ChEMBL

This course aims to give researchers of any discipline a broad introduction to the theoretical, practical and organisational aspects of small molecule drug discovery. Each topic will include a lecture together with discussion sessions or case histories to develop key aspects highlighted in the lectures. In addition there will be practical sessions to illustrate the beginnings of drug discovery programmes, including the production of target product profiles, project plans and milestones, compound progression criteria and scientific strategy. The course is subsidised by the Wellcome Trust and limited bursaries covering up to 50% of the course fee are available (awarded on merit). Course applications and bursary requests must be received by Monday 5 March. Full details are on the website.

Topics will include:
• Project management and organisation of multi-disciplinary projects
• Target discovery and validation
• Hit discovery options
• Screening set selection, storage and quality control
• Screening cascades, assay development and quality control
• Data mining
• Principles of compound optimisation and case histories
• Introduction to pharmacokinetics
• In silico approaches to drug design
• Intellectual property strategy
• Regulatory bodies requirements
• Data packages required for out licensing and partnering
• An introduction to preclinical and clinical development