Birzeit University pharmacy researchers, faculty gain new connections with BeePharma cooperation agreement
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From left to right, top row: Amin Thawabteh, acting director of the university’s Samih Darwazah Institute for Pharmaceutical Industries; Sahar Hassan, dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy, Nursing and Health Professions; and Vasil Abu, CEO of BeePharma.
Birzeit University pharmacy researchers, faculty members, and students will be able to establish joint research projects and exchange expertise with Australian pharmaceutical scientists as part of a memorandum of understanding signed recently between the Samih Darwazeh Institute for Pharmaceutical Industries at the Faculty of Pharmacy, Nursing and Health Professions and the pharmaceutical firm BeePharma.
Signed by President of Birzeit University Abdullatif Abuhijleh and BeePharma CEO Vasil Abu, the agreement presents a framework for cooperation between researchers from the Samih Darwazeh Institute for Pharmaceutical Industries and BeePharma staff on topics such as making process or compositional changes in drug products post-approval under the FDA’s SUPAC guidance.
Sahar Hassan, dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy, Nursing and Health Professions, said that the agreement is part of the faculty’s mission to establish more channels of cooperation in research and development with the pharmaceutical industry, whether locally or internationally.
Amin Thawabteh, acting director of the university’s Samih Darwazah Institute for Pharmaceutical Industries, gave a brief overview of the center’s capabilities and goals. The institute, he explained, provides valuable testing and research and development services for the Palestinian pharmaceutical industry on a level not found anywhere else in the region, in addition to providing training for young chemists, biologists, and pharmacists.
In his welcoming remarks, Vasil Abu introduced BeePharma and its scope of activity, noting that the company focuses on researching and developing pharmaceutical drugs derived from bee products.
BeePharma, Abu noted, maintains strong ties with academic institutions globally to support its research and development aims, adding that the agreement with Birzeit University will help close the gap between academia and the industry in different regions of the world.
