PHCL 4001: Mechanisms of Drug Action

2 credits
Pre-req: college-level biology, biochemistry recommended.
Grading options: A-F only

Fall semester 2008
Lecture: 10:10-11:00pm Tuesdays and Thursdays
Location: 2-520 Moos Tower

In our modern society, drug-based strategies are the predominant and often the most effective way to treat disease.  This introductory course presents many of the fundamental concepts that define the discipline of Pharmacology by focusing on the derivation of a drug-based strategy to treat a single medical condition. This semester’s course will be centered on the development of novel anti-cancer drugs and is designed to be interactive and includes the discussion of several research papers.

This course is highly appropriate for those students interested in medicine, basic research, or the pharmaceutical industry.

Scientific papers that will be discussed include:

Druker et al. (1996).  Effects of a specific inhibitor of the Abl tyrosine kinase on the growth of Bcr-Abl positive cells.  Nature Medicine 2, 561-566.

Druker et al. (2001).  Efficacy and safety of a specific inhibitor of the Bcr-Abl tyrosine kinase in chronic myeloid leukemia.  The New England Journal of Medicine 344, 1031-1037.

Shah, NP et al. (2004).   Overriding Imatinib Resistance with a Novel ABL Kinase Inhibitor, Science 305, 399-401.

Hochhaus, A et al. (2007). Dasatinib induces notable hematologic and cytogenetic responses in chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia after failure of imatinib therapy. Blood  109, 2303-2309.

Shaw, NP et al. (2007). Sequential ABL kinase inhibitor therapy selects for compound drug-resistant BCR-ABL mutations with altered oncogenic potency. J. Clin. Invest. 117, 2562-2569.

Course Directors:

Greg Connell, Ph.D.
Phone: (612) 624-3132
Email: conne018@umn.edu

Dan Romero, Ph.D.
Phone: (612) 624-8997
Email: romero@umn.edu

Syllabus

Download the syllabus for the fall 2008 semester here. If you have questions about the course or want additional information, please contact us.

Textbook

Rang and Dale's Pharmacology
HP Rang, MM Dale, JM Ritter, and RJ Flower
Published by: Churchill Livingstone
Sixth edition, 2007.
ISBN: 978-0443069116
Univ. of MN Bookstore