This course is about the structural designs of drugs and how their structure relates to pharmaceutical activity. This course covers the chemical aspects of drugs; their synthesis and/or isolation, modifications for increasing efficacy, potency, duration of action, half-life, lipid solubility, effects of structures on the chances of drugs crossing blood brain barrier and metabolism. Drugs covered are from analgesics, NSAIDS, anti-infectives, adrenergic, cardiac glycosides, anti-anginals, anti-arrhythmic, anti-ulcer, steroids, anticancer, endorcine and CNS drugs. This course runs side by side with pharmacology in addressing the chemistry of drugs. The importance of this course is directly related to the knowledge of a pharmacist on the chemical aspects of drugs and to be knowledgeable as to why drug interactions can happen, why not to take drugs before food or with alcohol and basically be knowledgeable on drugs behaviour due to its chemical nature. This course also instils knowledge which could be of great importance for a pharmacist to pursue research in the areas of drug design and modification.
- Teacher: Pritika Mala