“Hesham has made significant contributions to the field by introducing more effective procedures for characterization and development of monoclonal antibody biosimilars and improving the assessments of biosimilarity, among other things.” – Reza Nejadnik

Hometown: Minya, Egypt

Faculty mentor/advisor: Reza Nejadnik, PhD, associate professor of pharmaceutical sciences and experimental therapeutics, College of Pharmacy

Degree program and anticipated graduation date: PhD in pharmaceutics, Spring 2027

Hesham Refaat is working to make life-saving biologic medicines more affordable and easier to access. Unlike traditional drugs made from chemicals, biologics are protein-based and produced in living cells, which makes them complex and difficult to replicate. Refaat’s research is creating a framework for developing safe and effective biosimilars—lower-cost versions of biologic drugs—by studying how to match them closely to the original medicines and how different stabilizers affect their quality.

“Being part of this project has been a transformative experience for my academic and professional growth,” says Refaat. “The hands-on training I have received in Dr. Reza Nejadnik’s lab has been exceptional and highly relevant to industry practices.”

His work, funded by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has earned multiple honors, including the prestigious Ronald T. and Pamela K. Borchardt GPEN Fellowship and an internship with AbbVie’s Biologics Drug Product Development team. After graduation, Refaat plans to join the pharmaceutical industry as a formulation scientist, advancing the development of stable, high-quality therapeutic proteins.