Graduate Courses

Coordinator: Dr. Cindy Woodland

Grade Scale: CR/NCR
Credits: 0.5 FCE
 

Coordinator: Drs. Peter McPherson and Martin Beaulieu

Systems Pharmacology I examines a variety of drugs and drug classes with an emphasis on drugs acting on the central nervous system and immune systems as well as those used in cancer and infectious diseases. A comprehensive approach to drug properties and the interactions of these drugs with the human body are discussed with a focus on mechanisms of drug action, clinical indications and adverse effects. Drugs are introduced in lecture sessions and discussed from a clinical perspective in small group sessions. Small group sessions involve in-depth examinations of the scientific literature and clinical cases.

Grade Scale: Letter Grade
Credits: 0.5 FCE
 

Coordinator: Dr. Rebecca Laposa

The aim of this course is to provide instruction on the basic principles of drug development, with a primary focus on the application of fundamental principles of pharmacology and toxicology to the design and conduct of early phase clinical trials. Students will become familiar with the standard safety and pharmacokinetic assessments that take place during early clinical development, as well as with proof-of-concept and proof-of-mechanism studies, evaluations of exposure- toxicity relationships and refinement of dose selection for later phase trials. In addition to actual clinical studies, the course will examine various modeling approaches that are also conducted during drug development. At the end of the course, students should understand the phases of drug development, be able to design an early phase clinical study, understand the standardized practices and ethical implications of clinical research, and be aware of some of the scientific and non-scientific career paths/roles in drug development.

Grade Scale: Letter Grade
Credits: 0.5 FCE
 

Coordinator: Dr. Anita Hamadanizadeh

The overall goal of this laboratory course is to provide students with practical experience and understanding of experimental methods used in clinical pharmacology research. The 12-session course will be taught through a combination of wet labs and dry labs. During wet labs, groups (~3-5 individuals per group) will be given a drug that they will investigate in the laboratory. Dry labs will involve lectures, case studies, and assignments. Topics will include assessments of drug solubility, absorption/bioavailability and bioequivalence, distribution and protein binding, biotransformation, renal excretion, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics modeling, drug-drug interaction, and assessment of pharmacodynamic effects.

Grade Scale: Letter Grade
Credits: 0.5 FCE
 

Coordinator: Drs. Walter Swardfager and Landon J. Edgar

Systems Pharmacology II examines a variety of drugs and drug classes with an emphasis on drugs acting on the cardiovascular and endocrine systems. A comprehensive approach to drug properties and the interactions of these drugs with the human body are discussed with a focus on mechanisms of drug action, clinical indications and adverse effects. Drugs are introduced in lecture sessions and discussed from a clinical perspective in small group sessions. Small group sessions involve in-depth examinations of the scientific literature and clinical cases.

Grade Scale: Letter Grade
Credits: 0.5 FCE
 

Students may wish to include a 4-month (PCL2101Y or PCL2102Y) or 8-month (PCL2100Y) placement option with an approved employment site (e.g., pharmaceutical company, contract research organization (CRO), consulting business, government agency, healthcare partner). The placement is an opportunity for students to explore and immerse themselves in areas such as drug development, medical writing, adverse event reporting, pharmacokinetic analysis, and clinical trial design and management.

Grade Scale: CR/NCR
 

Coordinators: Drs. Cindy Woodland and Prateek Lala

The aim of this course is to give students an opportunity to conduct independent research in pharmacology. Students will be matched to faculty members who will supervise their project and provide guidance and assistance. Students will be required to apply their knowledge of pharmacology and research methodologies. This course will allow students to acquire important practical skills, in-depth knowledge of the research subject, and develop scientific communication skills.

Grade Scale: CR/NCR
Credits: 1.0 FCE
 

This course is an opportunity to complete further study under the supervision of the same graduate faculty member as PCL2200Y. It is intended for students who wish to pursue more in-depth study of their research question(s), generally with the intention of publishing their research findings.

Grade Scale: CR/NCR
Credits: 1.0 FCE
 

Coordinator: Dr. Peter McPherson

The purpose of this course is to provide instruction to incoming graduate students on foundational principles in Pharmacology. Although a significant number of our incoming graduate class have mastered these concepts through our undergraduate PCL programs, an increasing number of our new graduate students come with undergraduate education that does not include a significant instruction in pharmacology.

Incoming students with undergraduate PCL will be allowed to opt of completing this module provided they score 70% or greater on an exam they are able to write in September.

Grade Scale: Letter Grade
Credits: 0.25 FCE
 

Coordinator: Drs. Peter McPherson and Wai Haung (Ho) Yu

Researchers require many skillsets to be successful. Increasingly, it is important to develop a broad range of practices to support your research, be it in an academic setting, not-for-profit or for-purpose environment. This module will provide a knowledge base using first-person perspectives and best practices to develop a program that supports diverse career objectives. In particular, will learn how to apply for research funding and scholarships, how to enter and navigate a career in the pharmaceutical industry, and how to communicate research findings to various stakeholders.

Grade Scale: CR/NCR
Credits: 0.25 FCE