CRS Labs Around the World: The DrugBiOp Lab at the University of Valencia
The DrugBiOp Lab at the University of Valencia
Ana Melero is a Professor of Pharmaceutical Technology within Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Technology and Parasitology at the University of Valencia, Spain. Her expertise is in micro and nanotechnology development for drug delivery to the skin and the oral route with special focus in the optimization of drug availability according to the required treatments through different forms of controlled release. Ana is currently the immediate past Chair of the Young Scientist Committee of the Controlled Release Society, as well as the Secretary of the Spanish-Portuguese Local Chapter of the Controlled Release Society. She was the recipient of the Galeno’s Network Euro PhD-Recognition in 2010 and was the Chair of the 8th International Galenus Meeting 2022. Her research has been supported nationally and internationally by various government, foundations, and industrial funding. Ana leads an interdisciplinary research group currently comprised of 3 Professors, 1 Postdoctoral Researcher, 2 PhD students, 1 Master student, 3 Final Degree Thesis students, and 1 Industrial Placement student.
With a special focus on oral and topical delivery, the group are developing a wide range of ultraflexible liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles, films, and self-dissolving microneedles with a special focus on formulation development and preclinical testing in murine inflammation models (inflammatory bowel disease, psoriasis, acute and chronic dermatitis and contact dermatitis). Aside from inflammation research, the group also work on other clinical applications of nanotechnology including nose-to-brain delivery and parenteral delivery of hypoxia-responding nanoparticles for the treatment of different tumours.
The team is now exploring new research in anti-inflammatory, wound healing and antibiotic properties of extracellular vesicles derived from different bacterial types for the treatment of inflammation and chronic wounds.
Aside from our passion for the different forms of pharmaceutical technology, DrugBiOp lab is always open to collaboration and interaction with colleagues from all over the world, as demonstrated through our current collaborations with researchers from UK, Denmark, Germany, Portugal, Brazil, Mexico, Australia, etc. We often work in collaboration with the Faculty of Pharmacy Students Association (AVESFA), in different initiatives, including preparation of workshops, talks, Student’s Congress and Dissemination activities to bring Science to all the society in our living area. We also participate in many activities planned by the Faculty of Farmacy, such as Barmacia, Innocampus, Universalut, etc., which try to approach our Society to the Healthcare work of Pharmacists and the research done at our faculty.
Relevant references:
- Cyclosporin A-loaded dissolving microneedles for dermatitis therapy: Development, characterisation and efficacy in a delayed-type hypersensitivity in vivo model. Miquel Martínez-Navarrete, Antonio José Guillot, Maria C Lobita, María Carmen Recio, Rosa Giner, Juan Aparicio-Blanco, María Carmen Montesinos, Hélder A Santos, Ana Melero. Drug Deliv Transl Res. 2024 Mar 12. doi: 10.1007/s13346-024-01542-9.
- Antibiotic resistance and tolerance: What can drug delivery do against this global threat? Aparicio-Blanco, J., Vishwakarma, N., Lehr, C.-M., ...Thorn, C.R., Melero, A. Drug Delivery and Translational Research, 2024. DOI: 10.1007/s13346-023-01513-6.
- Microneedle-assisted transdermal delivery of nanoparticles: Recent insights and prospects. Guillot, A.J., Martínez-Navarrete, M., Zinchuk-Mironova, V., Melero, A. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Nanomedicine and Nanobiotechnolog., 2023, 15(4), e1884. DOI: 10.1002/wnan.1884
- Skin drug delivery using lipid vesicles: A starting guideline for their development. Guillot, A.J., Martínez-Navarrete, M., Garrigues, T.M., Melero, A. Journal of Controlled Release, 2023, 355, pp. 624–654. DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2023.02.006.
- Ultraflexible lipid vesicles allow topical absorption of cyclosporin A. Juan J Carreras; Willian E Tapia-Ramirez; Adrian Sala; Antonio J Guillot; Teresa M Garrigues; Ana Melero. Drug Delivery and Translational Research. 2020. DOI: 10.1007/s13346-019-00693-4.
