Mechanisms of Action of Physiologically Active Compounds   (454B2)

Academic year:

2023/2024.

Attendance requirements:

There are no requirements.

ECTS:

4

Study level:

Study program:

Teacher:

Milan R. Nikolić, Ph.D.
associate professor, Faculty of Chemistry, Studentski trg 12-16, Beograd

Assistant:

Simeon L. Minić, Ph.D.
assistant with PhD, Faculty of Chemistry, Studentski trg 12-16, Beograd

Hours of instruction:

Weekly: two hours of lectures + two hours of labwork (2+0+2)

Goals:

The course is based on prior knowledge of signaling pathways and metabolism regulation to understand their mutual connection and modulation capabilities of their functions by using drugs. The primary routes of administration, transport, distribution, and action of drugs (pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics) will be elaborated on the example of psychopharmacology, therapy of hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and diabetes, as well as chemotherapeutics. The final part of the course will briefly cover nanotechnologies and their applications in medicine.

Outcome:

Upon successful completion of the course, a student will be able to: independently and comprehensively considers the effects of biologically active substances (drugs), mechanisms of drug action, and strategy of drug transport in the target tissues.

Teaching methods:

Lectures, experimental exercises, and seminar paper.

Extracurricular activities:

—

Coursebooks:

Main coursebooks:

1. Katzung & Trevor's Pharmacology Examination and Board Review, 11^th Edition (2015). McGraw-Hill Education. ISBN-13: 978-0071826358.
2. Drug Metabolism: Current Concepts, 2005^th Edition (2006). Springer. ISBN-13: 978-1402050282.
3. Power-point presentations from lectures.

Supplementary coursebooks:

• Selected review papers.

Additional material:

http://www.chem.bg.ac.rs/~mnikolic

Lectures:

10 points (2 hours a week)

Syllabus:

• Modulation of signal transduction pathways in the regulation of homeostasis: general principles of physiologically active substances action.
• Ways of entry of drugs into the body: systems for drugs biotransport.
• Drug metabolism and factors influencing drugs action.
• Drugs for the cardiovascular system.
• Psychopharmacology basics.
• Natural substances and drugs for reducing the content of lipids in the blood.
• Antidiabetic drugs and protein therapeutics.
• Malignant cells: principles of chemotherapeutics action.
• Molecular nanomedicine and nanorobots.

Labwork:

20 points (2 hours a week)

Syllabus:

Pleiotropic effects of physiologically active substances: determining the antioxidant potential of selected classes of drugs and herb extracts; influence of drugs on the structure and activity of selected blood proteins.

Semester papers:

30 points

Oral exam:

40 points