Full Professor
Francesco Cilurzo is Full Professor at University of Milan where obtained his master degree in industrial pharmacy on 1995. Then, he achieved the Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Technology and Regulatory Affairs at University of Cagliari. From 2018 to 2023 he was Director of the School of Hospital Pharmacy at the University of Milan. The research activities initially dealt with (i) the understanding of the relevance of the quality of the adhesive properties for the efficacy and safety of transdermal patches and (ii) the stability of drug product sterilized by ionizing radiations. After that, the know-how acquired on the preparation and characterization of transdermal patches have led to the design of mucoadhesive dosage forms and orodispersible films. The familiarity with the drug penetration processes through biological membranes and the conflicting information regarding the possible use of nanocarriers to facilitate the absorption of active ingredients, have recently stimulated research activities in this area.
Actually, he is responsible for two research projects which aim to deep the knowledge on: i) RNA/DNA delivery by lipopolyplexes (within National Center for gene therapy and drug based on RNA technology); ii) possible combination of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles and magnetophoresis to enhance the drug skin penetration (PRIN 2022 – Progetti di Rilevante Interesse Nazionale).
The activities carried out so far have not been limited to the dissemination of knowledge through publication in scientific journals or participation in national or international conferences, but also to their technological transfer through the filing of patents and the establishment of a spin-off participated by the University of Milan. Nowadays, three medicinal products, one patch and two orodispersible films born from these ideas are available on the European Market.