Hasa Dritan

Dr Dritan Hasa graduated in 2009 in Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Technology at the University of Trieste, with a final project thesis entitled “On the mechanochemical activation of solid dispersions containing Vinpocetine”. In 2013, at the same University he obtained a PhD in Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science and Technology under the supervision of Prof Dario Voinovich. His PhD thesis dealt with mechanochemically induced defects in molecular crystals and the production of sustained drug delivery systems using the hot melt extrusion technology. He spent one year as postdoctoral researcher working on a project that involved industrial partners. Subsequently, Dritan moved at the Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, UK, where he spent more than two years as part of the materials chemistry group led by Professor William Jones. He investigated new applications of pharmaceutical polymeric materials for promoting crystallization and controlling polymorphism in the solid state. In March 2017, Dritan joined the Leicester School of Pharmacy as Vice-Chancellor Lecturer of Pharmaceutics where he progressed at the Senior Lecturer level in August 2018. From November 2019, Dr Dritan Hasa returned at the University of Trieste as an Assistant Professor in the Pharmaceutical Technologies Group, and member of the Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Dr Hasa is currently an Associate Professor of Pharmaceutical Technology at the same department. He has also been a visiting scientist at the University College Cork (Ireland) working with Prof Caitriona O’Driscoll, and at the University of Dusseldorf (Germany) where He learned about hot melt extrusion from Professor Peter Kleinebudde. His current research focuses on the use of mechanochemical technologies such as ball milling and hot melt extrusion for the preparation of functional pharmaceutical materials. This is an exciting time for such green technologies: vast progress has been made in the last three decades, especially in academic research, and new areas of applications will soon affect substantially in real world applications. Dr Hasa has a keen interest on finding new applications for pharmaceutical polymeric materials. He also performs fundamental research at issues surrounding all aspects of crystallization and polymorphism in single and multicomponent materials. The objective is to gain more knowledge on possible connections and/or differences between the solid-state and solution mechanisms of crystallization. Dr Dritan Hasa is co-author of 40 scientific papers published in high-impact factor peer-reviewed journals, and has already been invited speaker in different national and international journals. In 2019 he was listed among 21 emerging Investigators in Crystal Growth & Design, a leading specialised journal of the American Chemical Society.