College of Pharmacy
Department Office: 301 L.S. Skaggs Hall
Phone: 801-581-7831
Website: https://pharmacy.utah.edu/pharmaceutics
Department Chair: Hamid Ghandehari, Ph.D.
The Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics emphasizes fundamental understanding in the physical, chemical, and biological processes of drug-related systems, and innovative therapies. This field focuses on the physiological and physicochemical factors controlling drug delivery to tissues, presence and bioactivity in the body and methods to package drugs to most effectively treat patients. Research extends from fundamental studies of drug physical chemistry to mechanistic investigations of physiological processes that impact drug delivery to specific sites of action and therapeutic effectiveness. The graduate curriculum emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach encompassing fundamental physical chemistry, mass transport, chemical thermodynamics, organic reactions and mechanisms, chemical kinetics, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, colloid and interfacial phenomena, biochemistry, polymer science, and molecular biology. Applications of these diverse principles to understanding drug transport through biological membranes, development of biosensors, bioactive polymeric nanocarriers for delivery of peptide and bioactive agents, drug targeting toward cells and organs, innovative nucleic acid and gene delivery, development of new drug formulations and delivery systems, nanotoxicology as well as new therapeutics (cancer immunotherapies, antibody-based drug conjugates, vaccines, cell-based therapies and cell sheets for tissue regeneration) and tissue profiling and diagnostic and imaging tools for the treatment of cancer, diabetes, gynecological malignancies, autoimmune diseases, dental care and other diseases are the focus of advanced course work and graduate research. Pharmaceutics is a component of the professional Pharm.D. Curriculum. No undergraduate degree is offered by the department.
Graduate Program
Please see the Molecular Pharmaceutics Ph.D. listed in the Program and Course Offerings section.
Areas of Specialization
Major research programs involve drug targeting, gene therapy, peptide and protein therapies, vaccines, novel molecular imaging, tissue profiling for personalized medicine, polymeric drugs, fundamental studies of drugs, physicochemical properties, mechanistic investigations of physiological processes that impact drug delivery to specific sites of action and therapeutic effectiveness, drug transport through biological membranes, new technologies for biosensors, bioactive polymeric carriers for delivery of peptide and bioactive agents and other therapeutic formulations or systems for innovative treatment of diseases or malignancies listed above.
Admission Requirements
Admission requirements include a B.S. degree in either pharmacy, chemistry, biology, chemical engineering, bioengineering, or related areas; high recommendations by professors of undergraduate courses; at least a B average (3.0) in undergraduate course work; and GRE scores. Research experience is an advantage. International applicants must demonstrate English proficiency consistent in accordance with University of Utah policies.
For further details on admission procedure, please consult our prospective students page.
Students should have completed the following or equivalent courses: one year of organic chemistry with laboratories, one year of physical chemistry with laboratories, one year of calculus including ordinary differential equations, partial differential equations and matrices and vector analysis, as well as one semester of anatomy, cell biology, developmental biology, classical genetics, or physiology. Students may be admitted with nonmatriculated status if there are substantial deficiencies in their pre-requirements.
Molecular Pharmaceutics Department faculty are associated with the campus wide Interdepartmental Graduate Programs in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Biology. Students in the program may enter graduate study in Molecular Pharmaceutics by selecting a Molecular Pharmaceutics faculty member with whom to work.