PC2002 - Molecular Basis of Therapeutics 3

Credit points:	03
Year:	2019
Student Contribution Band:	Band 2
Administered by:

Available to students enrolled in the Bachelor of Pharmacy.

This subject builds upon the fundamental concepts of chemistry introduced in the first year of the Pharmacy program. It deals with the key chemical concepts of medicinal/pharmaceutical chemistry and pharmacology, including the mechanisms of drug action and metabolism. The subject also introduces the principles of drug stability and basic mechanism of drug degradations. The importance of chemical analysis in relation to drug development, drug testing and quality control is examined. Specific topics to be covered include instrumental methods of analysis and structure determination of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API's, in particular NMR, chromatographic separation techniques (HPLC and GC), thermal analysis methods (DSC and TGA) and Vibrational Spectroscopic techniques (FTIR and Raman spectroscopy). Approaches to the development of new pharmaceutical agents, including pharmacognosy, rational drug design and high-throughput screening are also introduced.

Learning Outcomes

• describe and apply spectroscopic techniques used in the quality control of pharmaceuticals, in drug testing & development;
• explain polymorphism and the analytical techniques used to differentiate them;
• describe modern purification techniques in pharmaceutical chemistry;
• explain the principles of medicinal chemistry and pharmacology for pharmaceutical agents, including mechanisms of drug metabolism and drug stability;
• understand and solve pharmaceutical application case studies;
• employ basic synthetic techniques to synthesise model pharmaceutical and undertake its analysis in a practical setting.

Prerequisites:	CH1001 AND PC1005
Inadmissible Subject Combinations:	PP3150, CH2043, CH3403

Availabilities
Townsville, , Study Period 1
Census Date 28-Mar-2019
Contact hours:	39 hours 12 hours
Assessment:	end of semester exam (60%); quizzes or tests (10%); practicals (30%).
Special Assessment Requirements:	To pass this subject you must: get an overall score of 50% or greater; score at least 50% in both the individual components (exam and practicals); complete mandatory induction and practical sessions.

Note: Minor variations might occur due to the continuous Subject quality improvement process, and in case of minor variation(s) in assessment details, the Subject Outline represents the latest official information.