Pharmaceutical chemistry is part of the larger field of medicinal chemistry. Pharmaceutical chemists develop and evaluate new and better drugs for the healthcare industry. These medicinal chemists focus on drug development and discovery by concentrating on creating new synthetic drug compounds.
Drugs are chemicals. About 98% of the drugs are organic compounds. Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry deals with the study of chemistry of drugs- both organic and inorganic. Students are taught advanced organic chemistry, chemistry of drugs (medicinal chemistry) and computational chemistry. Students will undergo theory and practical classes. In organic chemistry students will study pure and applied organic chemistry. In medicinal chemistry students have to study synthesis of drugs, drugs used for the treatment of different diseases, molecular mechanism of drug action and modern tools for drug design. We have well equipped labs for medicinal chemistry and organic chemistry.
Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis is focusing on quality assurance and quality control of drugs. Students have to study different types of titrations, UV spectroscopy, IR spectroscopy, NMR spectroscopy, mass spectroscopy, HPLC, HPTLC etc. Our instrumentation lab occupies HPLC, UV spectrophotometer, pH meters, Flame Photometer etc.
Scope
Pharmaceutical Chemistry allows for collaboration with researchers from other disciplines like microbiologists, theoretical chemists, pharmacologists, toxicologists, biologists, and bio-pharmacists in developing new drugs as it is a stimulating discipline which links many scientific disciplines. By having a strong background in organic chemistry and medicinal chemistry, interested candidates can place themselves in a competitive position in this career field.
The two important qualities a pharmaceutical chemist must possess is a good imagination and persistence. For those who are passionate about having a career in the field of pharmaceutical chemistry, a strong motivating factor for them is the fact that their work helps to improve human health and reduce suffering.
