MedPharm’s Chief Scientific Officer and Co-Founder, Professor Marc Brown and University of Reading’s Professor Adrian Williams have co-authored the new book: ‘The Art and Science of Dermal Formulation Development”. It is the latest addition to ‘Drugs and the Pharmaceutical Sciences’, a series of textbooks and monographs published by CRC Press.

The Art and Science of Dermal Formulation development provides a comprehensive guide to all aspects of the subject, from the structure of skin and formulation development and performance testing to the chemical, physical and technological modulation of delivery and manufacturing processes.

Professor Brown said: “The book covers early stage preformulation and formulation development right through to product manufacture. Much of the information is based on the systems, processes and expertise we have built up at MedPharm over the years and which have successfully led to the commercial launch of over 50 products by our clients.

Prof. Brown continued: “The demand within the pharmaceutical industry for these specialised and complex development services continues to grow as more becomes known about the important biochemical process occurring in the skin. This shift within the industry has been reflected in the expanding demand for MedPharm’s services.”

You can read the full story at CPhI online.

For more information on “The Art and Science of Dermal Formulation Development” please visit here.

Notes to editors

About MedPharm
MedPharm is the world’s leading contract provider of topical and transdermal product design and formulation development services. MedPharm are experts at reducing risk and accelerating development times for generic and proprietary pharmaceutical customers through their unique, cost-effective and industry-leading performance testing models. Well established as the global leaders in dermatology, nail, mucosal membrane, and transdermal product development, MedPharm can also offer innovative solutions for ophthalmic and airway preparations recognised for their scientific rigour by regulators and investors. MedPharm has fully established R&D centres in the USA and UK and has its global HQ in Guildford, UK.

 

Durham, NC, February 4, 2025 – MedPharm, a global leader in topical and transdermal contract drug development and manufacturing, today announced the appointment of Bill Humphries as Chief Executive Officer. Bill’s leadership will enable MedPharm to accelerate its strategic growth following its merger with Tergus Pharma which significantly bolstered MedPharm’s scientific, clinical trial manufacturing, and commercial production capabilities.

As CEO of MedPharm, Mr. Humphries brings over 36 years of leadership and business transformation experience in the pharmaceutical and life sciences industries. Most recently he was CEO of Alcami where he spearheaded operational improvements, revenue growth, and client satisfaction. Prior to Alcami, he served as CEO at Isosceles Pharmaceuticals, President and Group Company Chairman of Ortho-Dermatologics, CEO of Merz North America, President of Stiefel, a GSK Company and Vice President of US Skincare at Allergan Pharmaceuticals. He has served as Chairman of the Board at Clearside Biomedical, Executive Chairman of Strata Skin Sciences, and a member of the Board of Directors at Alcami, Aclaris Therapeutics, PhaseBio Pharmaceuticals, SKNV, and Bryn Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Humphries holds a B.A. from Bucknell University and MBA from Pepperdine University.

“It is a privilege to join MedPharm and the team at this important period in MedPharm’s evolution and growth aspirations,” said Bill Humphries, Chief Executive Officer of MedPharm. “I am excited to be part of this team and leverage my direct experience in the topical and transdermal space to accelerate MedPharm’s growth. I believe MedPharm is well positioned to serve clients across all channels in the topical space and we look forward to delivering incremental value for trusted existing and new clients.”

Pat Walsh, Chairman of the Board added, “Bill’s extensive leadership experience and deep understanding of the pharmaceutical industry make him the ideal leader to guide MedPharm through its next phase of growth. With his expertise and the strength of our combined organization, MedPharm is well-positioned to set new standards in topical and transdermal CDMO services.”

MedPharm’s investors include Ampersand Capital Partners, Bourne Partners Strategic Capital and Great Point Partners.

About MedPharm

MedPharm is an end-to-end contract service provider of topical and transepithelial products supporting early-phase research, formulation development and in vitro testing services in addition to both clinical and commercial manufacturing. With MedPharm’s recent merger with Tergus Pharma, MedPharm enhanced its capabilities, transforming the business into a truly differentiated CDMO of scale with superior end-to-end capabilities from drug development & formulation to large batch commercial manufacturing and distribution. For more than 25 years, MedPharm has specialized in reducing risk through its unique, industry-leading in vitro testing and research biology models and is a global leader in product development for dermal/transdermal, lung and nasal, mucosal membrane, ungual, otic, and ophthalmic delivery. MedPharm has locations in the United Kingdom and the United States, including a new 97,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Durham, NC. For more information, visit medpharm.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

About Ampersand Capital Partners

Ampersand Capital Partners, founded in 1988, is a middle-market private equity firm with $3 billion of assets under management, dedicated to growth-oriented investments in the healthcare sector. With offices in Boston, MA, and Amsterdam, Netherlands, Ampersand leverages a unique blend of private equity and operating experience to build value and drive long-term performance alongside its portfolio company management teams. Ampersand has helped build numerous market-leading companies across each of the firm’s core healthcare sectors. For additional information, visit Ampersandcapital.com or follow on LinkedIn.

About Bourne Partners Strategic Capital (“BPSC”)

Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Bourne Partners Strategic Capital is a private equity and growth equity investment firm focused exclusively on the pharmaceutical, pharma services and consumer healthcare sectors. As owners and operators with over 20 years of experience, BPSC has investment, strategic and operational experience in companies ranging from $5M to $3B in equity value and seeks to align and partner with management teams and other owners in these sectors to grow their businesses. BPSC is a related company of Bourne Partners, which offers investment banking and advisory services in the same key focus areas. For more information, please visit bourne-partners.com.

About Great Point Partners

Great Point Partners, founded in 2003 and based in Greenwich, CT, manages over $1.9B of capital in its private funds and public life sciences equity strategy (BioMedical Value Fund). The private equity funds invest across all sectors of the health care industry with a particular emphasis on biopharmaceutical services and supplies, alternate site care, medical device contract manufacturing and information technology enabled businesses. The firm pursues a proactive and proprietary approach to sourcing investments and tuck-in acquisitions for its portfolio companies. For additional information, visit gppfunds.com.

GUILDFORD, United Kingdom and DURHAM, N.C., July 8, 2024 — MedPharm, Ltd., an Ampersand Capital Partners portfolio company, and Tergus Pharma, a Great Point Partners portfolio company, jointly announced today a merger. The combined topical and transepithelial Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) will operate under the MedPharm name, establishing a leading, end-to-end CDMO with robust scientific, clinical trial manufacturing and commercial production capabilities. As part of this transaction, Tergus Pharma CEO Michael Kane has been appointed CEO of MedPharm while Patrick Walsh will continue to serve as Executive Chairman of MedPharm.

The merged business is well-positioned as a global leader in delivering a full suite of drug development and manufacturing services to innovators of all sizes focused on advancing topical and transepithelial pharmaceuticals. The strategic combination of Tergus and MedPharm’s capabilities enables commercial production and serialization to existing formulation development, in vitro testing and clinical manufacturing within one integrated organization. Expanded capabilities will also include the development and manufacture of hormone-based and highly potent drugs at the Company’s GMP manufacturing facility in Durham, NC.

Michael Kane commented, “This strategic partnership is an exciting opportunity to deliver extensive pharmaceutical product development resources fueled by a robust team of scientific experts while leveraging our cutting-edge topical GMP facility to seamlessly meet our customers’ commercial production needs. With locations in both the United Kingdom and the United States, we are well positioned to provide exceptional support to our existing and prospective pharmaceutical clients.”

MedPharm Executive Chairman Patrick Walsh added “Pharma clients have been seeking a reliable, integrated service offering for their ophthalmic, topical and transdermal development and manufacturing projects. This merger creates an immediate option with two organizations already well-positioned in the industry.”

Tergus lead investor Great Point Partners will retain a significant minority ownership stake in the newly combined MedPharm, while private equity firms Ampersand Capital Partners and Bourne Partners Strategic Capital assume majority ownership.

 

About MedPharm
MedPharm is an end-to-end contract service provider of topical and transepithelial products supporting early phase research, formulation development and in vitro testing services in addition to both clinical and commercial manufacturing. For more than 25 years, MedPharm has specialized in reducing risk through its unique, industry-leading in vitro testing and research biology models. Well-established as the global leader in product development for dermal/transdermal, lung and nasal, mucosal membrane, ungual, otic and ophthalmic delivery, MedPharm has locations in the United Kingdom and United States, including a new 97,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art facility in Durham, NC and is recognized globally for its regulatory and technical expertise. For more information, visit: medpharm.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

About Ampersand Capital Partners
Founded in 1988, Ampersand Capital Partners is a middle market private equity firm with $3 billion of assets under management dedicated to growth-oriented investments in the healthcare sector. With offices in Boston, MA and Amsterdam, Netherlands, Ampersand leverages a unique blend of private equity and operating experience to build value and drive long-term performance alongside its portfolio company management teams. Ampersand has helped build numerous market-leading companies across each of the firm’s core healthcare sectors. For additional information, visit ampersandcapital.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

About Bourne Partners Strategic Capital (“BPSC”)
Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Bourne Partners Strategic Capital is a private equity and growth equity investment firm focused exclusively on the pharmaceutical, pharma services and consumer healthcare sectors (10 current portfolio companies).  As owners and operators with over 20 years of experience, BPSC has investment, strategic and operational experience in companies ranging from $5M to $3B in equity value and seeks to align and partner with management teams and other owners in these sectors to grow their business. BPSC is a related company of Bourne Partners, which offers investment banking and advisory services in the same key focus areas  For more information, please visit Bourne Partners Strategic Capital.

 

About Great Point Partners
Great Point Partners, founded in 2003 and based in Greenwich, CT, manages over $1.9B of capital in its private funds and public life sciences equity strategy (BioMedical Value Fund). The private equity funds invest across all sectors of the health care industry with a particular emphasis on biopharmaceutical services and supplies, alternate site care, medical device contract manufacturing and information technology enabled businesses. The firm pursues a proactive and proprietary approach to sourcing investments and tuck-in acquisitions for its portfolio companies. For additional information, visit gppfunds.com or follow us on LinkedIn.