SCHOOL OF PHARMACY
MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY

Detailed course offerings (Time Schedule) are available for

To see the detailed Instructor Class Description, click on the underlined instructor name following the course description.

MEDCH 400 Fundamental Concepts in Medicinal Chemistry (3) W. Nelson
Principles of physical organic chemistry; chemical bonding, stereochemistry, acids/bases, and reaction mechanisms relevant to processes such as drug distribution, specificity, and metabolism. Prerequisite: either CHEM 239 or CHEM 337. Offered: A.

MEDCH 495 Special Studies in Medicinal Chemistry (*, max. 6)
Opportunity to expand the breadth and depth of understanding in specific areas. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 499 Independent Study/Research (*, max. 24)
Research problems in medicinal chemistry. Prerequisite: cumulative GPA of 2.50 and permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 501 Advanced Medicinal Chemistry (4) S. Nelson
Advanced study of the various classes of medicinal compounds, with particular emphasis on biological activity, mechanism of action, biotransformation, and the structural and physical properties governing absorption, distribution, and excretion. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSp.

MEDCH 502 Advanced Medicinal Chemistry (4) W. Nelson, Rettie
Advanced study of the various classes of medicinal compounds, with particular emphasis on biological activity, mechanism of action, biotransformation, and the structural and physical properties governing absorption, distribution, and excretion. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSp.

MEDCH 503 Advanced Medicinal Chemistry (4) Atkins, W. Nelson
Advanced study of the various classes of medicinal compounds, with particular emphasis on biological activity, mechanism of action, biotransformation, and the structural and physical properties governing absorption, distribution, and excretion. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSp.

MEDCH 520 Seminar (1, max. 30)
Graduate students attend seminars and make one formal presentation per year while in residence; maximum of three presentations. Credit/no credit only. Offered: jointly with PCEUT 520; AWSpS.

MEDCH 521 Advanced Medicinal Chemistry (3) Atkins, W. Nelson
Application of integrated data from the physical and biological sciences to problems of chemotherapy, including transport of drugs to site of action, biotransformation of drugs, interaction of drugs with enzyme systems, and recent advances in drug design. Prerequisite: CHEM 457, CHEM 531, and BIOC 442, or permission of instructor. Offered: Sp.

MEDCH 525 Alternative and Complementary Medicines (2) Elmer
Study of popular alternative and complementary medicines used in the United States. Focus on herbal products with some coverage of homeopathic and other non-nutritional dietary supplements. Demonstration of resources for current objective information on these controversial medicines. Credit/no credit only. Offered: A.

MEDCH 527 Drug Metabolism (4) Rettie, Thummel
Considerations of the biochemical mechanisms for the biotransformation of drugs and foreign compounds. Includes reaction mechanisms, ultrastructural considerations, induction mechanisms, methodology, kinetics of inhibition and activation, steroid and amine metabolism. Offered: jointly with PHCOL 527; odd years; W.

MEDCH 528 Biophysical Enzymology and Biopharmaceuticals (3)
Covers in-depth treatment of chemical catalysis and transition state theory as related to enzyme mechanisms; thermodynamics and kinetics of protein-ligand interactions, protein-protein-interactions and protein-lipid interactions, and methods for their study. Discusses therapeutically relevant examples, including viruses, therapeutic antibodies, and drug targets. Offered: W; even years.

MEDCH 530 Mass Spectrometry of Drugs, Toxicants, and Metabolites (3) Howald
Current approaches to the combination of liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry for small molecules. Mass spectrometry of drugs, toxicants, metabolites. Emphasis on interpretation skills, with problem sets each week. Introduction to LC/MS instrumentation. Ionization methods appropriate for small molecules. Capillary LC/MS and capillary electrophoresis. Offered: even years; Sp.
Instructor Course Description: William N Howald

MEDCH 535 P-Diagnostic Medicinal Chemistry (3) S. Nelson
Examination of clinical diagnostic tests with regard to the chemical or biochemical rationale of the testing method, interpretation of test results, and major factors influencing test values with special emphasis on the effects of medications. Clinical laboratory data from patients considered in light of these factors. Prerequisite: MEDCH 571, BIOC 406, or equivalent, or permission of instructor. Offered: W.

MEDCH 541 Mass Spectrometry Based Proteomics (3) Goodlett
Covers basics of sample preparation, data generation, instrumentation, ionization, and data interpretation of peptide tandem mass spectra manually. Uses database search engines and bioinformatics in systems biology related proteomics. Prerequisite: MEDCH 530 or permission of instructor. Offered: odd years; Sp.
Instructor Course Description: David R. Goodlett

MEDCH 550 Mechanistic Studies in Medicinal Chemistry (1) S. Nelson
Discussion of research strategies and methods used to carry out studies of mechanisms of drug action, metabolism, and toxicities. Emphasis is on problem solving through theoretical and experimental approaches and on data analysis and interpretation. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 551 Flavin and Heme-Containing Monooxygenases (1) Rettie
Discussion of research strategies and methodologies concerning the structure, function, and polymorphic expression of human monooxygenases, especially the cytochrome P450s and flavin-containing monooxygenases. Emphasis placed on experimental problem solving, data analysis, and presentation. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 552 Medicinal Chemistry Aspects of Drug Action and Drug Metabolism (1) W. Nelson
Discussion of research strategies, methodologies, and literature concerning the mechanisms of drug action and drug metabolism, particularly as these apply to opiate drugs and beta blockers. Emphases placed on problem solving, data analysis, and presentation. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 553 Structure and Function of Macromolecuar Protein Assemblies (1) Atkins
Discussion of research strategies, methods, and current literature concerning macromolecular self-assembly processes and protein-protein interactions as they relate to biological specificity. Emphasis on experimental approaches used in current literature. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 554 The Mechanism of Action and Pharmacokinetics of Biotherapeutic Agents and Other Natural Products (1) Elmer
Discussion of the literature, research possibilities, and questions that need to be addressed in the area of the application of microorganisms and other natural products for therapeutic purposes. Emphases on problem solving, research strategies, literature evaluation, and data analysis. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 555 Current Topics in Biological Mass Spectrometry (1) Goodlett
Emphasis on applications in the area of protein toxins, bioactive peptides, and microbial diseases and on current developments in the use of small scale separations with mass spectrometry. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 556 Clinical and Mechanistic Aspects of Drug Metabolism (1) Totah
Discussion of research methodologies and new approaches to elucidatate chemical mechanisms and enzymology of reactions catalyzed by cytochrome P-450. Emphasis on clinical applications and predicting in vivo drug behavior and toxicity. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 558 Human Cytochrome P-450 Biochemistry (1) Kunze
Presentation and discussion of research strategies and methodologies related to current problems in human drug metabolism by cytochrome P-450 enzymes. Emphasis on hypothesis testing and experimental problem solving in the areas of enzyme kinetics and mechanism. Credit/no credit only. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Offered: even years; AWSpS.

MEDCH 559 Molecular Motors (1) Catalano
Discussion of molecular motors, particularly those associated with virus assembly pathways. Emphasizes kinetic, biochemical, and biophysical approaches to dissect the molecular mechanisms of motor function. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 561 P-Immunizing and Antimicrobial Agents (4) Elmer, Totah
Chemical and biologic properties of agents used to prevent or treat infectious diseases, including diagnostic, prophylactic, and therapeutic uses of immunizing biologicals and spectrum, action mechanisms, resistance patterns, toxicity, and therapeutic applications of antibiotics, antifungals, and antivirals. Prerequisite: MICROM 301, MICROM 302, MEDCH 570, or equivalent, PharmD major, or permission of instructor. Offered: Sp.

MEDCH 562 P-Medicinal Chemistry (3) S. Nelson
Study of the various classes of medicinal compounds with particular emphasis on biological activity, mechanism of action, biotransformation, and the structural and physical properties governing absorption, distribution, and excretion. Prerequisite: MEDCH 400 or satisfactory completion of qualifying exam. Offered: A.

MEDCH 563 P-Medicinal Chemistry (3) W. Nelson, Rettie
Study of the various classes of medicinal compounds with particular emphasis on biological activity, mechanism of action, biotransformation, and the structural and physical properties governing absorption, distribution, and excretion. Prerequisite: MEDCH 400 or satisfactory completion of qualifying exam. Offered: W.

MEDCH 564 P-Medicinal Chemistry (3) Atkins, W. Nelson
Study of the various classes of medicinal compounds with particular emphasis on biological activity, mechanism of action, biotransformation, and the structural and physical properties governing absorption, distribution, and excretion. Prerequisite: MEDCH 400 or satisfactory completion of qualifying exam. Offered: Sp.

MEDCH 570 P-Medicinal Biochemistry I (3) Catalano
Introduction to biochemistry for Pharm.D. students with an emphasis on those aspects of biochemistry which are particularly relevant to understanding human disease and therapeutic intervention strategies. Offered: W.

MEDCH 571 P-Medicinal Biochemistry II (3) Kunze
Continuation of discussions of those aspects of biochemistry which are particularly relevant to understanding human disease and therapeutic intervention strategies. Offered: Sp.

MEDCH 582 Topics in Medicinal Chemistry (1, max. 30)
Discussion of pertinent articles from current literature. Credit/no credit only. Offered: AWSp.

MEDCH 599 Cumulative Exams for Medicinal Chemistry (1)
Quarterly cumulative examinations for graduate students. Credit/no credit only. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 600 Independent Study or Research (*)
Credit/no credit only. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 700 Master's Thesis (*)
Credit/no credit only. Offered: AWSpS.

MEDCH 800 Doctoral Dissertation (*)
Credit/no credit only. Offered: AWSpS.

SCHOOL OF PHARMACY MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY

SCHOOL OF PHARMACY
MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY