MS In Pharmaceutical Sciences

Advanced Pharmaceutical Analysis is a two-credit course offered in the first semester of the first year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course aims to illustrate the theory and practice of quantitative analysis at the advanced level. This course covers the essentials of instrumental methods of analysis, emphasizing spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques. This course provides information about the different instrumental techniques employed in the qualitative and quantitative determination of drug substances with special reference to quality control and quality assurance. The course also emphasizes the theory and methods of analytical design by quality for different spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques. Learning is facilitated through interactive discussions/lecture sessions, case-based learning, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based learning/ team-based learning, quiz, seminars, and course examinations.

Advanced Pharmaceutical and Molecular Biotechnology is a three-credit course offered in the first semester of the first year of the MS Pharmaceutical Science curriculum. The objective of this course is to educate students on the practical application of pharmaceutical and molecular biotechnology within the biomedical field. The curriculum emphasizes advanced fermentation technology, enzyme biotechnology, and innovative vaccine production. Additionally, the course delves into the study of fundamental molecular processes within cells, including DNA replication and translation. Students will gain insights into the latest advancements in Proteomics and protein engineering, exploring their developments and applications. The curriculum also familiarizes students with biotechnology-driven approaches to drug discovery, focusing on protein therapeutic compounds, monoclonal antibodies, vaccines, and other immunological products. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based learning/team-based learning, seminars and course examinations.

Advanced Biostatistics and Research Methodology is a two-credit course offered in the first semester of the first year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course aims to equip students with a comprehensive grasp of research methodology principles. Its primary goal is to empower students to identify and address problems within a structured framework. Through this course, students will acquire the skills to conduct research systematically, ensuring a methodical approach to obtaining results. Moreover, the course emphasizes the critical analysis of research findings, enabling students to draw meaningful conclusions. The ultimate aim is to harness these insights to enhance quality services in health science practice. By instilling a deep understanding of research processes and encouraging thoughtful application, the course prepares students to contribute effectively to improving healthcare services. Learning is facilitated through interactive discussions/lecture sessions, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based learning/ team-based learning, quizzes, seminars, and course examinations.

Advanced Pharmacology and Toxicology is a two-credit course offered in the first semester of the first year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course aims to enrich students’ knowledge regarding the fundamentals of pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and neurotransmission. The students will apply this knowledge to understand the molecular mechanisms of action of drugs & toxins and the general principles underlying the interaction of drugs & toxins with living systems. The focus of the course will be on comprehending the effect of drugs on central nervous system & autonomic nervous systems, the cardiovascular and renal systems, respiratory, endocrine and gastrointestinal systems, neoplastic diseases, infections and inflammation disorders, in addition to toxins-induced organ toxicity. This will help the students to develop the necessary professional skills for the drug development in the industry and the management of diseases related to different systems in hospitals and community. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions and discussions, self-directed learning, case-based learning, assignments, seminars, problem-based learning/ team-based learning, quizzes and course examinations.

Advanced Laboratory Safety & Hazardous Waste Disposal is a one-credit course offered in the first semester of the first year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course aims to equip the students with a comprehensive understanding of basic laboratory safety principles and practices. The course enables the students to perform in vitro and in vivo research experiments in a safe manner. The students will be able to identify laboratory hazards and implement necessary effective control measures The students will also be able to use various laboratory safety equipment and personal protection tools to ensure the highest possible level of security for personnel as well as for the environment. The course also focuses on the proper method of storage and disposal of various hazardous chemicals in the laboratory.

Pharmaceutical Bioinformatics is a two-credit course offered in the first semester of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. The course aims to provide basic knowledge of how bioinformatics tools can solve problems within different areas of pharmaceutical sciences. Pharmaceutical Bioinformatics course focuses on imparting skills required for searching biological databases, comparing sequences, looking at protein and DNA characteristics as well as the processing of data from biomedical research. Students are taught about molecular modeling and docking techniques to design new compounds employing various visualization tools. The course teaches the principles of chemoinformatics and tools for drug discovery. The students are also exposed to immunobioinformatic techniques for developing personalized cancer immunotherapies. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based learning/team- based learning , seminars and course examinations.

Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology course is a two-credit course offered in the second semester of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. The main aim of the course is to teach students about the various professional manufacturing responsibilities in the pharmaceutical industry. The course comprises the design of pharmaceutical plants and the operation of clean rooms with special emphasis on the concepts of quality assurance and quality management systems. The course also discusses different manufacturing unit processes like mechanisms of mixing, powder flow, granulation and tableting. In addition, the course includes packaging materials used in pharmacy. The students are trained to develop the necessary professional skills for carrying out various unit operations and processes involved in the manufacture of dosage forms. This helps students manage various production processes in pharmaceutical product manufacturing. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based learning/team-based learning, seminars and course examinations.

Advanced Biopharmaceutics & Pharmacokinetics is a three-credit course offered in the second semester of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course aims to equip students with advanced knowledge and comprehension of the principles governing biopharmaceutics and pharmacokinetics, applicable to both drug product development and effective drug therapy. The primary objective is to enable students to grasp the concepts and mechanisms of dissolution tests and the in vitro-in vivo correlation of dosage forms in bioavailability and bioequivalence studies. Emphasis will be placed on understanding the pharmacokinetics of drug disposition under various models, including one, two, multiple, and non-linear pharmacokinetic models for different routes of administration. The course will empower students to comprehend the kinetics of biopharmaceutical formulation and its practical applications. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions and self-directed learning (small group sessions, case-based learning, assignments, problem-based learning, seminars, and course examinations).

The Physical Pharmaceutics & Product Formulation course is a three-credit course offered in the first semester of the first year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences curriculum. The course aims to equip students with a comprehensive understanding of physicochemical concepts crucial for designing effective dosage forms. It covers the entire process of transforming a new chemical entity into a pharmaceutical product, suitable for safe and effective use by patients. Key topics include solubility and distribution concepts, particle science and technology, surface phenomena, chemical integrity, and stability prediction. Students will gain insights into the developmental stages a drug molecule undergoes in formulating a product. Upon completion, students will be proficient in correlating excipients with diverse formulations and understanding their potential interactions with the drug. The course also enables students to apply this knowledge to address challenges encountered in formulating various pharmaceutical dosage forms. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions, self-directed learning (small group sessions), assignments, problem-based / team-based learning, seminars, workshops and course examinations.

Novel Drug Delivery Systems is a two-credit course offered in the second semester of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course comprises the latest advances in drug delivery and targeting systems. The overall emphasis of these delivery systems is to reduce dose frequency, prolong efficacy, increase safety, have better patient compliance and have better drug targeting. The course will help the student understand the concepts required to design and prepare different rate-controlled drug delivery systems using liposomes, nanoparticles, transdermal systems, and polymer drug delivery systems. The course will highlight the role of different polymers that will deliver drugs employing dissolution, osmotic, or diffusion-controlled release mechanisms. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based / team-based learning, seminars, and course examinations.

Pharmaceutical Quality Assurances and Validation is a two-credit course offered in the second semester of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course deals with quality assurance in pharmaceutical manufacturing, whereby quality attributes are built into the drug products before they enter the market. The course covers the aspects of quality auditing, official inspection, procedures and documentation, and quality assurance management, from raw material to production. In addition, the course covers the validation of pharmaceutical processes and aseptic processing during manufacturing and the principles of Quality by Design. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based/team-based learning, seminars, and course examinations.

Advanced Medicinal Chemistry is a three-credit course offered in the second semester of the first year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course aims to integrate the understanding of drug targets, molecular mechanisms of drug action, structure-activity relationships, organic synthesis, and recent developments. This course will explore some important topics in medicinal chemistry research. For example, medicinal chemistry of infectious therapeutics and cancer therapeutics. Medicinal chemistry of cardiovascular, CNS and inflammatory diseases. The course integrates information from the drug targets, the molecular mechanism of drugs, structure-activity relationships, organic synthesis and recent developments. This course will help students to apply medicinal chemistry knowledge in drug discovery and analyzing therapeutic outcomes. Learning is facilitated through interactive discussions/lecture sessions, case-based learning, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based learning/team-based learning, quizzes, seminars, and course examinations.

Drug design and development is a two-credit course offered in the second semester of the first year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. The main goal of the course is to advance the knowledge and understanding of the process of drug design and development from the earliest stage of drug target validation to the last stage of regulatory approval of a new drug and post-marketing surveillance. This is achieved through critical exploration of various stages of the drug design and development process, such as lead generation techniques, drug design strategies for optimizing target interactions, and drug access to the target using analog and structure-based drug design approaches. In addition, the students will have an overview of the regulatory framework and different regulatory requirements for drug approvals, the pre-clinical and clinical evaluation of the safety and efficacy of drugs. An outline of the use of computational methods in drug design is also covered in the course. The course will help the students acquire the soft skills and critical thinking necessary for a career in academia or the pharmaceutical industry. It will help them to conduct a research project independently. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions and discussions, self-directed learning, hands-on training on molecular modeling and computer-based drug design, assignments, seminars, problem-based learning/ team-based learning, quizzes and course examinations.

Advanced Heterocyclic Chemistry course is a three-credit course offered in the second semester of the first year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course is mainly aimed at providing students with knowledge of the development of heterocycle cores for dual or multitargeting molecules. The course focuses on the development of compounds such as benzimidazole, acridine, flavones, thiazolidinedione and oxazoline etc and their significance in multi-disease targeting. The course provides a thorough overview of heterocycles as input in multicomponent reactions (MCRs) and recent advances in the field of multicomponent reactions chemistry and progress in the synthesis and functionalization of heterocycles. Learning is facilitated through interactive discussions/lecture sessions, case-based learning, self-directed learning, small group sessions, assignments, problem-based learning/ team-based learning, quizzes, seminars, and course examinations.

Applied Analytical and Medicinal Chemistry is a two-credit course offered in the second semester of the first-year of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. The main goal of the course is to provide fundamental knowledge and skills of techniques and methodologies used in drug synthesis, analysis and molecular modelling. This course will introduce and enforce some important laboratory methods in Instrumental Analysis and medicinal chemistry in addition to basic in silico techniques employed in drug development. The course will help students to learn and apply the laboratory techniques in conducting research in the field of pharmaceutical sciences. Learning is facilitated through laboratory practical experiments, discussions, laboratory session assessment and course examinations.

Pharmaceutical Quality Assurances and Validation is a two-credit course offered in the second semester of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. This course deals with quality assurance in pharmaceutical manufacturing whereby quality attributes are built into the drug products before they enter the market. The course covers the aspects of quality auditing, official inspection, procedures and documentation, quality assurance management, from raw material to production. In addition, the course covers the validation of pharmaceutical processes and aseptic processing during manufacturing and the principles of Quality by Design. Learning is facilitated through interactive lecture sessions, self-directed learning small group sessions, assignments, problem-based/team-based learning, seminars and course examinations.

The research thesis is a six-credit course offered in the 3rd semester of the Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. It aims to train MS students in research methods and techniques under the guidance of a recognized faculty supervisor. Students will be trained in the literature review, design of research study, data collection, critical analysis, comparison of results, drawing conclusions, and making recommendations. The students are required to take up a research project of their choice in pharmaceutics, pharmaceutical technology or medicinal chemistry. Students will have to present the results of each stage of their work to the supervisor and the other students in the program. In addition, the students must prepare and submit a written thesis on the research topic according to the recommended guidelines. After submitting the thesis, the students must undergo a viva-voce examination to defend it.