Research Interests

Research within my lab (Natural Products Research Laboratory) is focused on the discovery of small molecules from natural sources with pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical applications. This research is in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 that aims to promote good health and well-being globally. More specifically, my work is centered on the investigation of;

• natural molecules that can serve as new drug templates for infections, cancer, neurodegeneration, Type-2 diabetes, inflammatory disorders.
• the disease-preventing effects of plant-based diets 
• the effects of natural products-based cosmetics on skin health

External Research Activities

I am the Editor-In-Chief of the Journal of Advanced Natural Product Research and a Lead Associate Editor for Med Phoenix, Archives of Natural Biological Research and Frontiers in Antibiotics. I serve on the Editorial Board of Plants, Scientific Reports, Phytochemistry Letters, Frontiers in Pharmacology, Phyton, Journal of Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Records in Agriculture and Food Chemistry, and Journal of Alternative Medicine and Complementary Therapies.

I am an Executive Board Member of the Society for Natural Products Discovery; a Scientific Committee Member of the Francophone Apitherapy Society; a Member, Trustee and former Honorary Treasurer of the Phytochemical Society of Europe; a Scientific Advisor for the International Foundation for Science and a Member of the European Science Foundation College of Expert Reviewers.

Research Prizes

I am a recipient of the Jean Bertrand Prize (1999), and of the Life Sciences Prize (2000) and the Parke-Davis Natural Products Chemistry Prize (1996) awarded by the French Academy of Pharmacy.

Teaching & Citizenship roles

I teach on the MPharm programme where I am involved in the following activities;

• Coordinator for the Y3 MP321 module (Management of Infection and Infectious Diseases) 
• Coordinator for the Y3 MP320 module (Being a Pharmacist 2) 
• Coordinator for the Y3 Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE)
• Supervisor on the Y5 MP507 module (Research Project)

I am also;

• the Y3 Advisor of Studies
• the Y3 Coordinator
• a member of the OSCE Committee, Staff-Student Liaison Committee, and MPharm Committee

External Teaching Activities

• University of Strathclyde Representative on the National Antimicrobial Stewardship Pharmacy Education Group
• External examiner for the MSc in Natural Products Discovery at the University of East Anglia.

Teaching & Citizenship Recognition

I am a recipient of a Strathclyde Women + in Leadership Network (WiLN+) #CelebrateHER Neogen Science Award (2023),  Strathclyde Teaching Excellence Award (Most Supportive Teacher) (2017). I am a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. 

• Natural Products Chemistry
• Pharmacognosy
• Drug discovery from natural sources
• Purification & structure elucidation of bioactive natural products
• Ethnopharmacological investigation of natural remedies
• Discovery of new antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory products of natural origin
• In silico studies of natural products
• Network pharmacology applied to natural products