The University of Liverpool has been awarded more than £3m from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) for two research projects.

EPSRC is the main UK government agency for funding research and training in engineering and the physical sciences, investing more than £800m a year in a broad range of subjects.

The University of Liverpool reports the grants, which have been awarded under EPSRC’s Healthcare Impact Partnerships scheme, will support two novel engineering and physical sciences projects that are aligned with healthcare and enable progression towards patient benefits in two highly important areas.

The first project, led by Professor Andrew Owen and Professor Steve Rannard from the University of Liverpool’s Nanomedicine Partnership, is a collaboration between the University of Liverpool’s Department of Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology and the Department of Chemistry looking to progress novel materials and drug delivery through to human clinical trials. The project seeks to validate a new polymeric material for drug delivery and improve the oral dosing of drugs through novel emulsion technologies. The approach is not limited to single drug class or disease and may impact large numbers of people with a variety of healthcare needs. The project has been awarded a grant worth £2,034,000.

The second project, led by Dr Victoria Kearns and Dr Tom McDonald, has been awarded a grant worth £1,050,000. This project is a collaboration between the University of Liverpool’s Department of Eye & Vision Science and Department of Chemistry looking to advance ophthalmic innovations, such as prolonged drug delivery to treat diseases of the back of the eye, to benefit a range of people.

Professor Ken Badcock, Executive Pro Vice Chancellor for Science and Engineering, University of Liverpool, said “This is an exciting time for research at the University of Liverpool. These projects build on our culture of innovation, strong community and outstanding facilities. These awards specifically recognise the strength and depth we already possess across our faculties of Science & Engineering and Health & Life Sciences, and will help further benefit the inter-disciplinary nature of our world-leading research.”