Staff Profile

I am a qualified pharmacist registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council. I have teaching and research expertise in the areas of pharmaceutics and pharmacy practice.

I have contributed to various undergraduate and postgraduate programmes at three Universities in the UK since 2008. I was the Degree Programme Director for the Master of Pharmacy (MPharm) programme at Newcastle University (2019-2023). Currently, I am the Director of Education and Programme Lead for the MRes Drug Delivery and Nanomedicine postgraduate programme.

Qualifications

• MPharm, King's College London.
• PhD in Drug Delivery, Cardiff University
• PGCert in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, University of Reading
• Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)

I'm currently accepting self-funded PhD Students.

Open to PhD applications in the field of transdermal drug delivery, including biomolecules, vaccine delivery, nanomedicine delivery; microneedles/microarray patches; minimally-invasive monitoring/diagnosis; nanotechnology; antimicrobial and antibiofilm technology.

My areas of research Interest:

• Medicines and drug delivery design and evaluation: This research work focuses on the design of sophisticated drugs and delivery systems to enhance drug delivery. To devise strategies to overcome absorption and penetration barriers (including the skin, mucous membranes and microbial biofilms), this includes pro-drugs, co-drugs, co-formulations, microneedles, nanotechnology, bioresponsive drug release systems, and site-specific drug targeting systems.
• Drug toxicity testing: Our work focuses on the impact of the drug system at the cellular level using a range of tissue culture and molecular biology techniques including immunocytochemistry, flow cytometry and Western Blot analysis. The ultimate aim is to improve drug formulation, bioavailability, safety and patient acceptability.
• Wound healing: In this work, we study the cellular effects of different wound healing treatments (including hyperbaric oxygen therapy) using monolayer cell cultures and to understand the cellular mechanisms underpinning the wound healing process.

I am the Director of Education overseeing the education provisions within the School of Pharmacy. I am also the MRes Drug Delivery and Nanomedicine Programme Lead carrying overall responsibility for the day-to-day management of the teaching and learning provision for the postgraduate cohort.

I teach pharmaceutics, drug delivery and dosage form design on the Master of Pharmacy (MPharm) undergraduate programme and MRes postgraduate programme.

In the past, I have held the role of the MPharm Degree Programme Director and contributed to all aspects of the pharmacy degree programme.

• Articles

  • Chan HKY, Archbold L, Lau WM, Ng KW. Validating Otto: a Franz diffusion cell autosampler to automate in vitro permeation studies. Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences 2025, 114(7), 103837.
  • Smith E, Lau WM, Abdelghany TM, Vokajlovic D, Novakovic K, Ng KW. Vac-and-fill: A micromoulding technique for fabricating microneedle arrays with vacuum-activated, hands-free mould-filling. International Journal of Pharmaceutics 2024, 650, 123706.
  • Vukajlovic D, Timmons R, Macesic S, Sanderson J, Xie F, Abdelghany TM, Smith E, Lau WM, Ng KW, Novakovic K. Mathematical modelling of genipin-bovine serum albumin interaction using fluorescence intensity measurements. International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 2024, 276(Part 1), 133850.
  • Jarrar R, Lim R, Richardson CL, Naqvi AA, Rathbone AP, Lau WM. How cultural competence is conceptualised, developed and delivered in pharmacy education: a systematic review. International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy 2024, 46, 40-55.
  • Robinson-Barella A, Takyi C, Chan HKY, Lau WM. Embedding cultural competency and cultural humility in undergraduate pharmacist initial education and training: a qualitative exploration of pharmacy student perspectives. International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy 2023, 46, 166-176.
  • McCann J, Lau WM, Husband A, Todd A, Sile L, Doll AK, Varia S, Robinson-Barella A. 'Creating a culturally competent pharmacy profession': A qualitative exploration of pharmacy staff perspectives of cultural competence and its training in community pharmacy settings. Health Expectations 2023, 26(5), 1941-1953.
  • M Ways TM, Filippov SK, Maji S, Glassner M, Ceglowski M, Hoogenboom R, King S, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy V. Mucus-penetrating nanoparticles based on chitosan grafted with various non-ionic polymers: Synthesis, structural characterisation and diffusion studies. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 2022, 626, 251-264.
  • Dixon RV, Lau WM, Ng KW. A microneedle-microplate platform to detect biomarkers in the skin. British Journal of Pharmacy 2022, 7(2), 1164.
  • Dixon RV, Skaria E, Lau WM, Manning P, Birch-Machin MA, Moghimi SM, Ng KW. Microneedle-based devices for point-of-care infectious disease diagnostics. Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2021, 11(8), 2344-2361.
  • Rathbone AP, Richardson CL, Mundell A, Lau WM, Nazar H. Exploring the role of pharmacy students using entrusbable professional activities to complete medication histories and deliver patient counselling services in secondary care. Exploratory Research in Clinical and Social Pharmacy 2021, 4, 100079.
  • Dixon RV, Lau WM, Moghimi SM, Ng KW. The diagnostic potential of microneedles in infectious diseases. Precision Nanomedicine 2020, 3(4), 629-640.
  • M Ways TM, Ng KW, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy VV. Silica Nanoparticles in Transmucosal Drug Delivery. Pharmaceutics 2020, 12(8), 751.
  • Shah SI, Williams AC, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy VV. Planarian toxicity fluorescent assay: a rapid and cheap pre-screening tool for potential skin irritants. Toxicology in Vitro 2020, 69, 105004.
  • Williams AC, Obeid KA, Ng KW, Lau WM. The influence of oxygen and pressure on keratinocytes. British Journal of Pharmacy 2019, 4(1), S6-S7.
  • Kolawole OM, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy VV. Synthesis and evaluation of boronated chitosan as a mucoadhesive polymer for intravesical drug delivery. Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences 2019, 108(9), 3046-3053.
  • Karampatakis GD, Ryan K, Patel N, Lau WM, Stretch G. How do pharmacists in English general practices identify their impact? An exploratory qualitative study of measurement problems. BMC Health Services Research 2019, 19, 34.
  • Kolawole OM, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy VV. Chitosan / β-glycerophosphate in situ gelling mucoadhesive systems for intravesical delivery of mitomycin-C. International Journal of Pharmaceutics: X 2019, 1, 100007.
  • MWays TM, Lau WM, Ng KW, Khutoryanskiy VV. Synthesis of thiolated, PEGylated and POZylated silica nanoparticles and evaluation of their retention on rat intestinal mucosa in vitro. European Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences 2018, 122, 230-238.
  • Ryan K, Patel N, Lau WM, Abu-Elmagd H, Stretch G, Pinney H. Pharmacists in general practice: a qualitative interview case study of stakeholders’ experiences in a West London GP federation. BMC Health Services Research 2018, 18, 234.
  • Kolawole OM, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy VV. Methacrylated chitosan as a polymer with enhanced mucoadhesive properties for transmucosal drug delivery. International Journal of Pharmaceutics 2018, 550(1-2), 123-129.
  • Lau WM, Donyai P. Knowledge, Attitude and Advice-Giving Behaviour of Community Pharmacists Regarding Topical Corticosteroids. Pharmacy 2017, 5(3), 41.
  • Filippov SK, Bogomolova A, Kaberov L, Velychkivska N, Starovoytova L, Cernochova Z, Rogers S, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy VV, Cook MT. Internal Nanoparticle Structure of Temperature-Responsive Self-Assembled PNIPAM-b-PEG-b-PNIPAM Triblock Copolymers in Aqueous Solutions: NMR, SANS, and Light Scattering Studies. Langmuir 2016, 32(21), 5314–5323.
  • Al-Khateb K, Ozhmukhametova EK, Mussin MN, Seilkhanov SK, Rakhypbekov TK, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy VV. In situ gelling systems based on Pluronic F127/Pluronic F68 formulations for ocular drug delivery. International Journal of Pharmaceutics 2016, 502(1-2), 70-79.
  • Ng KW, Lau WM, Williams AC. Towards pain-free diagnosis of skin diseases through multiplexed microneedles: biomarker extraction and detection using a highly sensitive blotting method. Drug Delivery and Translational Research 2015, 5(4), 387–396.
  • Lau WM, Donyai P. Community pharmacists' views in relation to the use of topical corticosteroids. International Journal of Pharmacy Practice 2014, 22(s1), 43-44.
  • Lau WM, Heard CM, White AW. Design, synthesis and in vitro degradation of a novel co-drug for the treatment of psoriasis. Pharmaceutics 2013, 5(2), 232-245.
  • Lau WM, Ng KW, Sakenyte K, Heard CM. Distribution of esterase activity in porcine ear skin, and the effects of freezing and heat separation. International Journal of Pharmaceutics 2012, 433(1-2), 10-15.
  • Lau WM, Ng KW, White AW, Heard CM. Therapeutic and cytotoxic effects of the novel antipsoriasis codrug, naproxyl-dithranol, on HaCaT cells. Molecular Pharmaceutics 2011, 8(6), 2398–2407.
  • Lau WM, White AW, Heard CH. Topical Delivery of a Naproxen-Dithranol Co-drug: In Vitro Skin Penetration, Permeation, and Staining. Pharmaceutical Research 2010, 27(12), 2734-2742.

• Book Chapters

  • Lau WM, Ng KW. Finite and infinite dosing. In: Dragicevic, N; Maibach, HI, ed. Percutaneous Penetration Enhancers Drug Penetration Into/Through the Skin. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, 2017, pp.35-44.
  • Ng KW, Lau WM, Williams AC. Synergy between chemical penetration enhancers. In: Dragicevic, N; Maibach, H, ed. Percutaneous Penetration Enhancers Chemical Methods in Penetration Enhancement. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, 2015, pp.373-385.
  • Ng KW, Lau WM. Skin Deep: The Basics of Human Skin Structure and Drug Penetration. In: Dragicevic, N; Maibach, H, ed. Percutaneous Penetration Enhancers Chemical Methods in Penetration Enhancement. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, 2015, pp.3-11.

• Conference Proceedings (inc. Abstracts)

  • Novakovic K, Hutchinson E, Lau WM, Abdelghany T, Wooi KN. Chitosan hydrogel based microneedle technology for prolonged release of actives. In: 17th International Conference on Fundamental and Applied Aspects of Physical Chemistry, Physical Chemistry 2024. 2024, Belgrade, Serbia: The Society of Physical Chemists of Serbia.
  • Hill-Tout J, Covill D, Lau WM, Ng KW. Thermoreversible hydrogel-coated microneedles for dermal drug delivery. In: 10th APS International PharmSci Conference. 2019, University of Greenwich, London, UK: Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
  • Sivaharan AJ, Lau WM, Ng KW. Gel-based, 3D visual and colorimetric detection of a skin cancer biomarker using immunodiagnostic microneedles. In: 10th APS International PharmSci Conference. 2019, University of Greenwich, London, UK: Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
  • Ng KW, Obeid KA, Williams AC, Lau WM. Decoupling the effects of hyperbaric pressure and hyperoxygenation on human keratinocyte behaviour. In: 10th APS International PharmSci Conference. 2019, University of Greenwich, London, UK: Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

• Reviews

  • M.Ways TM, Lau WM, Khutoryanskiy VV. Chitosan and Its Derivatives for Application in Mucoadhesive Drug Delivery Systems. Polymers 2018, 10(3), 267.
  • Kolawole OM, Lau WM, Mostafid H, Khutoryanskiy VV. Advances in intravesical drug delivery systems to treat bladder cancer. International Journal of Pharmaceutics 2017, 532(1), 105-117.
  • Lau WM, White AW, Gallagher SJ, Donaldson M, McNaughton G, Heard CM. Scope and limitations of the co-drug approach to topical drug delivery. Current Pharmaceutical Design 2008, 14(8), 794-802.