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

205 works between 1995 and 2025
All (205) Journal Article (172) Book Chapter (19) Conference Publication (9) Book (2) Other Outputs (3)

141 - 160 of 205 works

2014

Journal Article

Lipid core peptide targeting the cathepsin D hemoglobinase of Schistosoma mansoni as a component of a schistosomiasis vaccine

Dougall, Annette M., Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Khoshnejad, Makan, Chandrudu, Saranya, Daly, Norelle L., Toth, Istvan and Loukas, Alex (2014). Lipid core peptide targeting the cathepsin D hemoglobinase of Schistosoma mansoni as a component of a schistosomiasis vaccine. Human Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics, 10 (2), 399-409. doi: 10.4161/hv.27057

Lipid core peptide targeting the cathepsin D hemoglobinase of Schistosoma mansoni as a component of a schistosomiasis vaccine

2014

Journal Article

The immune system likes nanotechnology

Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2014). The immune system likes nanotechnology. Nanomedicine, 9 (17), 2607-2609. doi: 10.2217/nnm.14.199

The immune system likes nanotechnology

2014

Conference Publication

Synthesis of therapeutic vaccine against cervical cancer

Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Liu, Tzu-Yu, Hussein, Waleed M., Jia, Zhongfan, Ziora, Zyta M., McMillan, Nigel A. J., Monteiro, Michael J. and Toth, Istvan (2014). Synthesis of therapeutic vaccine against cervical cancer. 4th Asia-Pacific International Peptide Symposium in conjunction with 50th Japanese Peptide Symposium, Osaka, Japan, 6-8 November 2013. Osaka, Japan: Japanese Peptide Society.

Synthesis of therapeutic vaccine against cervical cancer

2014

Journal Article

Self-assembled peptide-polymer conjugates as vaccines

Liu, Tzu-Yu, Fuaad, Abdullah Al-Hadi Ahmad, Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2014). Self-assembled peptide-polymer conjugates as vaccines. Chimica Oggi - Chemistry Today, 32 (2 (Supplement)), 18-22.

Self-assembled peptide-polymer conjugates as vaccines

2014

Journal Article

Polymer–peptide hybrids as a highly immunogenic single-dose nanovaccine

Ahmad Fuaad, Abdullah A. H., Jia, Zhongfan, Hartas, Jon, Ziora, Zyta M., Lin, I-Chun, Moyle, Peter M., Batzloff, Michael R., Good, Michael F., Monteiro, Michael J., Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2014). Polymer–peptide hybrids as a highly immunogenic single-dose nanovaccine. Nanomedicine, 9 (1), 35-43. doi: 10.2217/NNM.13.7

Polymer–peptide hybrids as a highly immunogenic single-dose nanovaccine

2013

Journal Article

Feherje alapu vedooltasok nanotechnologiaval

Toth, Istvan, Zaman, Mehfuz and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2013). Feherje alapu vedooltasok nanotechnologiaval. Termézet Világa, 144 (11), 504-508.

Feherje alapu vedooltasok nanotechnologiaval

2013

Journal Article

Self-adjuvanting polymer-peptide conjugates as therapeutic vaccine candidates against cervical cancer

Liu, Tzu-Yu, Hussein, Waleed M., Jia, Zhongfan, Ziora, Zyta M., McMillan, Nigel A. J., Monteiro, Michael J., Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2013). Self-adjuvanting polymer-peptide conjugates as therapeutic vaccine candidates against cervical cancer. Biomacromolecules, 14 (8), 2798-2806. doi: 10.1021/bm400626w

Self-adjuvanting polymer-peptide conjugates as therapeutic vaccine candidates against cervical cancer

2013

Journal Article

pH-Triggered peptide self-assembly into fibrils: a potential peptide-based subunit vaccine delivery platform

Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Kowapradit, Jariya, Ziora, Zyta Maria and Toth, Istvan (2013). pH-Triggered peptide self-assembly into fibrils: a potential peptide-based subunit vaccine delivery platform. Biochemical Compounds, 1. doi: 10.7243/2052-9341-1-2

pH-Triggered peptide self-assembly into fibrils: a potential peptide-based subunit vaccine delivery platform

2013

Journal Article

M-protein-derived conformational peptide epitope vaccine candidate against Group A Streptococcus

Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Kamaruzaman, Khairul A., Srinivasan, Saranya, Zaman, Mehfuz, Lin, I-Chun, Batzloff, Michael R., Good, Michael F. and Toth, Istvan (2013). M-protein-derived conformational peptide epitope vaccine candidate against Group A Streptococcus. Current Drug Delivery, 10 (1), 39-45. doi: 10.2174/1567201811310010007

M-protein-derived conformational peptide epitope vaccine candidate against Group A Streptococcus

2013

Journal Article

Liposome-based delivery system for vaccine candidates: constructing an effective formulation (vol 7, pg 1877, 2012)

Giddam, Ashwini Kumar, Zaman, Mehfuz, Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2013). Liposome-based delivery system for vaccine candidates: constructing an effective formulation (vol 7, pg 1877, 2012). Nanomedicine, 8 (2), 312-312. doi: 10.2217/nnm.13.0

Liposome-based delivery system for vaccine candidates: constructing an effective formulation (vol 7, pg 1877, 2012)

2013

Book Chapter

Lipo-peptides/saccharides in peptide vaccine delivery

Skwarczynskim, Mariusz, Zaman, Mehfuz and Toth, Istvan (2013). Lipo-peptides/saccharides in peptide vaccine delivery. Handbook of biologically active peptides. (pp. 571-579) edited by Abba J. Kastin. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Academic Press/Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-385095-9.00078-6

Lipo-peptides/saccharides in peptide vaccine delivery

2013

Journal Article

Microwave-assisted synthesis of difficult sequence-containing peptides using the isopeptide method

Hussein, Waleed M., Liu, Tzu-Yu, Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2013). Microwave-assisted synthesis of difficult sequence-containing peptides using the isopeptide method. Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry, 11 (14), 2370-2376. doi: 10.1039/c3ob00030c

Microwave-assisted synthesis of difficult sequence-containing peptides using the isopeptide method

2013

Journal Article

Peptide conjugation via CuAAC 'click' chemistry

Ahmad Fuaad, Abdullah A. H., Azmi, Fazren, Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2013). Peptide conjugation via CuAAC 'click' chemistry. Molecules, 18 (11), 13148-13174. doi: 10.3390/molecules181113148

Peptide conjugation via CuAAC 'click' chemistry

2012

Journal Article

Liposome-based delivery system for vaccine candidates: constructing an effective formulation

Giddam, Ashwin Kumar, Zaman, Mehfuz, Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2012). Liposome-based delivery system for vaccine candidates: constructing an effective formulation. Nanomedicine, 7 (12), 1877-1893. doi: 10.2217/nnm.12.157

Liposome-based delivery system for vaccine candidates: constructing an effective formulation

2012

Journal Article

Peptide-Based Subunit Vaccine against Hookworm Infection

Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Dougall, Annette M., Khoshnejad, Makan, Chandrudu, Saranya, Pearson, Mark S., Loukas, Alex and Toth, Istvan (2012). Peptide-Based Subunit Vaccine against Hookworm Infection. PLoS One, 7 (10 Article #e46870) e46870, e46870. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0046870

Peptide-Based Subunit Vaccine against Hookworm Infection

2012

Journal Article

Vaccination with lipid core peptides fails to induce epitope-specific T cell responses but confers non-specific protective immunity in a malaria model.

Apte, Simon H., Groves, Penny L., Skwarczynski, Mariusz, Fujita, Yoshio, Chang, Chenghung, Toth, Istvan and Doolan, Denise L. (2012). Vaccination with lipid core peptides fails to induce epitope-specific T cell responses but confers non-specific protective immunity in a malaria model.. PLoS One, 7 (8 Article. No.e40928) e40928, e40928. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0040928

Vaccination with lipid core peptides fails to induce epitope-specific T cell responses but confers non-specific protective immunity in a malaria model.

2012

Journal Article

Advances in peptide-based Human papillomavirus therapeutic vaccines

Liu, Tzu-Yu, Hussein, Waleed M., Toth, Istvan and Skwarczynski, Mariusz (2012). Advances in peptide-based Human papillomavirus therapeutic vaccines. Current Topics in Medicinal Chemistry, 12 (14), 1581-1592. doi: 10.2174/156802612802652402

Advances in peptide-based Human papillomavirus therapeutic vaccines

2012

Journal Article

ChemInform Abstract: Medicinal Chemistry of α-Hydroxy-β-amino Acids

Ziora, Zyta, Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Kiso, Yoshiaki (2012). ChemInform Abstract: Medicinal Chemistry of α-Hydroxy-β-amino Acids. ChemInform, 43 (25), no-no. doi: 10.1002/chin.201225259

ChemInform Abstract: Medicinal Chemistry of α-Hydroxy-β-amino Acids

2012

Journal Article

Lipopeptides for the fragment-based pharmaceutics design

Ziora, Zyta M., Wimmer, Norbert, New, Roger, Skwarczynski, Mariusz and Toth, Istvan (2012). Lipopeptides for the fragment-based pharmaceutics design. International Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2 (01), 75-81. doi: 10.4236/ijoc.2012.21013

Lipopeptides for the fragment-based pharmaceutics design

2012

Conference Publication

Nanoparticles-based peptide subunit vaccines against group A Streptococcus

Skwarczynski, M., Fuaad, A. A. H. A., Zaman, M., Jia, Z., Kowapradit, J., Rustanti, L., Ziora, Z. M., Monteiro, M. L. J., Batzloff, M. R., Goodc, M. F. and Toth, I. (2012). Nanoparticles-based peptide subunit vaccines against group A Streptococcus. 32nd European Peptide Symposium, Athens, Greece, 2-7 September 2012. Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom: John Wiley & Sons. doi: 10.1002/psc.2448

Nanoparticles-based peptide subunit vaccines against group A Streptococcus

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

    Polymers and peptides for vaccine delivery.

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Emeritus Professor Istvan Toth

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Development of silver nanoparticles as novel adjuvants in vaccine

    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

    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

    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

  • 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

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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