Inspiring Nottingham Research Fellows

Veeren Chauhan, Nottingham Research Fellow, Faculty of Science

I am a Nottingham Research Fellow in Whole Organism Analytics at the School of Pharmacy. My role at the university is to conduct multidisciplinary research at the interface of analytical, biological and medical sciences. This research endeavours to produce biologically inspired therapeutic solutions for global challenges that will cure, prevent and alleviate the symptoms of disease.

In order to achieve the research aims, I have taken a highly collaborative approach to research, and I will work with leading international institutes in Europe and the USA.

Why did you apply for a Fellowship? 

I am a General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC)-registered pharmacist, having completed my undergraduate education at the University of Manchester (MPharm) and training at University Hospitals Coventry & Warwickshire. I have held lead pharmacist roles in the academic, industrial and commercial settings, working as part of multidisciplinary healthcare teams. These experiences have enabled me to experience how scientific breakthroughs can have a positive transformative impact on the lives of individuals. I applied for a Nottingham Research Fellowship because I would like to lead the next generation of scientific advances at the forefront of pharmaceutical and medical science.

The Nottingham Research Fellowship programme has provided me with an excellent opportunity to fulfil my career ambitions by allowing me to pursue and focus on my research interests at a world-leading institute. This fellowship will allow me to focus on conducting and developing a long-term research strategy and assemble a team of researchers that has the potential to establish a platform to produce innovative bio-inspired therapeutic technologies. 

Why Nottingham? 

The University of Nottingham is a world leading research and teaching institute. I have had first-hand experience of the breadth and depth conducted of at the School of Pharmacy as a CASE Award PhD Studentship with GlaxoSmithKline (Weybridge) (2009-2013), Knowledge Transfer Partnership with TBG Solutions Ltd (2014-2016) and post doctorate as part of the Future Healthcare Manufacturing Hub with University College London (2017-2019).

These experiences have enabled me to appreciate that the University of Nottingham is an extremely supportive environment, which will boost my career development and is host to ground-breaking facilities, such as the 3D-OrbiSIMS, such that it is currently the only place in the world my research aspirations can be fulfilled.

This fellowship will allow me to establish a platform to produce innovative bio-inspired therapeutic technologies

What challenges are you hoping to tackle? 

My research is focused on constructing precise profiles of the distribution of molecular markers for whole organisms, such as nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, that will provide a valuable resource to understand complex biochemical processes. This research will include characterising the biological response, such as immunogenicity, to the physicochemical properties of organic surfaces.

I will translate newly developed methodologies to helminths (parasitic worms) and other infectious organisms such as bacteria. By understanding large data sets generated from the analysis of these organisms, I aim to identify and predict treatment strategies, such as vaccines, that could prevent helminth and bacterial diseases, which in the long-term will contribute to strategies overcoming antimicrobial resistance.

What's next?

This fellowship will augment the university’s as well as the UK’s world-leading pharmaceutical development activity, while building multi-disciplinary collaborative networks with international communities, including developing countries benefitting from the development of ‘anti-poverty vaccines’.

Feeling inspired?