Master of Science in Pharmacy Course Descriptions

Note: The Master of Science in Pharmacy Program will not be admitting students for the academic year 2021-2022. Please access the following link for the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Pharmaceutical Sciences Program. Applications for admission to the PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences Program will be received for the 2021-2022 academic year:

INDUSTRIAL PHARMACY OPTION

FAGG 6100 Statistics in Pharmacy, Two (2) credits

Basic statistical concepts, probability concepts, presentations, data charts, and parametric and non-parametric statistical methodology are discussed, in addition to experimental designs in the pharmaceutical sciences context. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAGG 6200 Drug Literature Evaluation, Two (2) credits

Drug Literature Evaluation is designed to introduce the student to basic areas of study that enhance their ability to deal with and utilize this information. The course is a combination of group discussion and lecture. This course requires extensive hands-on practice by the student to create and execute effective search strategies of the medical literature. It also requires comprehensive evaluations of the medical literature. There is no standard text for this course. Material will be excerpted from journal reading assigned by the instructors. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAGG 6300 Principles of Research Design, Two (2) credits

This course will supply and develop in the students the skills necessary for writing a successful research proposal including basic concepts, statement of the problem, hypothesis, objectives, design of experiments, experiment planning, and analysis of the data and documentation of results. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAQM 6351 Instrumental Pharmaceutical Analysis I, Two (2) credits

Presentation of the theoretical and practical principles of the advanced techniques used in the qualitative and quantitative analysis of drugs, its metabolites and excipients; in addition to endogenous substances in the biologic fluids and corporal tissues. The techniques are compared to determine the most capable in terms of applications depending on the situation. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAQM 6352 Instrumental Pharmaceutical Analysis II, Two (2) credits, Pre-requisite: FAQM 6351

The theoretical and practical aspects of instrumentation used in chemical separations are presented. Among the techniques discussed are gas chromatography, liquid chromatography and capilar electrophoresis with their respective detection modes which are used to identify drugs. Advantages and disadvantages of the separation techniques depending on the situation. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

This course helps the students to understand the quantitative relationships between heat and other forms of energy. Also, it provides the students with the theories and principles involved in the three laws of thermodynamic. In addition, it will provide the students with the theories, concepts and fundamental principles of solutions. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6312 Advanced Physical Pharmacy II, Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FAFI 6311

This course is essential for helping the students in understanding the physical chemical foundations of the Pharmaceutical Sciences and their Pharmaceutical Applications and also update the students with the progress and new researches in the topics outlined in this course such as: physical properties of drug molecules; complexation and protein binding; principles of interfacial phases; theories and principles of the different types of dispersed systems and fundamental principles of rheology. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6313 Advanced Physical Pharmacy III, Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FAFI 6312

This course is essential for the students to understand the physical and chemical properties of new medicinal products. In this course will provide the students broad principles in an attempt to predict solubility, stability, compability and biological action of drug products. Emphasis is placed upon the application of scientific principles to practical professional problems. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6321 Pharmaceutical Unit Operations I, Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FAFI 6311

An introduction to the theory and applications of fluid flow, and the theory and mechanisms of heat transfer. The emphasis will be on applications in the pharmaceutical industry. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6322 Pharmaceutical Unit Operations II, Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FAFI 6321

Application of momentum, heat and mass transfer principles in the design of separation processes. An introduction to the theory and applications of particulate solids. The emphasis will be on applications in the pharmaceutical industry. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

This course will provide knowledge concerning the design, manufacture and control of pharmaceutical dosage forms. This course will teach the students concepts, new theories and their practical applications in the development and production of dosage forms and in drug delivery systems. This course will direct the students to new production process and machines for manufacture, new control methods for accurate definition of drug delivery and new improved controlled procedures. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6512 Industrial Pharmaceutical Technology II, Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FAFI 6511

This course will provide knowledge related to the fundamental concepts that lead to an understanding of the techniques employed in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries to obtain satisfactory mixing. Through this course the fundamental concepts of drying and the principles of milling will be provided. In addition, the course describes the physics, mechanics and unit operation of compaction; tablet coatings principles, theories and equipment; granulation, microencapsulation, capsules among others. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6400 Seminar in Industrial Pharmacy, Two (2) credits

Research work under the supervision of a member of the industrial pharmacy faculty. The students will prepare and submit a report to be evaluated by the faculty. The students can take the course more than once with the authorization of the professor. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6600 Pharmaceutical Quality Control, Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FAGG 6100

This course will discuss the concepts for statistical control and the improvement of quality in pharmaceutical processes. Furthermore, the management of total quality, control charts and experimental design will be addressed. Finally, the student will be able to estimate and interpret process capacity of pharmaceutical processes. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6700 Advanced Biopharmaceutics & Pharmacokinetics, Two (2) credits

The course exposes the student to the absorption, distribution, and drug elimination concepts. The factors in the formulation of the pharmaceutical products that affect bioavailability are discussed. The physiological conditions that can affect the kinetics and dynamics of some drugs are presented. The course also exposes the students to data shaping or pattern-making techniques. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

Research oriented towards the dissertation of the thesis for Master of Sciences in Pharmacy. Not more than four (4) credits will be accredited to the Masters Program, even though the student can register a total of 16 credits.

FAGG 6900 Thesis, Two (2) credits

Results are presented as a written dissertation. All candidates for Master of Sciences in Pharmacy (MS) have to register in this course in the trimester that there thesis defense will be presented.

Elective Courses:

FAGG 6213 Special Topics in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Two (2) credits

Selected topics in pharmaceutical sciences will be discuss. It requires previous authorization of the professor in charge of the course. The topics included, depending on the professor in charge of the course, can be: antiinfectious, autonomic agents, molecular pharmacology concepts, neuropharmacology, nuclear pharmacy, structure activity relationships, biopharmaceutics, and cardiovascular or central nervous system agents. Students are permitted to register more than once in this course with the professor and its mayor advisor´s permission when the topics presented are different. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6500 Project in Industrial Pharmacy, Two (2) credits

Research work under the supervision of a faculty member of industrial pharmacy. The students will prepare and submit a report to be evaluated by faculty. The students can register for the course more than once with the authorization of the professor. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES OPTION

FAGG 6100 Statistics in Pharmacy, Two (2) credits

FAGG 6300 Principles of Research Design, Two (2) credits

This course will supply and develop in the students the skills necessary for writing a successful research proposal including basic concepts, statement of the problem, hypothesis, objectives, design of experiments, experiment planning, analysis of the data and documentation of results. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAQM 6351 Instrumental Pharmaceutical Analysis I, Two (2) credits

FAQM 6352 Instrumental Pharmaceutical Analysis II, Two (2) credits, Pre-requisite: FAQM 6351

FABI 6311 Advanced Biological Chemistry I, Two (2) credits

This course deals with the structure and function of biomolecules, including proteins, enzymes, nucleic acids, lipids, carbohydrates, vitamins and hormones. It also deals with the transformations, interactions and energy changes of these biomolecules (metabolism) in the different cells of the organism and how these reactions are regulated under ever changing environmental conditions and during cell differentiation (genetic and epigenetic regulation). The origin of “high energy” biomolecules are described mainly in relation to mitochondrial function and their participation in energy requiring processes. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

This course shows the student the fundamentals to prepare an oral and written presentation of a subject assigned by the professor or chosen by the student. The student will prepare a poster from the oral presentation following some general rules. Different aspects of presentations will be worked such as: choosing an appropriate title, logical sequence, background, material presentation, duration of presentation, visual aid, use of physical resources. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6311 Advanced Physical Pharmacy I, Two (2) credits

FAQM 6701 Medicinal Chemistry I, Two (2) credits

This is an intensive course in organic chemistry, intended to lay the background for the subsequent courses in medicinal and pharmaceutical chemistry. At the same time, the course is intended to fill in the gaps for those students who did not major in organic chemistry at the undergraduate level. Each topic is covered at the basic level, and then treated in-depth, so that at the end of the course the students are well-prepared to master the advanced topics taught in Medicinal Chemistry II and III. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAQM 6702 Medicinal Chemistry II, Two (2) credits, Pre-requisite: FAQM 6701

The course covers the physical-chemical purpose of the drug action theory and effector-receptor. The methods to characterize the receptors will be studied. The drugs will be presented in groups, acting over neurotransmitters and receptors, neurohormones and its receptors, and the drug that affect the membranes, cell wall, enzymes and nucleic acids. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAQM 6703 Medicinal Chemistry III , Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FAQM 6702

Study of the structure-activity relationship in the design of medicinal products. Among the subjects to be covered are, dopamine and its receptors, seratonine and its receptors, biosynthesis of dopamine, histamine and its receptors, agonists and antagonists of dopamine, neurotransmitters of aminoacids, steroidal and peptic hormones, among others. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

Pharmacognosy literally means “knowledge of drugs”. From a historical point of view, the first drugs used by humans came from natural products, and so, pharmacognosy has retained its basic concept. Inside the natural products range, the superior plants compose the highest percent of the source from where the drugs have been isolated. The objectives of the course are centralized in the isolation and determination of the structure of the compounds from plants. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAGG 6800 MS Research, Two (2) credits

FAGG 6900 Thesis, Two (2) credits

Results are presented as a written dissertation. All candidates for Master of Sciences in Pharmacy (MS) have to register in this course in the trimester that there thesis defense will be presented.

Elective Courses:

FABI 6312 Advanced Biological Chemistry II, Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FABI 6311

This course deals with the characteristics of the human genome, the replication and repair of the genetic material, the transcription and translation of genetic information, the alteration of genetic material (mutations), and its consequences (genetic diseases), and the modern methods and techniques of molecular biology (recombinant DNA technology, gene therapy and cloning) the general mechanism of hormone action and the molecular bases of nutrition are dealt with in this course. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6312 Advanced Physical Pharmacy II, Two (2) credits, Pre-Requisite: FAFI 6311

This course is essential for the students to understand the physical and chemical properties of new medicinal products. In this course will provide the students broad principles in an attempt to predict solubility, stability, compatibility and biological action of drug products. Emphasis is placed upon the application of scientific principles to practical professional problems. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAGG 6213 Special Topics in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Two (2) credits

Selected topics in pharmaceutical sciences will be discuss. It requires previous authorization of the professor in charge of the course. The topics included, depending on the professor in charge of the course, can be: antiinfectious, autonomic agents, molecular pharmacology concepts, neuropharmacology, nuclear pharmacy, structure activity relationships, biopharmaceutics, cardiovascular or central nervous system agents. Students are permitted to register more than once in this course with the professor and its mayor advisor´s permission when the topics presented are different. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.

FAFI 6355 Drug Metabolism, Two (2) credits

The overall objective of this course is to enable the student to predict, from a drug´s structure its probable metabolites and their potential for toxicity. In the first part of the course, the physiological processes of drug absorption, distribution and elimination will be briefly reviewed, and the major pathways of drug biotransformation will be studied in detail from an enzymatic basis. Phase I reactions due to monooxygenases (cytochrome P-450 and Flavin monooxygenases) will be studied in details. Examples of metabolic activation and biotransformation of xenobiotics, including drugs, environmental pollutants and naturally occurring toxic chemicals will be given. The second part of the course will deal with the phase II reactions. Various conjugating enzymes and the reactions they catalyze will be studied using examples of drugs and xenobiotic compounds. In this course lecture, student oral presentation and Internet search will be used among other instructional strategy.