Founding Chair
Prof Satyajit Sarker
Prof Satyajit Sarker, Professor of Pharmacy and an extensively cited Phytochemist with over 770 publications, is the Director of the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences at Liverpool John Moores University. He is the recipient of the ISE-SFE Outstanding International Ethnopharmacologist 2023 Award. Prof Sarker is the Founding Head of the Centre for Natural Products Discovery at LJMU. He served as a Guest Professor at the Wuhan Botanical Garden, awarded by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, a Visiting Professor at the School of Medicine, Taylor’s University, Malaysia and Mae Fah Luang University, and an Honorary Professor at the University of East Anglia. He was the President of the Phytochemical Society of Europe (2018-2020). Prof Sarker obtained his PhD in Phytochemistry from Strathclyde University, Glasgow, UK, and carried out post-doctoral study at the University of Exeter. Previously, he held various posts at the University of Wolverhampton, the University of Ulster, The Robert Gordon University, the University of Bourgogne, and the University of Dhaka. He is a reviewer of >80 international journals, and a member of the editorial board of 40 reputed journals like Current Medicinal Chemistry, Molecules, Biochemical Systematics and Ecology, Phytochemistry Letters, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Journal of Pharmacy & Pharmacology, and many more.
Deputy Chair (Web and Digital Matters)
Prof Lutfun Nahar
Prof. Lutfun Nahar is an Adjunct Professor at Liverpool John Moores University and is affiliated with both the Czech Academy of Sciences and Palacky University (Web). She is also a Distinguished Adjunct Professor at Saveetha University and serves as a Visiting Professor at Mae Fah Luang University. Prof. Nahar is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and is globally recognized as an extensively cited Medicinal Natural Products Chemist. She has co-authored over 575 publications, including an innovation patent, 11 books, 51 book chapters, and 65 reviews, establishing her as a highly cited researcher. Since 2021, she has ranked in the top 2% of scientists in the world. She has received the prestigious PIFI Visiting Scientist award from the Chinese Academy of Sciences for 2024-2025. Prof. Nahar graduated in Chemistry from Exeter University and earned her PhD in Synthetic Medicinal Chemistry from Aberdeen University. Both uniervisites are world-class. She is the Treasurer and Trustee of the Phytochemical Society of Europe. Prof. Nahar serves as the Editor-in-Chief of Medicinal Natural Products, an Associate Editor of Bioactives, a Section Editor of Biomolecules, and an Editor of Biodiversity, and Open Chemistry. She has been featured in Marquis "Who’s Who in the World" since 2009 and "Who’s Who in Science and Engineering" Since 2010.
Deputy Chair (Finance)
Dr Kenneth J Ritchie
Dr Kenny Ritchie received his undergraduate degree in Pharmacology from the University of Aberdeen, and his PhD from the University of Cardiff. In 2009, Dr Ritchie accepted a lectureship in toxicology at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU). Whilst at LJMU Dr Ritchie has worked closely with Professor Satya Sarker, Director of the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, to develop phytochemical research which has ultimately led to the establishment of the Centre for Natural Products Discovery (CNPD). Dr Kenny Ritchie is currently a reader in toxicology at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) and is Deputy Director of the Centre for Natural Products Discovery (CNPD) at LJMU. Dr Ritchie is the Deputy Chair (Finance) of the Society for Natural Products Discovery and a previous treasurer of the Phytochemical Society of Europe (PSE). His scientific interests lie in the role of phytochemicals in the prevention of cancer and their ability to switch on cancer-preventing genes and the general area of toxicology. He has presented numerous talks at international conferences and publishes regularly in the field of natural products.
Deputy Chair (Membership and Communication)
Prof Amos A Fatokun
Prof Amos Fatokun is a Professor of Pharmacology and Neuroscience at the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU), UK, where he leads the investigation of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underpinning diseases such as cancers and neurodegenerative conditions and the development of novel, naturally derived and synthetic molecules with potential as more efficacious and safer therapeutics. He is currently the Deputy Head (Communications and Reporting) of LJMU’s Centre for Natural Products Discovery (CNPD). Professor Fatokun obtained his PhD from the University of Glasgow, UK, following a Bachelor of Pharmacy Degree (with Distinction) from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria. He conducted his postdoctoral research through competitive international postdoctoral fellowships, including the American Heart Association (AHA) Postdoctoral Fellowship (Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, USA); the EU FP7 Marie Curie International Incoming Fellowship and the Nottingham Advanced Research Fellowship (both at the University of Nottingham, UK); and the International Visiting Research Fellowship (University of Sydney, Australia). He is a Consultant to the British Council in the delivery of academic workshops to early career researchers in several parts of the world. He is a Fellow of the British Pharmacological Society (FBPhS) and the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC).
General Secretary
Dr Ismini Nakouti
Dr Nakouti is the Programme Leader of BSc Biotechnology in Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, LJMU. She is a Clinical Microbiologist actively engaging with the design and preparation of research tools to study problems related to the role of microbial natural products in their environment and their detection. Her career includes: a) PhD in Medical Microbiology; b) a PDRA position on a high-profile multidisciplinary project funded by Unilever Research, Port Sunlight, covered by a confidentiality agreement; c) a senior PDRA position at BEST Research Institute, LJMU, on a multidisciplinary European funded project, FP7; d) industrial experience at the National Biomanufacturing Centre leading research on an injectable biopharmaceutical immunoregulator that had been through phase I and II clinical trials. Through this she has experience in: i) clinical diagnostics; ii) site-directed gene mutagenesis; iii) molecular taxonomy and sequencing techniques; iv) simplex/multiplex PCR; v) LAMP; vi) iron acquisition in terms of metallo-regulatory gene expression; vii) designing specific molecular probes for enzymes involved in biosynthetic pathways and secondary metabolites. She has been invited to disseminate her research at national and international scientific meetings and she is regularly engaging with LJMU outreach activities giving talks and delivering workshops to schools and the local community.
Executive members
Dr Fyaz Ismail
Dr Fyaz Ismail began his academic career in 1983 as a part-time Lecturer and Demonstrator whilst completing a pre-doctoral appointment for British Petroleum. Concurrently whilst lecturing, he went to complete a part-time PhD in "Inhibition of lipid autoxidation in amphipathic systems". In 1989, Dr Ismail took up a Monsanto Research Fellowship at Reading University with Dr Neal Stuart Isaacs at the High-pressure Research Unit. In 1991, he was appointed a Senior Lecturer in Spectroscopy and Medicinal and Organic Chemistry at Hatfield Polytechnic which became the University of Hertfordshire shortly thereafter. After a decade he moved to Liverpool John Moores University, where he became a Subject Leader in Medicinal Chemistry (until 2005). Currently, he leads the Natural Products Synthesis section of the Centre for Natural Products Discovery (CNPD) at LJMU.
Dr Jose Prieto Garcia
Dr Jose Prieto Garcia is a scholar specializing in natural products, particularly phytochemistry and pharmacognosy. With over two decades of experience, he currently serves as a Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Natural Products Discovery, Liverpool John Moores University. His academic journey includes EU-funded research positions at the University of Pisa and the University of London, leading to his role as a Lecturer in Pharmacognosy at the University of London (2006-2012) and Assistant Professor at University College London (2012-2020). He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and actively consults for the herbal medicine, food supplement, and cosmetic industries. His research focuses on the pharmacology and chemistry of natural products, emphasizing anticancer, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. He has supervised over ten PhDs and authored more than 90 publications, including the internationally renowned textbook “Fundamentals of Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy”.
Dr Touraj Ehtezazi
Dr Touraj Ehtezazi is a Reader in Pharmaceutics at Liverpool John Moores University. He is a pharmacist by training, having graduated from the University of Tabriz, Iran. He obtained his PhD from the University of Nottingham in 1997, studying mathematical modelling of drug release from polymeric microspheres. Dr Ehtezazi conducted postdoctoral studies at the University of Nottingham, and he was employed as a Lecturer at the University of Leicester in 2000, investigating the interaction of pharmaceutical inhalers with the respiratory tract. He employed three-dimensional printing to produce live oropharyngeal models. Dr Ehtezazi joined Liverpool John Moores University in 2002. He has studied the application of 3D printing in the formulation of pharmaceutical dosage forms since 2016. He also has published papers (2018-2024) on the application of 3DP in manufacturing fast-dissolving oral films. He has continued to work on 3DP in the preparation of gummies for children to enhance their adherence to medication. He also conducted research on drug delivery to the brain for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis by nanoparticles since 2018.
Dr Mukhlesur Rahman
Dr Mukhlesur Rahman is an Associate Professor (Reader) in Pharmaceutical and Natural Products Chemistry and the Subject Area Head of Pharmaceutical and Chemical Sciences at the University of East London. He is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Royal Society of Biology. His research focuses on anti-infective drug discovery from natural sources, and his interests include bioassay-directed isolation, purification, and identification of antibacterial metabolites from medicinal plants and microbes as well as the synthesis of their analogues. He has been working on numerous medicinal plants the isolation and characterization of bioactive metabolites from several structural classes including anti-MRSA compounds and efflux pump inhibitors. He supervised PhD and MRes students, postdoctoral research fellows and professional fellows. He leads the Medicines Research Group and the Schoolwide research seminar series. Previously at Liverpool John Moores University when he worked as a Senior Lecturer, he led the Phytochemistry and Phytotherapy section of the Centre for Natural Products Discovery. In 2022, he received the Society for Ethnopharmacology SFE-Annual Award: T. Sen Oration Award 2021 in recognition of international research profile with significant research contribution to Ethnopharmacology and Natural Products Chemistry.
Dr Afaf Al Groshi
Dr Afaf Al Groshi is an accomplished pharmacist, researcher, and lecturer at the Faculty of Pharmacy, Tripoli University, Libya with over 15 years of experience in phytochemistry and natural products. She earned her PhD from Liverpool John Moores University, where her research focused on the isolation, identification, and characterization of bioactive compounds with cytotoxic properties from medicinal plants. Dr Al Groshi has significant expertise in chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques such as HPLC, LC-MS, and NMR, as well as in cell culture and cytotoxicity assays. Throughout her career, Dr Al Groshi has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals, contributing to the scientific understanding of bioactive natural compounds. Her work bridges traditional medicine and modern pharmacological applications, advancing the discovery of natural compounds with potential therapeutic uses. She has also presented her research at numerous international conferences and has mentored postgraduate students and researchers in natural products discovery. As an executive member of the Society for Natural Products Discovery (SNPD), Dr Al Groshi is dedicated to fostering collaboration and innovation in the field, leveraging her extensive research and academic background to support the society’s mission of advancing natural product research globally.
Dr Veronique Seidel
Dr Veronique Seidel is a Senior Lecturer in Pharmacognosy/Phytochemistry at the Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde (Glasgow). Dr Seidel’s expertise is in the purification/structure elucidation and in-silico studies of bioactive natural products. Her research is centred on the discovery of natural molecules with pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical properties. She is the Editor-In-Chief of the Journal of Advanced Natural Product Research; Lead Associate Editor for Med Phoenix; Archives of Natural Biological Research and Frontiers in Antibiotics. She serves on the Editorial Board of Plants; Scientific Reports; Phytochemistry Letters; Frontiers in Pharmacology; Phyton; Journal of Pharmaceutical Microbiology; Records in Agriculture and Food Chemistry; Journal of Alternative Medicine and Complementary Therapies. Dr Seidel is 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. She is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and recipient of the Life Sciences Prize and the Parke-Davis Natural Products Chemistry Prize awarded by the French Academy of Pharmacy.
Advisors
Prof Sitesh Chandra Bachar
Prof Sitesh Bachar is a Professor at the Department of Pharmacy, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. He served as the Pro-Vice Chancellor (Academic, during 25 Jan 2024 - 12 Sep 2024,) of the University of Dhaka, Dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy ( 16 January 2022 – 24 January 2024), University of Dhaka and HOD (May 2014-Spet 2020) of Pharmacy. Before joining the Department of Pharmacy, he received his BPharm (Hons) and MPharm degrees from the University of Dhaka. Professor Bachar was awarded a PhD in Pharmacy from Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India. He is a well-recognized medicinal chemist with particular expertise in synthesizing indan-based anti-inflammatory, analgesic, plant growth regulatory compounds, and structure-activity studies. He is an outstanding medicinal chemist with a pharmacy educational background. He also possesses expertise in the isolation, purification, quantitative and pharmacological evaluation of Bangladeshi traditional and herbal medicines and their quality control. As an academic and experienced in hospital and clinical pharmacy practice and management Prof Bachar has established clinical and hospital pharmacy practices in Bangladesh, actively participated in the implementation of pharmacovigilance activities and engaged in the reduction of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the community. Dr. Bachar is actively involved in clinical research for the development of vaccines and biosimilars in Bangladesh including bioequivalence studies.
Prof Kelvin Chan
Prof Kelvin Chan (PhD, DSc, University of Birmingham UK) is an Emeritus Professor at the School of Pharmacy & Biomolecular Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, UK, and an Adjunct Professor at the NICM Health Research Institute of Western Sydney University in Australia. Initially, he trained in the pharmaceutical industry after graduation from Liverpool School of Pharmacy and later developed interests in pharmacology and toxicology of traditional Chinese medicine after taking up senior positions in universities in Hong Kong. He was invited to take up the position of Joint Chair in Traditional Chinese Medicine at the University of Western Sydney and the University of Sydney (2009-2014) before retiring from full-time academic position while taking up the position of Senior Advisor in Chinese medicines at the Department of Health in Hong Kong SAR, China. He is a member of the following boards/committee: International Advisory Board and Scientific Committee of the Hong Kong Chinese Materia Medica Standards, Department of Health, Hong Kong SAR, China, Individual Expert at the TCM Working Group of the European Directorate for Quality of Medicine & Healthcare (EDQM), in Strasbourg. He has been a Life Churchill Fellow in the UK since 1995 and a Life member of the Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine since May 2018.
Prof A Ganesan
Prof A Ganesan (BSc in Chemistry, National University of Singapore; PhD in Chemistry, University of California-Berkeley supervised by Clayton H. Heathcock; postdoctoral research under Gregory Verdine at Harvard University) was Senior Research Chemist at the Centre for Natural Product Research, Singapore (1993-96) and Principal Investigator at the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Singapore (1996-99). In 1999 he became Reader at the University of Southampton’s Combinatorial Chemistry Centre for Excellence and in 2011 Chair of Chemical Biology at the University of East Anglia’s School of Pharmacy. His research focuses on the isolation and total synthesis of natural products, medicinal chemistry, chemical biology, and epigenetics. He co-founded Karus Therapeutics which advanced two candidates to oncology Phase I clinical trials. He has chaired two EU COST Actions, Epigenetics: From Bench to Bedside and Epigenetic Chemical Biology, a Gordon Research Conference on Combinatorial Chemistry, and a Royal Society Scientific Meeting. He is a committee member of the IUPAC Division VII Subcommittee for Drug Discovery and Development and the RSC Biological & Medicinal Chemistry Sector. He is the Scientific Editor of Pure and Applied Chemistry, an editor of PLOS ONE and Marine Drugs and on the editorial advisory board of ACS Journal of Medicinal Chemistry.
Prof Robert Nash
Prof Robert Nash leads PhytoQuest and is a global leader in the field of phytochemistry. He spent the first decade of his post-doctoral work focused "on anti-viral agents with the Medical Research Council AIDS-Directed Programme" at King's College London and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. He then moved to IGER as the head of its chemistry group, and was a Founding Director of MNL and founded its holding company, MNL Pharmaceuticals Ltd. He has published over 200 scientific publications and patents, and he was awarded the 1st Pierre-Fabre Award of the Phytochemical Society of Europe in 2001. Robert gives many international conference presentations and media interviews.
Prof Khalid Rahman
Prof Khalid Rahman is a Professor (Emeritus) of Physiological Biochemistry, at the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University. He has been a member of the Centre for Natural Products Discovery since its creation his major research interests are in nutraceuticals, natural products, functional foods, and their role in the prevention of chronic diseases mainly cardiovascular disease. His research involves the in vitro assessment of natural products and nutraceuticals for their antioxidant potential, in vivo assessment of the medicinal properties of natural products, assessment of functional foods and clinical trials. His work incorporates the biochemical and physiological mechanisms by which nutraceuticals exert their action. He has published over 200 peer-reviewed papers and has presented my work at national and international levels. He has international research collaborations and has acted as a consultant to nutraceutical companies. Prof Rahman has also acted in the capacity of an external examiner both at national and international universities for PhD programmes in natural products. He was a member of the Biochemical Society and a member of the editorial board of the journals, Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, World Journal of Cardiology and EC Nutrition.
Prof Mirek Strnad
Prof Miroslav Strnad is a professor in the Laboratory of Growth Regulators, Institute of Experimental Botany ASCR & Palacký University in Olomouc, Czech Republic (Website). Strnad’s current focus is on the research and development of a new generation of compounds with anti-viral, anti-proliferative, anti-angiogenic and anti-senescence properties, the molecular mechanisms of their action and the potential combinatory therapies based on these compounds, new phytohormone derived cosmetic as well as plant growth regulators for plant biotechnology and agriculture. He graduated in Phytotechnologies from the Faculty of Agronomy, Mendel University, Brno, in 1982 (Ing.). In 2001 was promoted to Professor of the Palacký University in Olomouc, Czech Republic. In 1998, he was awarded the Rhone-Poulenc Rorer Award by the Phytochemical Society of Europe (PSE), in recognition of his work on the identification, analysis and biochemistry of phytohormones topolins. In 1999, he received the award of the City of Olomouc and an honorary resident of Olomouc; in 2004 the prize of the Learned Society of the Czech Republic in recognition of his scientific achievements. Prof. Strnad has been widely publishing (11 chapters in books; more than 480 papers in recognized journals; 3 books; 38 Czech and 47 international patents; citations > 18 000; Hirsch index: 75). He was PSE president (2014-2016), and between 2012-2014, 2016-2018 vice-president. He is a member of the Society for Natural Products Discovery (SNPD) and Centre for Natural Products Discovery (CNPD) in Liverpool.
