Associate Professor Mariusz Skwarczynski
Associate Professor

Mariusz Skwarczynski

Email: 
Phone: 
+61 7 334 69894

Background

Mariusz Skwarczynski completed his Ph.D. in Chemistry in 1999 at Wroclaw University of Technology (Poland). His postdoctoral training began at Tokushima Bunri University (Japan) under the direction of late Professor M. Nishizawa, where he studied the biomimetic total synthesis of anticancer agent paclitaxel. He then joined the laboratory of Professor Yoshiaki Kiso at Kyoto Pharmaceutical University (Japan) to study prodrugs of paclitaxel. In 2004 he was awarded with Japanese fellowship (Japan Society for the Promotion of Science postdoctoral fellowship) and research grant to conduct further research on paclitaxel. He developed novel classes of paclitaxel prodrugs: isotaxoids and phototaxels. He also co-developed an epimerization-free method for the synthesis of novel building blocks (isodipeptides) for solid phase peptide synthesis and these units have been commercialized by Merck-Novabiochem.

In 2008 he joined Professor Istvan Toth group at University of Queensland (Australia) to work on vaccine delivery strategies. Since then, he research is mainly focused on nanotechnology-based peptide vaccine delivery approaches. In 2010 he was awarded with University of Queensland Strategic Fund Research Fellowship. In Australia, he is involved in a wide range of collaborative research projects, both nationally and internationally, to develop vaccines against GAS, HIV, hookworm infections, malaria and cancer, along with antibiotics against multidrug resistant bacteria.

Availability

Associate Professor Mariusz Skwarczynski is:
Available for supervision
Media expert

Fields of research

Medicinal and biomolecular chemistry Organic chemistry

Qualifications

  • Masters (Coursework) of Science, Wroclaw University of Technology
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Wroclaw University of Technology
  • Member, Australian Infectious Diseases Research Centre, Australian Infectious Diseases Research Centre
  • Journal Editorial Board Member, Current Drug Delivery, Current Drug Delivery
  • Journal Editorial Board Member, Frontiers in Pharmacology (Associate Editor), Frontiers in Pharmacology (Associate Editor)
  • Journal Editorial Board Member, Medicinal Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry
  • Member, Royal Australian Chemical Institute, Royal Australian Chemical Institute
  • Member, The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Alumni Association in Australia, The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Alumni Association in Australia
  • Journal Editorial Board Member, Vaccines (Regional Editor of Australia), Vaccines (Regional Editor of Australia)

Research interests

  • Vaccines and Nanomedicine

    Vaccine Desing, Nanotechnology, Peptide Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, Vaccine/Drug Delivery, Antimicrobial Agents, Macromolecules, Adjuvants, Immunology

Research impacts

Mariusz Skwarczynski has over 180 publications, including peer-reviewed journals, book chapters (Wiley, Springer Nature, Nova Science, Elsevier), and two edited book (Elsevier, Springer Nature) – as of 2023. Among these publications, 16 are in journals with an impact factor of 10-30. He was ranked 3rd in the world in the Subunit Vaccines field (2012-2022) by Expertscape's PubMed-based scheme and placed among the top 0.1% (0.022% of 18,308 published authors) of scholars writing about Subunit Vaccines over the past 10 years: https://expertscape.com/ex/vaccines%2C+subunit. He is an inventor on three patents that attracted interest from the industry including Meat & Livestock Australia Ltd, Vet-Agro Sp. z o.o., Paragen Bio, and Brandon Capital. He co-developed an epimerization-free method for the synthesis of novel building blocks (isodipeptides) for solid-phase peptide synthesis; these units have been commercialised by Merck-Novabiochem. Recently, he has been actively engaged in several projects aimed at the commercialisation of veterinary vaccines (mostly targeting domestic and wild animals’ fertility control) in Australia and Italy.

He is very active in a collaborative initiative between universities, on projects to develop vaccines against Group A Streptococcus, tuberculosis, hookworm, malaria, porcine circovirus, babesia and cancer, as well as other drug delivery systems. He is an Associate Editor in Frontiers in Pharmacology, (2016 – current) and Regional Editor of Australia in Vaccines (2018 – current). In addition to grants from the ARC and NHMRC, he is also the recipient of industry-specific grants (Economic Accelerator Launch Programme 2023 and Meat & Livestock Australia Limited grant 2021). He regularly communicates with the public (locally and internationally) on issues related to vaccine development and safety. His recent publication on the oral hookworm vaccine has attracted wide media interest from all over the world (Australia, India, China, Kenya, New Zealand, Hungary, Pakistan, etc.). He is often invited to present at international conferences, and recently he organised and chaired Micro and Nanoparticles in Drug and Vaccine Delivery Symposium, Brisbane, 2021.

He has served as a primary supervisor of four PhD students (two ongoings, two theses awarded) and co-supervisor of 23 PhD students in the medicinal chemistry, biotechnology, and vaccine development fields. All his former students have successfully found jobs, many of which are in the fields of biology or chemistry, across industry and academia, in Australia and abroad. Some notable examples of current employers of his past students include Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, National University of Malaysia, The Translational Research Institute, Griffith University, Miltenyi Biotec Australia, James Cook University, Procter & Gamble, Woolcock Institute of Medical Research, WuXi Biologics, and Endologix California.

Search Professor Mariusz Skwarczynski’s works on UQ eSpace

204 works between 1995 and 2025
All (204) Journal Article (171) Book Chapter (19) Conference Publication (9) Book (2) Other Outputs (3)

41 - 60 of 204 works

2021

Conference Publication

Lipopeptide nanoparticulate vaccine candidates for the induction of protective immune responses

Tóth, István and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2021). Lipopeptide nanoparticulate vaccine candidates for the induction of protective immune responses. DDRS 2021 Conference, Budapest, Hungary, 15-17 November 2021. Budapest, Hungary: Hungarian Pharmaceutical Association. doi: 10.33892/aph.2021.91.124-125

Lipopeptide nanoparticulate vaccine candidates for the induction of protective immune responses

2021

Journal Article

Development and evaluation of a cryopreserved whole-parasite vaccine in a rodent model of blood-stage malaria

Stanisic, Danielle I., Ho, Mei-Fong, Nevagi, Reshma, Cooper, Emily, Walton, Maddison, Islam, Md Tanjir, Hussein, Waleed M., Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Toth, Istvan and Good, Michael F. (2021). Development and evaluation of a cryopreserved whole-parasite vaccine in a rodent model of blood-stage malaria. mBio, 12 (5) e02657-21, e0265721. doi: 10.1128/mBio.02657-21

Development and evaluation of a cryopreserved whole-parasite vaccine in a rodent model of blood-stage malaria

2021

Journal Article

Cyclic dipeptides: the biological and structural landscape with special focus on the anti-cancer proline-based scaffold

Bojarska, Joanna, Mieczkowski, Adam, Ziora, Zyta, Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Toth, Istvan, Shalash, Ahmed O., Parang, Keykavous, El-Mowafi, Shaima A., Mohammed, Eman H. M., Elnagdy, Sherif, AlKhazindar, Maha and Wolf, Wojciech M. (2021). Cyclic dipeptides: the biological and structural landscape with special focus on the anti-cancer proline-based scaffold. Biomolecules, 11 (10) 1515, 1515. doi: 10.3390/biom11101515

Cyclic dipeptides: the biological and structural landscape with special focus on the anti-cancer proline-based scaffold

2021

Journal Article

Oral peptide vaccine against hookworm infection: correlation of antibody titers with protective efficacy

Shalash, Ahmed O., Becker, Luke, Yang, Jieru, Giacomin, Paul, Pearson, Mark, Hussein, Waleed M., Loukas, Alex, Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2021). Oral peptide vaccine against hookworm infection: correlation of antibody titers with protective efficacy. Vaccines, 9 (9) 1034, 1034. doi: 10.3390/vaccines9091034

Oral peptide vaccine against hookworm infection: correlation of antibody titers with protective efficacy

2021

Journal Article

Poly(hydrophobic amino acid) conjugates for the delivery of multiepitope vaccine against Group A Streptococcus

Azuar, Armira, Shibu, Mohini A., Adilbish, Nomin, Marasini, Nirmal, Hung, Hong, Yang, Jieru, Luo, Yacheng, Khalil, Zeinab G., Capon, Robert J., Hussein, Waleed M., Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2021). Poly(hydrophobic amino acid) conjugates for the delivery of multiepitope vaccine against Group A Streptococcus. Bioconjugate Chemistry, 32 (11) acs.bioconjchem.1c00333, 2307-2317. doi: 10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.1c00333

Poly(hydrophobic amino acid) conjugates for the delivery of multiepitope vaccine against Group A Streptococcus

2021

Other Outputs

Self-assembling, self-adjuvanting system for delivery of vaccines

producer (2021). Self-assembling, self-adjuvanting system for delivery of vaccines . PCT/AU2021/050012.

Self-assembling, self-adjuvanting system for delivery of vaccines

2021

Journal Article

Polyacrylate-GnRH peptide conjugate as an oral contraceptive vaccine candidate

Faruck, Mohammad O., Koirala, Prashamsa, Yang, Jieru, D’Occhio, Michael J., Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2021). Polyacrylate-GnRH peptide conjugate as an oral contraceptive vaccine candidate. Pharmaceutics, 13 (7) 1081, 1-15. doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics13071081

Polyacrylate-GnRH peptide conjugate as an oral contraceptive vaccine candidate

2021

Other Outputs

Detection and Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 Receptor Binding Domain Neutralization by a Sensitive Competitive ELISA Assay

Shalash, Ahmed O., Azuar, Armira, Madge, Harrison Y. R., Modhiran, Naphak, Amarilla, Alberto A., Liang, Benjamin, Khromykh, Alexander, Watterson, Daniel, Young, Paul R., Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2021). Detection and Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 Receptor Binding Domain Neutralization by a Sensitive Competitive ELISA Assay. doi: 10.21203/rs.3.pex-1559/v1

Detection and Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 Receptor Binding Domain Neutralization by a Sensitive Competitive ELISA Assay

2021

Journal Article

Key considerations for the development of safe and effective SARS‐CoV‐2 subunit vaccine: a peptide‐based vaccine alternative

Shalash, Ahmed O., Hussein, Waleed M., Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2021). Key considerations for the development of safe and effective SARS‐CoV‐2 subunit vaccine: a peptide‐based vaccine alternative. Advanced Science, 8 (16) 2100985, 1-35. doi: 10.1002/advs.202100985

Key considerations for the development of safe and effective SARS‐CoV‐2 subunit vaccine: a peptide‐based vaccine alternative

2021

Journal Article

Pre-clinical evaluation of a whole-parasite vaccine to control human babesiosis

Al-Nazal, Hanan A., Cooper, Emily, Ho, Mei Fong, Eskandari, Sharareh, Majam, Victoria, Giddam, Ashwini Kumar, Hussein, Waleed M., Islam, Md Tanjir, Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Toth, Istvan, Kumar, Sanjai, Zaid, Ali, Batzloff, Michael, Stanisic, Danielle I. and Good, Michael F. (2021). Pre-clinical evaluation of a whole-parasite vaccine to control human babesiosis. Cell Host and Microbe, 29 (6), 894-903. doi: 10.1016/j.chom.2021.04.008

Pre-clinical evaluation of a whole-parasite vaccine to control human babesiosis

2021

Journal Article

Chemical conjugation strategies for the development of protein-based subunit nanovaccines

Lu, Lantian, Duong, Viet Tram, Shalash, Ahmed O., Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2021). Chemical conjugation strategies for the development of protein-based subunit nanovaccines. Vaccines, 9 (6) 563, 1-24. doi: 10.3390/vaccines9060563

Chemical conjugation strategies for the development of protein-based subunit nanovaccines

2021

Journal Article

Cell-penetrating peptides-based liposomal delivery system enhanced immunogenicity of peptide-based vaccine against group A streptococcus

Yang, Jieru, Firdaus, Farrhana, Azuar, Armira, Khalil, Zeinab G., Marasini, Nirmal, Capon, Robert J., Hussein, Waleed M., Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2021). Cell-penetrating peptides-based liposomal delivery system enhanced immunogenicity of peptide-based vaccine against group A streptococcus. Vaccines, 9 (5) 499, 499. doi: 10.3390/vaccines9050499

Cell-penetrating peptides-based liposomal delivery system enhanced immunogenicity of peptide-based vaccine against group A streptococcus

2021

Journal Article

Poly(hydrophobic amino acid)-based self-adjuvanting nanoparticles for Group A Streptococcus vaccine delivery

Azuar, Armira, Li, Zhuoqing, Shibu, Mohini A., Zhao, Lili, Luo, Yacheng, Shalash, Ahmed O., Khalil, Zeinab G., Capon, Robert J., Hussein, Waleed M., Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2021). Poly(hydrophobic amino acid)-based self-adjuvanting nanoparticles for Group A Streptococcus vaccine delivery. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 64 (5) acs.jmedchem.0c01660, 2648-2658. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.0c01660

Poly(hydrophobic amino acid)-based self-adjuvanting nanoparticles for Group A Streptococcus vaccine delivery

2021

Journal Article

A global review on short peptides: frontiers and perspectives

Apostolopoulos, Vasso, Bojarska, Joanna, Chai, Tsun-Thai, Elnagdy, Sherif, Kaczmarek, Krzysztof, Matsoukas, John, New, Roger, Parang, Keykavous, Lopez, Octavio Paredes, Parhiz, Hamideh, Perera, Conrad O., Pickholz, Monica, Remko, Milan, Saviano, Michele, Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Tang, Yefeng, Wolf, Wojciech M., Yoshiya, Taku, Zabrocki, Janusz, Zielenkiewicz, Piotr, AlKhazindar, Maha, Barriga, Vanessa, Kelaidonis, Konstantinos, Sarasia, Elham Mousavinezhad and Toth, Istvan (2021). A global review on short peptides: frontiers and perspectives. Molecules, 26 (2) 430, 430. doi: 10.3390/molecules26020430

A global review on short peptides: frontiers and perspectives

2021

Journal Article

Antibodies to neutralising epitopes synergistically block the interaction of the receptor-binding domain of SARS-CoV-2 to ACE 2

Pandey, Manisha, Ozberk, Victoria, Eskandari, Sharareh, Shalash, Ahmed O., Joyce, Michael A., Saffran, Holly A., Day, Christopher J., Lepletier, Ailin, Spillings, Belinda L., Mills, Jamie-Lee, Calcutt, Ainslie, Fan, Fan, Williams, James T., Stanisic, Danielle I., Hattingh, Laetitia, Gerrard, John, Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Mak, Johnson, Jennings, Michael P., Toth, Istvan, Tyrrell, D. Lorne and Good, Michael F. (2021). Antibodies to neutralising epitopes synergistically block the interaction of the receptor-binding domain of SARS-CoV-2 to ACE 2. Clinical and Translational Immunology, 10 (3) e1260, e1260. doi: 10.1002/cti2.1260

Antibodies to neutralising epitopes synergistically block the interaction of the receptor-binding domain of SARS-CoV-2 to ACE 2

2021

Book Chapter

Peptide-Polymer Conjugation Via Copper-Catalyzed Alkyne-Azide 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition

Hussein, Waleed M., Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2021). Peptide-Polymer Conjugation Via Copper-Catalyzed Alkyne-Azide 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition. Methods in Molecular Biology. (pp. 1-7) New York, NY United States: Humana Press. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1617-8_1

Peptide-Polymer Conjugation Via Copper-Catalyzed Alkyne-Azide 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition

2021

Journal Article

A potent vaccine delivery system

Zhao, Guangzu, Azuar, Armira, Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2021). A potent vaccine delivery system. Bio-protocol, 11 (7) e3973, e3973. doi: 10.21769/bioprotoc.3973

A potent vaccine delivery system

2021

Book Chapter

Double conjugation using mercapto-acryloyl and alkyne-azide reactions for the synthesis of branched multiantigenic vaccine candidates

Hussein, Waleed M., Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2021). Double conjugation using mercapto-acryloyl and alkyne-azide reactions for the synthesis of branched multiantigenic vaccine candidates. Peptide conjugation: methods and protocols. (pp. 141-150) New York, NY United States: Humana Press. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1617-8_13

Double conjugation using mercapto-acryloyl and alkyne-azide reactions for the synthesis of branched multiantigenic vaccine candidates

2020

Journal Article

A dual-adjuvanting strategy for peptide-based subunit vaccines against group A Streptococcus: lipidation and polyelectrolyte complexes

Zhao, Lili, Yang, Jieru, Nahar, Ummey Jannatun, Khalil, Zeinab G., Capon, Robert J., Hussein, Waleed M., Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2020). A dual-adjuvanting strategy for peptide-based subunit vaccines against group A Streptococcus: lipidation and polyelectrolyte complexes. Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry, 28 (24) 115823, 115823. doi: 10.1016/j.bmc.2020.115823

A dual-adjuvanting strategy for peptide-based subunit vaccines against group A Streptococcus: lipidation and polyelectrolyte complexes

2020

Journal Article

Carbohydrate immune adjuvants in subunit vaccines

Bashiri, Sahra, Koirala, Prashamsa, Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2020). Carbohydrate immune adjuvants in subunit vaccines. Pharmaceutics, 12 (10) 965, 965-33. doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics12100965

Carbohydrate immune adjuvants in subunit vaccines

Current funding

  • 2024 - 2027
    A nanovaccine against Invasive Group A Streptococcus and Rheumatic Heart Disease
    NHMRC IDEAS Grants
    Open grant
  • 2024 - 2027
    Paving the way for a Clinical Vaccine Candidate against Hookworm Infection
    NHMRC IDEAS Grants
    Open grant
  • 2024 - 2025
    Single-shot anti-fertility vaccine in pigs
    Australia's Economic Accelerator Seed Grants
    Open grant

Past funding

  • 2021 - 2024
    Poly(amino acids) as immune stimulators
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2021 - 2025
    A single-shot anti-fertility vaccine in female cattle
    Meat & Livestock Australia
    Open grant
  • 2020 - 2021
    Hookworm peptide therapeutic for oral treatment of IBD (NHMRC Development Grant administered by James Cook University)
    James Cook University
    Open grant
  • 2011 - 2014
    A Self-assembling and Self-adjuvanting Nanoparticular Therapeutic Vaccine Against Cervical Cancer
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant

Availability

Associate Professor Mariusz Skwarczynski is:
Available for supervision

Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.

Supervision history

Current supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Poly(hydrophobic amino acids) as immune stimulators.

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Hookworm vaccine: vaccine development toward clinical trials

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Polymers and peptides for vaccine delivery.

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Poly(hydrophobic amino acids) as immune stimulators.

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth

  • Doctor Philosophy

    L-Rhamnose-based nanovaccine derived from poly-rhamnose backbone of Group A Carbohydrate (GAC) against Invasive Group A Streptococcus and Rheumatic Heart Disease

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Polymers and peptides for vaccine delivery.

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Poly(hydrophobic amino acids) as immune stimulators.

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Development of poly(hydrophobic amino acids)-based immunopotentiators for subunit vaccines against infectious diseases

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Jazmina Gonzalez Cruz

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Novel Vaccine Designs of Adjuvants and Delivery Systems against Infectious Diseases

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth, Dr Rachel Stephenson

  • Doctor Philosophy

    A nanovaccine against Invasive Group A Streptococcus and Rheumatic Heart Disease

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Rachel Stephenson, Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Delivery systems for novel vaccine candidates against infectious diseases

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Jazmina Gonzalez Cruz

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Development of poly(hydrophobic amino acids)-based immunopotentiators for subunit vaccines against infectious diseases

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Jazmina Gonzalez Cruz

Completed supervision

Enquiries

Contact Associate Professor Mariusz Skwarczynski directly for media enquiries about:

  • fertility control
  • group A streptococcus
  • hookworm
  • immune adjuvants
  • nanovaccines
  • peptide vaccines

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