BPS2022 · Drug discovery and design

Overview

This unit will educate you on different approaches in drug discovery and design, using the typical pipeline of drug discovery and development as a foundation for your understanding. You will begin by examining how drug discovery and development has changed over the last 100 years, then move how to drug targets can be identified and validated. You will then look at how bioactive molecules can be discovered and how they can be further modified structurally to improve their performance as safe and effective therapeutics: The unit will guide you through various methods of discovery and development (including compound libraries, screening approaches, molecular modelling and structure-based drug design) both for small molecules and biologics. Lab classes will concentrate on developing a range of basic skills relevant to contemporary drug discovery. You will be able to test your newly-developed knowledge in a team environment by reporting on the discovery and development of a drug recently approved for human clinical use.

Offerings

Assessment

The Handbook lists an examination for this unit.

Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.

Requisites

The Handbook lists no prerequisite, corequisite or prohibition for this unit.

Learning outcomes

1. Compare historical and contemporary approaches to drug discovery in the context of the drug discovery and development pipeline
2. Describe the principles and methods of target identification and validation, assessing their importance in drug discovery
3. Differentiate between target-based and phenotypic approaches to small-molecule discovery, including the libraries and screening assays that might be suitable for each approach
4. Calculate and interpret a range of drug-likeness parameters and assess their relevance in early-stage drug development
5. Describe and use basic computational molecular modelling approaches used in structure-based drug design
6. Describe the structures, approaches to the discovery, and applications of biologics, comparing them to those of typical small molecule drugs
7. Demonstrate fundamental chemical laboratory skills relevant to drug discovery, including compound synthesis, purification, and characterization
8. Investigate and critically analyze the discovery and development of a contemporary drug in a team setting

Workload

• 36 hours of online preparation modules (Discovery) • Six 2-hour applied sessions (Q&A) • Four 4-hour laboratories • Six 2-hour workshops • 8 hours of group/team work • 60 hours of independent study

Student experience, not official rules. Nothing here changes what the Handbook says.