Drug Discovery & Development
Drug Discovery & Development Overview
The Master of Science in Drug Discovery and Development program is organized as a collaboration between the Departments of Biochemistry and Structural Biology (BSB) and Pharmacology at UT Health San Antonio, and as an educational arm of the Center for Innovative Drug Discovery (CIDD). This two-year program, 32-credit hour, thesis-based program combines rigorous classroom instruction with hands-on laboratory research. The program is designed to cultivate critical thinkers and problem solvers prepared to enter the rapidly expanding biotechnology sector—particularly in South Texas, where San Antonio is emerging as a key hub, as well as in the broader national market. Students receive comprehensive training (coursework and research) in the principles and practices of drug discovery and development, including the design, characterization, testing, and commercialization of pharmacotherapeutic agents. The curriculum focuses on addressing some of the most pressing medical challenges of our time, including cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, and infectious diseases. There are also enrichment components where students are exposed to the variety of job opportunities in the broad field of drug discovery, from the earliest phases of discovery at the bench, to the stages of development of a successful drug, and the regulatory and legal aspects of drug development. In this way, it maximizes early training for the diverse range of jobs within medical therapeutics.
Drug Discovery & Development Admission Requirements
All of the required application information, including official transcripts from all institutions attended, must be submitted in order for an applicant to be considered by the M.S. Drug Discovery & Development program Admissions Committee. In general, students should have a sufficient educational background in the biological or biochemical sciences prior to admission to the program. The following are the minimal requirements:
- A baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution in the United States or proof of an equivalent degree and training at a foreign institution.
- Required prior coursework: 2 years of biological science for science majors with labs; organic and inorganic chemistry with labs. Highly recommended: biochemistry and physiology
- Minimal grade point average (GPA): No lower than B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale).
- International applicants from countries where English is not the native language must earn a minimum score of 84 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), a score of 7.0 on the Academic version of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) or a score of 115 on the Duolingo English Test. International applicants who have completed or will complete their degree prior to matriculation at an accredited U.S. Institution may be exempted from the TOEFL/IELTS requirement.
- Letters of recommendation (three) attesting to the applicant's readiness for graduate level studies. These letters should be submitted with the online application to the GSBS.
- Research experience is not required, but will be considered.
- Application deadlines can be found on the program's admission page.
Drug Discovery & Development Degree Requirements
Over a 2-year (4-semester) period, students are expected to fulfill all requirements of the M.S. in Drug Discovery & Development Program. Each semester will include a minimum of 8.0 credit hours, approximately 32 credit hours for the entire program.
Year 1: Students must enroll in all required courses and maintain a grade point average at or above 3.0 for all class work. In addition, in order to maintain satisfactory research/academic progress, students are required, prior to the end of the Year 1 fall semester, to identify and engage a faculty member in the program who will serve as the student’s research advisor. Students must perform original research in the laboratory of their research advisors starting in spring of year 1. Guidance and evaluation of research progress will be aided by a Research Supervising Committee. Students are required to meet with the committee each semester from spring, Year 1 onwards, and obtain an S grade. Any I or U grade will result in probation and must be remedied by the following meeting. Successive I or U grades for Research, without approved extenuating circumstances, can be grounds for dismissal from the program.
Year 2: In addition to monitoring regular student progress, the Research Supervising Committee, together with the research advisor, will determine if the thesis research is adequate for granting the M.S. degree. This decision is confirmed by a public presentation of the thesis research and a closed-door oral defense of the thesis to be evaluated by the Research Supervising Committee.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| BIOC 6035 | Target Identification and Hit/Lead Discovery | 2 |
| TSCI 5070 | Responsible Conduct of Research | 2 |
| BIOC 5094 | Research Presentations and Career Opportunities | 1 |
| ELECTIVE | 2 | |
| PHAR 6097 | Research | 1 |
| Use PHAR or BIOC 6097, depending on Department of Mentor | ||
| Total Credit Hours: | 8.0 | |
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spring | Credit Hours | |
| PHAR 5024 | Principles of Pharmacology 1Priniciples of Pharmacology 1 (first half of PHAR 5013) | 1.5 |
| ELECTIVE | 1 | |
| CSAT 5095 | Experimental Design And Data Analysis | 3 |
| BIOC 5094 | Research Presentations and Career Opportunities | 1 |
| PHAR 6097 | Research | 1.5 |
| Use PHAR 6097 or BIOC 6097 depending on Department of mentor | ||
| Total Credit Hours: | 8.0 | |
| Second Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| PHAR 5023 | Drug Discovery and Development | 3 |
| BIOC 5094 | Research Presentations and Career Opportunities | 1 |
| PHAR 6097 | Research (Use PHAR or BIOC 6097, depending on Department of Mentor) | 4 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 8.0 | |
| Second Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spring | Credit Hours | |
| BIOC 5094 | Research Presentations and Career Opportunities | 1 |
| ELECTIVE | 2 | |
| PHAR 6097 | Research (Use PHAR or BIOC 6097, depending on Department of Mentor) | 4 |
| BIOC 6098 | Thesis (Use PHAR or BIOC 6098, depending on Department of Mentor) | 1 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 8.0 | |
Elective Course List:
PHARM TBD-2 Principles of Pharmacology II (1.5 SCH)
INTD 6033 Cell Signaling Mechanisms (2 SCH)
BIOC 6037 Integration of Metabolic Pathways (2 SCH)
BIOC 5085 Biophysical Methods (2 SCH)
BIOC 6036 Macromolecular Structure and Mechanisms (2 SCH)
BIOC 6010 Gene Regulatory & Omics (2 SCH)
PHAR 6020 Molecular and pharmacological basis of therapeutics (2 SCH)
PHAR 6025 Molecular Pharmacology (2 SCH)
- The curriculum consists of 3 Drug Discovery-Specific Core Courses(6.5 SCH), courses in Experimental Design/Statistics and Ethical Conduct/Rigor, and Responsible Conduct of Research (5 SCH), a Seminar/Career guidance course each semester(4 SCH total), elective courses (4 SCH), research (11.5 SCH) and Thesis (1 SCH).
- Elective courses will allow students to specialize in a variety of areas, ranging from structure-based drug design and synthetic chemistry to the physiological basis of drug action, as well as information on the regulatory and legal aspects of drug development. In addition to the limited list above, all courses offered within the Integrated Biomedical Sciences Program of the Graduate School are available to MSD3 students, as long as approved by their advisor and COGS.
BIOC 6035. Target Identification and Hit/Lead Discovery. 2 Credit Hours.
This course provides students with an understanding of the overall process of drug discovery and development. It covers the principles of target identification and validation, the basic methods of drug development, the physical biochemistry of how drugs interact with their biological targets, the role of protein structures in drug-protein interactions, the application of medicinal chemistry in lead optimization, and the development of biologicals like antibodies, vaccines, and RNAs for therapeutics. Focused lectures on specific therapeutic areas will include anti-parasite drug development and drug development for cancer. Prerequisites for the course is at the discretion of the course directors, based on adequate undergraduate courses in chemistry, biochemistry and mathematics. Open for Cross Enrollment on Space Available Basis.
BIOC 5094. Research Presentations and Career Opportunities. 1 Credit Hour.
The goal of the course is to provide students with continuous experience in (1) formal presentation of their ongoing research progress; (2) exposure to various career opportunities through guest speakers; and (3) discussion and critical analysis of current scientific literature should time allow. The course meets weekly with all second-year students cycling through to make research presentations, with interspersed guest presentations on career opportunities and student presentations of journal articles by 1st-year students selected from the student's area of research interest, but also of relevance to the whole class.
BIOC 6098. Thesis. 1-12 Credit Hours.
Registration for a least one term is required of M.S. candidates.
BIOC 6037. Integration Of Metabolic Pathways. 2 Credit Hours.
The course is required of students in the Molecular Biophysics and Metabolic Pathways track. The objective is to provide an understanding of the individual reactions in intermediary metabolism and how the reactions are integrated by regulatory mechanisms. Topics include carbohydrate, lipid, and nitrogen metabolism and mechanisms of regulation of individual enzymes and metabolic pathways. Open for Cross Enrollment on Space Available Basis.
BIOC 5085. Biophysical Methods In Biology. 2 Credit Hours.
This course is required for all students enrolled in the Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry track. The course covers modern biophysical methods for studying biological macromolecules in sufficient detail to understand the current literature. Topics to be covered include macromolecular structure determination by X-ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopy; absorbance, fluorescence, and EPR spectroscopy; circular dichroism; light scattering; mass spectrometry; and hydrodynamics, including diffusion, electrophoresis, sedimentation velocity, and sedimentation equilibrium. Open for Cross Enrollment on Space Available Basis.
BIOC 6010. Gene Expression and Omics. 2 Credit Hours.
This course presents 1) the principles of gene expression, including transcription, epigenetic regulation (histone modifications and DNA methylation), mRNA processing and degradation, translation, post-translational modifications, and protein degradation, and 2) the omics approaches for collective characterization and quantification of different aspects of gene expression, including genomics, epigenomics, proteomics, and metabolomics. Two main teaching formats are used in this course: 1) Didactic lectures in which information is delivered to the class, and 2) Paper presentations and discussions, in which students present assigned papers and lead discussions by the entire class. Although one student will present each paper, all students will be expected to read each paper and to be prepared to discuss it in the form of comments and questions. Prerequisites: Permission of the Course Director and IBMS 5000 (or equivalent).
PHAR 5024. Principles of Pharmacology 1. 1.5 Credit Hour.
Principles of Pharmacology 1 is a 1.5 credit hour course that provide students with fundamentals of Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics. The course covers basic principles of Drug Disposition (Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Excretion), Dose-Response and Therapeutic Window, an overview of Pharmacogenomics, Ligand-Receptor Interactions (saturation, competition and kinetic binding methods), Affinity, Occupancy-Response Theories, Agonism and Intrinsic Efficacy, Antagonism, Allosterism, Constitutive Receptor Activity and Inverse Agonism, and Multi-Active State Models and Functional Selectivity. Upon successful completion of this course, students will have a comprehensive knowledge of the core principles of pharmacology. Open for Cross Enrollment on Space Available Basis.
PHAR 5025. Principles of Pharmacology 2. 1.5 Credit Hour.
This course will provide students with fundamentals of Pharmacodynamics. The course covers basic concepts of receptor (7 transmembrane-spanning, receptor tyrosine kinase, nuclear, and ligand-gated ion channels) and transporter function and includes lectures on principles of systems pharmacology, including Cancer Pharmacology, Immunopharmacology, Alzheimer Disease Pharmacology. Additional topics include principles of chronic drug treatment and the pharmacological consequences of mixtures of drugs. Upon successful completion of this course, students will have a comprehensive knowledge of the core principles of systems pharmacology. Prerequisites: PHAR 5024 Open for Cross Enrollment on Space Available Basis.
PHAR 6020. Molecular & Pharmacological Basis Of Therapeutics. 3 Credit Hours.
This course provides the graduate student with current knowledge of how genetic variants can affect drug response and the potential to optimize drug therapy. Course format will include lectures, discussion of selected literature, individual student presentations, and the opportunity for the development of a mini pharmacogenetic/genomic protocol and consent form to address a clinical/biomedical question mutually agreed upon between course director and students.
PHAR 6025. Molecular Pharmacology. 2 Credit Hours.
This course will be presented in a journal club/paper discussion format and will focus on the molecular aspects of pharmacology, with emphasis on molecular biology, biochemistry, and cell biology of a variety of physiological systems subjected to pharmacological manipulation. The topics to be discussed will include molecular mechanisms of drug action, signal transduction and regulation, molecular approaches, and recent advances in areas of molecular pharmacology.
PHAR 6097. Research. 0.5-12 Credit Hours.
Independent, original research under the direction of a faculty advisor.
TSCI 5070. Responsible Conduct of Research. 2 Credit Hours.
This foundational course introduces students to core ethical content necessary for responsible research conduct. Through interactive seminars, students will learn about (1) scientists as responsible members of society (contemporary ethical issues in biomedical research and environmental/social impacts of research), (2) policies for research with human subjects and vertebrate animals, (3) collaborative research, (4) conflicts of interest (personal, professional, financial), (5) data acquisition and laboratory tools (management, sharing, ownership), (6) responsible authorship and publication, (7) mentor/trainee responsibilities and relationships, (8) peer review (9) research misconduct (forms of misconduct and management policies) (10) informed consent, privacy regulations, good clinical practice, and special populations in clinical investigations.