relevant in vitro and in vivo models are necessary to translate to expected outcome in humans. In brief, I hold expertise in: (1) design of advanced DDS based on e.g. carrier peptides, lipids and (bio)polymers, (2) cell-penetrating peptides, (3) antibiotics and antimicrobial peptides, (4) drug interaction with and transport across biological matrices such as mucus, epithelia and biofilms, (5) application of biosimilar in vitro and in vivo models.

Teaching

Main teaching activities:

Drug Delviery course (co-organizer), PhD course

Formulation and Delivery course (MIND course)

Advanced Drug Formulation (master course)

Pharmaceutical formulation of peptides and proteins (master course)

Bachelor, master thesis, and individual unit projects

Pharmaceutics I - Liquid and Semi-Solid Dosage Forms (bachelor)

Current research

Projects

Center for Biopharmaceuticals and Biobarriers in Drug Delivery funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation via its Challenge Programme (link to the website)

Recent PhD projects

2015-2018

Sylvia Nathalia Klodzinska (funded by University of Copenhagen 2016 Programme of Excellence Research Centre for Control of Antibiotic Resistance, UCPH Center of Excellence). Working title: Formulation and delivery of antibiotics

Ditlev Birch (funded by the Danish Council for Independent Research, Technology and Production Sciences and Department of Pharmacy). Working title: Peptide drug delivery

2015-2017

Sofie Fogh Hedegaard (funded by CoNEXT (Univeristy of Copenhagen interfaculty collaboartive project), UCPH Center of Excellence). Working title: Interaction of lipidated therapeutic peptides with solid surfaces and membranes: a mechanistic study using neutron reflectivity

2011-2015

Søren Langer Steffensen (funded by the Danish National Advanced Technology Foundation (Innovation Fund Denmark), Danish Council for Independent Research, Technology and Production Sciences and Drug Research Academy). Working title: Interpenetrating hydrogel network in silicone: a matrix for sustained release of antibiotics 

Jorrit Water (funded by Danish Council for Independent Research, Technology and Production Sciences). Working title: Improved intracellular delivery of antimicrobial peptides by nanomedicine

Mie Kristensen (funded by (mobility stipends) The Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation, Center for Protein Research, Drug Research Academy). Working title: Non-injectable delivery of modified therapeutic peptides

2011-2014

Jesper Bahnsen (funded by Danish Council for Independent Research, Technology and Production Sciences and University of Copenhagen). Working title: A mechanistic approach towards membrane interactions of antimicrobial peptides

CV

EDUCATION

1995-2000 PhD, Royal Danish School of Pharmacy, DK and LACDR, Leiden, NL
1989-1995 MSc (pharm), Royal Danish School of Pharmacy, DK

COURSES

2012-2015 Management Development courses at the University of Copenhagen 1,2,3
2015 Responsible conduct of Research, UCPH, DK
2013-2014 Leading the Virtual Company - PasteurProgram 2013, Harvard Business School, Boston, US and Danish National Advanced Technology Foundation, DK (August 2013-May 2014)2011 CIP Supervised Teaching Session Feedback & Recommendations, University of Cph, DK
2010 Projektledelse for forskere 1+2, University of Cph, DK
2010 Ledelsesudvikling, University of Cph, DK
2008 Research group leader course, University of Cph, DK
2007 Supervision of PhD students, University of Cph, DK

ACADEMIC AWARDS AND HONOURS

2017 Danish Medicines Agency member (biologiudvalget)
2016 Danish Medicines Agency member (farmaciudvalget)
2015 AcademiaNet member (by nomination)
2014 Advisory Editorial Board member, Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
2003 Co-referee on international Ph.D. thesis´s (ETH Zürich, 2003 and 2005)
2003 Examiner on national (2003, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012x2) and international Ph.D. thesis´s (2007, 2011)
2001-2002  Post Doctoral Fellowship, Alfred Benzon Foundation, Denmark
2001 Board member of the Biopharmaceutical section of the Danish Pharmaceutical Society

MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE

2017-2022 Grant holder, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Project Leader and Principal Investigator at the Center for Biopharmaceuticals and Biobarriers in Drug Delivery
2016-2019 Grant holder/manager, Danish Council for Independent Research: Saliva-reppelent, mucoadhesive nanofiber-based hybrid systems for sublingual delivery of biopharmaceuticals
2015-2017 Grant holder/manager, Danish Council for Independent Research (Quantitative 19F NMR technology for analysis of complex biological matrices from cellular uptake studies: optimization of delivery of biologics using peptide-based delivery systems)
2013-2016 Task manager and steering committee member (Danish National Advanced Technology Foundation (DNATF), project CombioTx)
2012-2017 Managing board member and work package leader, IMI JU EU Project COMPACT –Collaboration on the Optimization of Macromolecular Pharmaceutical Access to Cellular Targets
2012 Section Chair Section for Biologics
2011-2017 Managing board member and task manager Danish National Advanced Technology Foundation (DNATF) project (Unique IPN technology prevents bacterial resistance)
2010-2015 Task manager Danish Agency for Science Technology and Innovation (DanCARD Centre)
2008-2012 Task manager and steering committee member (DNATF project Autologous Cell Therapy)
2006-2010 Task manager, DNATF project (Transcutaneous Vaccination)
2006-2009 TM and board member, Innovative Consortium Danish Agency for Science Technology and Innovation (BioEnCap Consortium)
2004-2012 Head of PHARMA research group Biomacromolecular Drug Delivery

SELECTED RECENT TALKS

2018 Cell-penetrating peptides – implications for drug delivery (tentative), Frontiers in Delivery of Therapeutics conference, Tartu, Estonia, 21^st-24^th August
2018 Nanoparticles design for delivery of antimicrobials (tentative), National Meeting of the Swedish Chemical Society, Lund, Sweden, 17^th-20^th June 2018
2018 Drug delivery systems for antimicrobials, Hamburg, The Hamburg Centre for Ultrafast Imaging (CUI), 19^th-21^st March 2018
2018 Conjugation to cell-penetrating peptides influences drug delivery propensity and safety, nanoPT2018 International Conference, Lisbon, Portugal, 7^th-9^th February 2018
2017 Mucoadhesion using small deformation rheology revisited, Nordic Rheology Conference, Copenhagen, DK, 14^th-15^th September 2017
2017 Tailored formulation design and biobarrier insight: Prerequisites for converting biological molecules into medicine, Shenyang University invited talk, Shenyang, China, 26^th April 2017
2017 Improving delivery of biopharmaceuticals through biobarriers by designed drug delivery systems, Symposium on Industrial and Physical Pharmacy 2017, Shenyang, China, 24^th-25^th April 2017

LITERATURE

Number of publications: 116
Citations: 3237 H-index: 34
I10 index: 75