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“Our involvement in UEA’s postgraduate research has given us access to world-leading expertise and saved us hundreds of thousands of pounds in product development costs” – Howard Shapland, Cofounder and Director of Business Development, UroPharma
Howard Shapland, Development Director of medical device company UroPharma, tells us how the company’s academic partnership with the University of East Anglia is helping the company in its mission to develop the world’s first licensed drug-delivery urinary catheter.
How did your academic partnership with the University of East Anglia (UEA) come about?
“One of UEA’s Relationship Managers introduced me to Sheng Qi, Professor of Pharmaceutical Material Science and Technology. She is doing ground-breaking research in a field that is very relevant to us, as a medical device company. Sheng helped us to access funding for collaborative research, which led to us receiving external funding (known as “iCase” funding) to support a PhD student, Sandra Lazauskaite. Sandra started her PhD in October 2022 – jointly supervised by Sheng and the UroPharma team. At the time of writing (summer 2024), Sandra is writing up her results.”
What has the PhD student, Sandra, been working on?
“Sandra has been carrying out cutting-edge research into how medication can be delivered directly to the bladder, instead of being taken orally. She has done amazing work and the project is truly invaluable to the work we’re doing to develop the world’s first licensed drug-delivery urinary catheter."
“Delivering drugs to the bladder in a targeted way will enable us to reduce the side effects that occur when medication is taken orally. It will also help in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. This can be an issue when antibiotics are taken orally, as the medication is quite heavily diluted by the time that it reaches the bladder, so it may not be powerful enough to destroy harmful bacteria, leading them to possibly mutate and cause AMR.”
What are the benefits of being an industrial partner with UEA?
“Sandra’s research brings direct commercial benefits for us. She has used cutting-edge laboratory equipment at UEA to carry out tests and assays that we wouldn’t normally be able to do ourselves. We also benefit hugely from Professor Sheng Qi’s expertise as Sandra’s joint supervisor."
“Our partnership with UEA can benefit us in unexpected ways. For example, Sandra and Sheng found that the plastic of the medical device that we were initially using became warped when it was sterilised in one of UEA’s autoclaves. As a result, we were able to change the material to prevent this happening in future – saving huge amounts of money."
“Indeed, the cost of developing medical equipment can prove prohibitive to some companies. But our partnership with UEA has potentially saved us millions of pounds and given us a competitive edge.”
What are the other benefits of supervising a PhD student?
“It’s been great for us to develop a strong professional relationship with Sandra that will continue to thrive in the future. We’re delighted that she’s really enjoyed working with us on this project and appreciated our support and encouragement – gaining invaluable experience of the regulatory and business aspects of pharmaceutical products and medical devices.”
Do you have plans to develop the partnership with UEA further?
“Yes, in fact, our partnership with UEA has put us in touch with other world-leading experts who are working at the internationally-renowned Norwich Research Park. We’re delighted that we’ve secured external funding to support another PhD placement, who will be studying with us, UEA supported by Professor Sheng Qi and the Quadram Institute with Professor Mark Webber (which brings together researchers, academics and NHS clinicians) – looking at another aspect of delivering medication directly to the bladder through a drug-delivery urinary catheter."
“All this started with a conversation, so – if you’re looking for expertise that can prove transformative – I’d encourage you to get in touch with UEA to discuss the ways that they can support you."