Catalogo dei Corsi di studio

General expected learning outcomes
This course leads students towards a rational learning of Drug Design, giving them, after some general notes, a proper preparation about: a) targets, molecular interaction drug-target, consequences of these interactions basics of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic; b) basics and strategies of drug design. Particular remarks will be on invention, discovery, design, identificatio, preparation of drugs, metabolism, molecular mechanism of action and structure-activity relationships.

Specific expected learning outcomes
1. Knowledge and understanding
The students will know and will be able to understand all aspects about pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic, drug targets, drug-target interactions, the consequences of these interactionsgeneral principles and strategies of drug discovery and design, the invention, discovery design identification of some specific drugs presented like case-studies, their metabolism, mechanism of action, and structure-activity relationships.

2. Applying knowledge and understanding
At the end of the course the student, applying the aquired knowledge, will be able to plan the design of a drug, starting form the decision about the therapeutic area, fenotypic approach, target based approach, study of drug-target interactions, hit to lead and lead to candidate development, going ahead to the application of synthetic strategies and technologies, including CADD, up to the right comprehension of the relevance of ADMA-Tox properties for strong candidate to the clinical development.

3. Making judgements
At the end of the course the student will be able to eavluate the appropriate approach to the design of a specific drug. This critical and judgement ability, will be obtained thanks to continuous interactivity hold during the course. In fact the teacher will ask questions very frequently to stimulate students to link the actual topics to all the topics studied up to that time, so that the study will not be isolated, but integrated matter with the aquired knowledge. At the end of the course the stundent will hold a presentation about an innovative recent drug.

4. Communication skills
The student will be able to communicate the knowledge comprehended by the course and will apply during the oral exam that will focus on the topics of the syllabus. The student is stimulated to communicate in an inteactive way during the classroom and, at the end of the course and after the exam, will be able to communicate effectively his/her knowledge in the drug design field to specialists and non-specialists, in a more technical and detailed, and in an educational way, respectively.

5. Learning skills
The student will find details of lessons on the suggested textbooks and in the scientific literature and will have ability to use them to pursue an indipendent preparation. This will be useful to teh studento to find again topics of the matte raso in future time when the memory of the concepts described in the lesson room will be softer. The textbooks will remain the benchmark for student that will be able to find again details of forgotten notions.

Programme

Drug discovery in the past. (0,5 CFU)
Modern process of drug discovery. (0,5 CFU)
Enzyme as drug target. (0,5 CFU)
Receptor as drug target. (0,5 CFU)
Acid nucleic as drug target. (0,5 CFU)
Metabolism. (0,5 CFU)
Absorption distribution excretion (0,5 CFU)
Pharmacokinetics. (0,5 CFU)
Molecular Structure e chemical diversity. (0,5 CFU)
Hit discovery. (1 CFU)
Lead compound (Hit to lead process). (1 CFU)
Lead optimization (Lead to drug candidate). (1 CFU)
Case studies: seminars presented by drug inventors (0,5 CFU)

Adopted texts

Erland Stevens, Chimica Farmaceutica – I processi di scoperta dei farmaci. 2015 Ed. Piccin.

Prerequisites

Essential: for the right comprehension of the lessons of Drug Design, basics of Organic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Human Anatomy are necessary. Relevant: basics of Pathology, Pharmacology, Pharmacognosy, Toxicology. Useful: basics of Medicinal Chemistry general concepts, Drugs analysis are useful.

Frequency modes

Attendance of the course is not mandatory but strongly suggested

Exam modes

Monthly exame will be fixed (may and august excluded) in wich oral evaluation will be performed.
The oral exame takes half an hour for each student. The student will show a power point presentation discussing the discovery of an innovative drug found in scientific literature, previously selected in cooperation with teacher. At the end of presentation the the teacher will ask critical questions and expand discussion on general priciples of drug discovery and the remaining program. Th objective is to attest the student knowledge about the drug discovery. The matter should be presented with speech suitable to a drug professionist.
At the end ot the exame the teacher will ecvaluate: the knowledge of the matter, allover the program, the proper speech, the participation throughout the course, the thinking ability, the indipendency of the student to study on the textbook.
To gain the minimum (18) the student is required to sufficently show the discovery of an innovative drug, to have a sufficient knowledge of the principle applaied to the drug discovery, a basic knowledge of drug discovery process, and to be able to describe the main steps at least of a case study.
To gain maximum (30/30 and laude) the student should prove to have aquired an excellent knowledge of all matter of the course, also being able to link all the matter in a logical and coherent way. The student must demonstrate also to take the matter properly and smothly moving in a drug discovery process. In summary, she/he must prove 100% to go further the knowledge of the basic concept showing an excellent profile.