About Us

Jenarron Therapeutics Ltd. is an Advanced Wound Care company and was founded in 2012 by Prof Paul A. McCarron and Dr Mark Jenkins. The company focuses its activities on an innovative, wound putty technology platform that can be used to deliver a wide range of drug substances to open wounds.

The Jenarron technology is a novel, hydrogel-based putty that can be loaded with one or more approved pharmaceutical agents. This wound putty possesses two unique features. It will flow like a viscous liquid into wounds of all types, such as deep cuts and pressure sores. At the same time, it will behave like a solid when stressed and can be removed easily in one piece, without any danger of leaving remnants or small pieces behind. Very few hydrogel materials possess this property. It is this combination of properties that make the putty ideally suited for drug administration to wounds.

The mainstay of the invention is the effective administration of a wide range of drugs to wound sites – such as local anaesthetics, antibiotics and agents that will assist wound repair. Patients who have a deep cut will normally require suturing in an A&E Department. The most painful part of the procedure is having the wound frozen using an injection of local anaesthetic. For young children and those with a needle phobia, this will be a terrifying process. Jenarron has produced a novel solution that overcomes this problem by using its wound putty to administer the local anaesthetic instead.

Jenarron Therapeutics intends to incorporate a number of drug substances into the putty, such as antibiotics, antimicrobials and drugs that help in the wound healing process. Jenarron also believes the putty can be adapted to treat a wide range of medical conditions and intends to widen the product portfolio to include the treatment of chronic wounds, such as leg ulcers, diabetic foot and pressure sores. This will enable the company to specialise in Advanced Wound Care and allow it to access the vast global wound-care arena, the value of which was estimated at $12 billion in 2010. The worldwide market value for advanced wound care products is expected to reach $19.7 billion in 2016. Growth in the wound care management market is expected to be driven by the increasing prevalence of pressure ulcers, diabetic ulcers and venous ulcers aligned with increasing patient awareness. Preventing infections before they develop improves patient outcomes, minimises cost and risk, and saves lives.

Jenarron Therapeutics-

“Innovative wound management - from playground to battlefield”

Jenarron Therapeutics’ mission is to develop, manufacture and market a portfolio of products based on a novel wound putty, which can be adapted to treat a wide range of injuries. These injuries will range from the very minor (the playground scuffed knee) to the critical injury (loss of limb in the battle arena), by administering a choice of therapeutic drug substances.

Jenarron Therapeutics is a Northern Ireland-based company specialising in Advanced Wound Care utilising novel drug delivery as the core method in the treatment strategies. It intends to exploit the local pharmaceutical expertise found in the graduate population and to create employment for those graduates with the skills to develop and characterise novel putty materials.

The Management Team

Jenarron has been extremely fortunate in attracting a number of key individuals to the senior management team. The clinical and technical skills of the three Founders- Dr Mark Jenkins, Prof Paul McCarron and Dr Ryan Loughlin are complemented by the commercial, regulatory and strategic skills of Dr Roger Cox and Dr Norry McBride.

Mark Jenkins MbChB FRCS, FCEM

Mark is employed as an Emergency Medicine consultant in Antrim Area Hospital, and has worked in emergency medicine for over 20 years. For the past 8 years, Mark has acted as Head of School of Emergency Medicine in Northern Ireland. In addition, Mark spent time in Canada where he trained in paediatric emergency medicine. Mark has worked as a founder on the hydrogel formulation for over 10 years.

Professor Paul A. McCarron BSc, PhD, MPSNI

Paul is the Head of School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Ulster University and has extensive experience in the design and evaluation of novel drug delivery systems for administration of drug substances, such as photosensitisers, local anaesthetics and cytotoxic agents, to challenging sites. Deliverables have included the development and evaluation of innovative topical patch-type systems for photodynamic therapy of intraepithelial neoplasias and development of nanoparticulate systems for the controlled and site-specific release of potent drug substances, such as topoisomerase inhibitors. He has published over 150 papers/articles in the pharmaceutical sciences and received grant funding from organisations, such as the Royal Society and the Research and Development Office (Northern Ireland). He has secured external funding to investigate innovative hydrogel-based drug delivery methods within Accident and Emergency medicine, aimed primarily at the paediatric population.

Dr Ryan Loughlin, MPharm, PhD, MPSI

(Pharmaceutical Advisor)

Ryan is currently employed as a senior scientist with a top 20 pharmaceutical company. He has over nine years’ experience in the development of novel formulations, taking these products from early stage development through to commercial manufacture. He has worked on a wide range of dosage forms, including tablets, creams, gels and medical inserts. In addition, Ryan has a proven track record in gaining FDA approval for medicinal products. During his career he has filed multiple patent applications with both the US & European Patent office.