Neuropharmacology

The student must achieve the following objectives:
- Ability to apply the general principles and mechanisms of drug actions in neuropharmacology
- Ability / capacity to work individually, in small groups and in multidisciplinary teams, combining specialized, intermediate and overall views.
- Ability to access the most specialized and scientifically relevant sources of information.

General principles of pharmacology and neuropharmacology

Theoretical contents
1. Introduction to pharmacological sciences
2. General pharmacodynamics. General mechanisms of drug action, specific and non-specific drugs. Nucleic and proteic target sites.
3. Research and development of drugs in neuropsychopharmacology Required steps
for a new drug to be approved for human use.
4.Psychiatric pharmacology
Pharmacology of anxiety and insomnia, depression, schizophrenia, dependencies, disorders and phobias, etc.
5.Pharmacology of neurological diseases
Pharmacology of movement disorders, cognitive impairment, dementia, seizures. Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy, etc.

Practical contents
Sharing and discussion sessions will be held in which students will prepare and present their work on the selected topics, using the standard methodologies and formats provided by the teachers in which they will incorporate their own vision after the bibliographic searches.

Preclinical drug discovery units will be visited.

-Stahl, S.M. Essential psychopharmacology, 5th edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, MA, 2021
-Paul SM et al., How to improve R&D productivity: the pharmaceutical industry's grand challenge. Nature Reviews in Drug Discovery 2010; 9:203-214
-Dugger SA, et al. Drug development in the era of precision medicine. Nature Reviews in Drug Discovery 2018; 17:183-196
-Mohs RC and Greig NH. Drug discovery and development: Role of basic biological research. Alzheimer's & Dementia: Translational Research and Clinical Interventions 2017; 3:651-657
-Hunter AJ et al. Open innovation in neuroscience research and drug discovery. Brain and neuroscience advances 2018; 2:1-6
-Loza MI, Hmeljak J, Bountra C, Audia JE, Chowdhury S, Weiman S, Merchant K, Blanco MJ. Collaboration and knowledge integration for successful brain therapeutics - lessons learned from the pandemic. Dis Model Mech. 2022 Dec 1;15(12):dmm049755. doi: 10.1242/dmm.049755. Epub 2022 Dec 21. PMID: 36541917; PMCID: PMC9844134

After completing the course, students will be able to:
- Describe the therapeutic targets, receptors, channels, transporters, enzymes, as well
as their signalling routes and the transductional mechanisms relevant to
actions of drugs.
- Describe how drugs, at the molecular scale, affect signal transmission in neuropsychiatric disorders.
neuropsychiatric disorders, their mechanisms and actions.
- Describe the efficacy/safety of drugs in relation to their molecular mechanisms of action.

Face-to-face work in the classroom
Hours of lectures: 22
Hours of interactive classes: Seminars: 4
Tutorials in small groups or individualized: 1
Evaluation activities: 3

Student's personal work
Individual study: 35
Elaboration of presentations, works: 10
Total student's personal working hours: 45

1 - Teamwork (60% of the final mark): the students must participate in the teams that are formed and take responsibility for the adequate performance of the corresponding work, which will be assigned by mutual agreement between them. In addition, they must participate in the presentations that correspond to them.
- Attendance is compulsory. The participation/ involvement of the student throughout the course will be taken into account.

2- Continuous evaluation (40% of the final mark): students will do assignments and questionnaires related to the contents of the course.
- Attendance is compulsory. The student's participation/implication throughout the course will be taken into account at all times.

Evaluation according to the criteria discussed with the students.

See teaching methodology

Study the contents to solve the conceptual doubts. It is important to relate the basic and applied concepts along the way.
Use the updated bibliography and clarify concepts to consolidate knowledge and acquire skills in solving problems.