This is also an important milestone for The Department of Pharmacy as it is the first time a clinical pilot study is conducted on a product produced at the department. The testing takes place at Faculty of Dentistry by Janicke Liaaen Jensen and Julie Frigaard. In this pilot the product will be tested on 20 patients experiencing dry mouth as a result of Sjogren's syndrome.
Marianne was admitted to the innovation programme SPARK Norway with an idea of a product which should relieve dry mouth for elderly people and patients experiencing dry mouth. On her team were Professor Emerita Gro Smistad (Department of Pharmacy), Professor Janicke Liaaen Jensen, Professor Hilde Kanli Galtung, PhD-student Julie Frigaard (all from Faculty of Dentistry) and engineer Tove Larsen. A very good composition of the team, which complements each other with professional expertise in the various areas required, has proven to be important for the development of the product.T
The collaboration started when Marianne begun working at The Department of Pharmacy, where also Gro Smistad was employed. Gro had done lots of work on liposomes, while Marianne had studied polymers and was invited by Gro to work on a research project. It really took off when Marianne received Researcher Project for Young Talents funding from The Research Council of Norway (NFR) in 2014. As part of the funding were two postdoctor positions, of which hydrating mucous membranes was part of the project. They identified a type of polymer that was better suited than others. Janicke Liaaen Jensen reached out to collaborate after Marianne had published a research article in Aftenposten. Inven2 also did so as they found her project to be interesting and innovative and recommended her to apply for SPARK Norway.
Several applications to SPARK Norway
They followed the advice and applied for admission to SPARK Norway, but were rejected with the explanation that the project was too immature. They saw no reason to give up and carried on working hard, obtained more results in the NFR-project, applied again and were accepted, but without funding the first year. As participants in the innovation programme, they were assigned a mentor, Astrid Hilde Myrset, who has industrial experience in areas they do not. She has been a very important driving force in the project.
From research to a product that benefits patients
The product is now developed to an oral spray containing polymer-coated liposomes. It has been named Liposal? and is classified as medical device. The clinical pilot study is soon completed, and Marianne and her team are eagerly awaiting the results. If the results are positive, the next step will be to apply NFR for verification funding to do a more extensive study. - Without the support we have received through the innovation programme SPARK Norway with the training, network, mentorship, and financial support that has allowed us to purchase expertise and obtain additional funding, we would never have reached the milestone where we are today, says Marianne Hiorth.