"Medicinal or pharmaceutical chemistry is a scientific discipline at the intersection of chemistry and pharmacy involved with designing and developing pharmaceutical drugs."
Pharmaceutical chemistry refers to the study of how drugs are synthesized and formulated, and how their chemical properties affect their behavior in the body.
Introduction to pharmaceutical chemistry: This topic provides an overview of what pharmaceutical chemistry is, its objectives, and its importance in the field of pharmacology. It also discusses the scope of pharmaceutical chemistry and how it relates to other fields.
Drug discovery and development: In this topic, the process of discovering and developing new drugs is discussed. It covers the stages involved in drug discovery and development, including target identification, lead discovery, preclinical testing, clinical trials, and regulatory approval.
Chemical structure and properties of drugs: This topic explains the chemical properties of drugs, such as their molecular structure, solubility, stability, and reactivity. It also discusses how these properties affect the pharmacological activity of the drug.
Drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics: This topic discusses the processes of drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics, including how drugs are absorbed, distributed, metabolized, and excreted by the body. It also covers factors that affect drug metabolism and how drug interactions can impact pharmacokinetics.
Drug receptors and signal transduction: In this topic, the mechanisms of drug-receptor interactions and signal transduction pathways are discussed. It covers how drugs bind to specific receptors and how this binding triggers downstream signaling pathways.
Medicinal chemistry: This topic covers the design, synthesis, and optimization of drug molecules. It includes the principles of drug design and the methods used to optimize pharmacological activity, specificity, and safety.
Drug delivery systems: This topic discusses the various drug delivery systems, including oral, topical, injectable, and inhalation routes. It covers the principles and techniques involved in drug delivery and the factors that affect drug absorption and distribution.
Pharmacogenomics: This topic covers the genetic factors that influence drug response and how this information can be used to develop personalized medicine. It includes the principles of pharmacogenomics and the methods used to identify genetic variants that affect drug metabolism and efficacy.
Toxicology: This topic covers the adverse effects of drugs and other chemicals on living systems. It includes the principles of toxicology and the methods used to evaluate the safety of drugs.
Quality control and regulation: In this topic, the regulatory requirements for drug development, manufacturing, and distribution are discussed. It includes the principles of quality control and the methods used to ensure that drugs meet regulatory standards.
Biochemistry: Deals with the study of chemical processes that occur in living organisms and the application of chemical principles for understanding the molecular basis of drug action.
Medicinal chemistry: The branch that deals with the design, chemical synthesis, and development of drugs, including the study of their structure-activity relationships and pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics.
Analytical Chemistry: Developing methods for quantifying drug compounds and determining their purity, stability, and identity in pharmaceutical formulations.
Pharmacogenomics: Combines the fields of pharmacology and genomics to study how genetic variations influence drug response to allow for personalized medicine.
Toxicology: Investigation of the harmful effects of drugs, chemicals, and substances on living organisms.
Clinical Pharmacology: Focuses on the study of the effects of drugs on humans, including drug interactions and adverse effects.
Molecular pharmacology: Investigating the molecular mechanisms of drug action and the role of receptors, enzymes, and signaling pathways in drug development and use.
Behavioral pharmacology: Examines the effects of drugs on behavior, including addiction, mood disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases.
Environmental pharmacology: Investigates the impact of drugs, pollutants, and other environmental factors on human health and ecosystems.
Neuropharmacology: The branch of pharmacology that studies the effects of drugs on the nervous system and brain function, investigating treatments for various psychiatric disorders.
"Medicinal chemistry involves the identification, synthesis and development of new chemical entities suitable for therapeutic use."
"It also includes the study of existing drugs, their biological properties, and their quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR)."
"Medicinal chemistry is a highly interdisciplinary science combining organic chemistry with biochemistry, computational chemistry, pharmacology, molecular biology, statistics, and physical chemistry."
"Compounds used as medicines are most often organic compounds, which are often divided into the broad classes of small organic molecules and 'biologics'."
"For example, atorvastatin, fluticasone, and clopidogrel are small organic molecules commonly used as medicines."
"Infliximab, erythropoietin, and insulin glargine are examples of biologics, which are most often medicinal preparations of proteins."
"Inorganic and organometallic compounds used in medicine are commonly referred to as metallodrugs."
"For instance, platinum-based agents such as cisplatin, lithium carbonate, and gallium nitrate are examples of metallodrugs."
"The discipline of Medicinal Inorganic Chemistry investigates the role of metals in medicine, specifically associated with inorganic metals in biological systems."
"Yes, there are metallotherapeutics approved for the treatment of cancer, such as agents containing Pt, Ru, Gd, Ti, Ge, V, and Ga."
"Metals such as Ag, Cu, and Ru are used in antimicrobials."
"Metals like V and Cr are used in diabetes treatment."
"Yes, metal-based compounds such as lithium (Li) are used to treat bipolar disorder."
"Other areas of study include metallomics, genomics, proteomics, diagnostic agents, and radiopharmaceuticals."
"Medicinal chemistry, in its most common practice, encompasses synthetic organic chemistry, natural products, computational chemistry, and chemical biology."
"It aims at the discovery and development of new therapeutic agents."
"It includes synthetic and computational aspects of the study of existing drugs and agents in development in relation to their bioactivities (biological activities and properties)."
"Pharmaceutical chemistry is focused on quality aspects of medicines and aims to assure fitness for the purpose of medicinal products."
"The biological interface of medicinal chemistry combines organic, physical, and computational sciences alongside areas such as biochemistry, molecular biology, pharmacognosy, pharmacology, toxicology, and veterinary and human medicine."