Ateneo - UPO

The course provides the students with the main information about ADME and pharmacodynamics of dermatological drugs. Case studies on dermatological drugs are presented from a pharmacological point of view.

Goodman & Gilman's pharmacological basis of therapeutic

The course aims at providing students with adequate theoretical and practical information for dermatological general pharmacology. 1. At the end of the course the student will know and understand the basic concepts of pharmacology, in particular the route followed by the drug in the organism, from its administration to its excretion and how it interacts with its molecular target, focusing mainly on oral and topical administration. 2. The student will apply the acquired knowledge in understanding the mechanism of action and of the metabolic fate, together with toxicological aspects. 3. The student will acquire the ability to analyze texts and papers in the pharmacology literature. 4. The student will learn to communicate about her/his understanding, to describe, even in an original way, a topic described during lessons, to adequately answer to questions, critiques and suggestions. She/He will also learn how to present a drug to the public using the information searched in the scientific literature and in databases. 5. The student will have the learning skills to handle in a dynamic way her/his knowledge in general pharmacology with a good degree of autonomy.

Basic knowledge of biology, biochemistry, and physiology.

Lectures and case studies.

Students with physical disabilities, Learning Disabilities or Special Education Needs can request specific services and tools via the Staff Sviluppo e Coordinamento Carriere e Servizi alle Studentesse e agli Studenti, consulting the University webpage: https://www.uniupo.it/en/services/services-students-physical-or-learning-disabilities. Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted the University Staff, can refer to the tutor in charge of the course to define the examination modalities, concerning academic aspects.

Written test. It covers the material delivered in lectures. Multiple choice, true/false and completion type questions are the most frequent types of questions. 1 or 2 points for the correct answer, 0 points for wrong or blank answers. Oral presentation. Students will be given a dermatological approved small molecule. Working individually, they will need to cover the main medchem aspects (metabolism, synthesis, intermolecular interactions, discovery and optimization, stereochemistry, LogP, LogD, etc.) and pharmacology aspects (mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, therapeutic need, competitors, and place in therapy). The Case Study will be orally presented by the students with the support of slides in a 10’ presentation. The total mark is the average between the two marks.

Absorption. Mechanisms of absorption with a focus on skin. Phase I and phase II metabolism with a focus on skin and liver metabolism. Distribution and elimination of drugs. Principles of pharmacodynamic. Receptors and enzymes as drug targets. Drug discovery. Case studies of dermatological drugs.

At the end of the course, the student will know the principles of general pharmacology in the dermatological field. She/He will be able to apply these principles to a specific bioactive molecule and to evaluate its pharmacological, metabolic and drug-likeness properties. The student will also know the role of pharmacology in drug discovery.