Xiunan is a final-year PhD candidate at the UCL School of Pharmacy specialising in pharmaceutical taste science, with research experience spanning taste-masking strategies, palatable dosage form development, and sensory evaluation. She supports the Gustoceutics™ team through taste-assessment research and scientific communication.
Duncan is a globally recognised pharmaceutical scientist with a distinguished career spanning academia, leadership and translational research. He is currently Dean of the Faculty of Science at University of Bath, a role he assumed in early 2023. Prior to this appointment, he served as Interim Dean of the Faculty of Life Sciences at UCL and, before that, as Director and Chair in Drug Delivery at the UCL School of Pharmacy. Throughout his career, Duncan has combined scientific excellence with strategic leadership. His research focuses on nanofabrication, advanced drug delivery systems (including electrospun and 3D-printed formulations), and taste-masking technologies — a foundation that underpins the mission of Gustoceutics™. In addition to his academic roles, he has led professional pharmacy-education transformation in the UK through his 2019–2022 tenure as Chair of the Pharmacy Schools Council, working with regulators to shape the future of pharmacy training and practice. Duncan’s blend of visionary leadership, deep scientific expertise and commitment to patient-centred pharmaceutical innovation makes him uniquely positioned to guide Gustoceutics™ in its mission to deliver medicines that are not only effective, but acceptable, usable, and safe for patients of all ages.
Hend is a full-time academic at the UCL Global Business School for Health and a prescribing pharmacist specialising in taste-masking, sensory analytics, and age-appropriate formulation design. Her work in taste science began in 2016 during her pharmaceutics PhD at the UCL School of Pharmacy, where she developed biosensor-based methodologies to quantify bitterness and improves the palatability of paediatric medicines.
With experience in clinical trials and a strong understanding of regulatory pathways, Hend recognises the critical role that sensory performance plays in Paediatric Investigation Plans (PIPs) and broader medicine approvals. Alongside her research and innovation activities, Hend contributes nationally as a member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s Science & Research Committee and leads Equality, Diversity & Inclusion within her department.
