Pharmaceutical Sciences

(Discipline code: 1007)

I. Discipline Overview

The study of pharmacy discipline covers the whole process of drug research & development, drug production, drug use, and drug management. Its research includes the discovery and confirmation of new drug targets, the design, screening, preparation or synthesis of drugs, the design theory, prescription and process of drug dosage forms and formulations, and the quality control, in vivo processes, mechanism of action, and effectiveness and safety of drugs, etc. Modern Pharmacy is a comprehensive discipline based on chemistry, life science, medicine and other related disciplines. With rapid technological advance, new disciplines, such as genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, chemical biology, structural biology informatics, have been increasingly integrated with pharmacy discipline. The development and crossover of multidisciplinary theories and technologies has greatly contributed to advances in pharmacy discipline.

Based on the College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the first-level discipline of pharmacy of Nanjing Tech University has formed characteristics and advantages in microorganisms and biochemical drugs, pharmacology and drug safety evaluation, new drug dosage forms and new technologies, research and isolation engineering of active ingredients of natural drugs, discovery and synthesis of innovative drugs for major diseases, etc. by focusing on the needs of national strategy and facing the major needs of pharmaceutical industry and enterprises in Jiangsu. It has been included key disciplines in the 13th Five-Year Plan of Jiangsu Province.The existing high-level engineering technical centers and achievement transformation bases such as National Engineering Research Center for Biotechnology (direction of biochemical drugs), Jiangsu Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Center, Jiangsu Drug Safety Evaluation Center which has passed the National GLP Certification, Jiangsu Technical Service Center for Research and Engineering of New Drug Formulations, and the Center for Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacodynamic Research and Evaluation of Nanjing Tech University have established broad cooperation with famous pharmaceutical enterprises including Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Yangtze River Pharmaceutical Group, Hengrui, Simcere, and jointly built a batch of pharmaceutical research & development centers, production and pilot research bases, providing excellent teaching and research bases for the cultivation of pharmacy talents.

II. Cultivation Goals

Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the discipline comprehensively implements the CPC's education policy, takes establishing moral values and educating people as the fundamental, and the all-round moral, intellectual, physical and aesthetic development as the main line, and cultivates high-level talents with firm political stance, noble ideological character, rigorous academic attitude and innovative spirit.

Knowledge structure:Expertly grasp the basic theory and expertise in pharmaceutical chemistry, pharmaceutics, drug analysis, microbiology and biochemical pharmacology, pharmacology, etc.

Ability structure:Master a solid and broad basic theory of pharmacy and systematic professional knowledge and experimental research skills, understand the current status and development trend of modern pharmacy-related disciplines, master a foreign language (usually English);have the ability to engage in scientific research or undertake independent specialized technical work. Degree holders can engage in scientific research, teaching and technology management in pharmacy and related disciplines, can engage in the research and development of drug technology and its products, and can be competent for professional work in pharmaceutical-related enterprises and institutions, or can further study for a doctorate in related disciplines.

Quality structure:Have a correct outlook on life and values, systematically scientific and cultural knowledge and skills, robust physique and strong willpower, noble sentiments and correct aesthetics, correct labor concepts and good labor habits.

III. Cultivation Direction

1. Microbiology and biotechnology pharmacy: Manufacturing with biological method of natural drugs and drug intermediates; the relationship between the structure and function of protein drugs.

2. Drug analysis and separation engineering: Bioanalytical technology research; controllable preparation of multifunctional materials and their application in pharmaceutical direction; separation and crystallization of biological products.

3. Pharmacology: Pharmaceutical functional materials and targeted drug delivery systems; research on drug delivery carriers and multifunctional drugs for diagnosis and treatment; research on in vivo transfer process of new drug delivery systems and bionic formulations; research and development and industrialization of particle formulation; research and development and industrialization of new slow and controlled-release (SCR) formulations and rapid release formulations.

4. Pharmaceutical chemistry: new target-oriented drug discovery and precision therapy; organic integration of small molecule innovative drug synthesis; drug green synthesis and quality control technology; microfluidic synthesis technology.

5. Pharmacology: metabolomics studies based on translational medicine; oncology pharmacology; pharmacokinetics; pharmacology of male infertility.

6. Natural pharmaceutical chemistry: new methods and techniques for efficient biosynthesis and semisynthesis of natural products and their modifications; research on natural drug quality standards; research on the molecular mechanism and chemical biology of the action of natural drug active substances.

IV. Study Period and Credits

The study period for academic master students is generally 3 years, with a maximum of 5 years.

The minimum total credits required for academic master students is 28 credits, including 24 credits for courses (6 credits for public degree courses, 10 credits for professional degree courses, 4 credits for professional elective courses and 4 credits for public elective courses), 2 credits for attending academic lectures/reports (at least 15 times) and 2 credits for academic practice.

V. Curriculum Setting

VI. Compulsory Links Management

1. Academic Lectures/Reports (2 credits)

Academic degree master students must attend at least fifteen academic seminars on and off campus during their study period, including at least five academic seminars arranged by the Graduate School, at least two lectures on the quality of humanities and aesthetics, and other lectures arranged by each college, and only those who have attended a total of at least fifteen seminars can obtain 2 credits for lectures/reports.

2. Academic Practice (2 credits)

During the study period, academic master students must participate in one of the following academic practice activities: graduate student science and technology forum, graduate student summer school, graduate student academic innovation forum, graduate student research innovation practice competition, high-level international and domestic academic conferences or overseas exchange visits, and labor practice, and participate in activities such as sunshine run on campus and sports meeting, in order to obtain 2 credits for academic practice.

VII. Thesis

1. Basic requirements for thesis

(1) Normative requirements

The topic of the thesis should be clear in direction, have basic theoretical significance or good technical application prospect, and can come from the supervisor's scientific research project or self-chosen project; the thesis should have compact structure, rigorous logic, smooth written expression and standardized diagrams. The results of the research should provide new insights or address academic problems. The thesis should be completed independently under the guidance of the supervisor, and the actual working time of the thesis should be at least one year since the proposal of the topic. The thesis should generally include: the background of the subject research and domestic and overseas trends, main problems to be solved and the ways, the main research carried out, experimental data processing; necessary graphs and curves; the conclusion and the references cited.

(2) Quality requirements

The thesis should demonstrate that the author has mastered solid basic theories and systematic professional knowledge in the discipline, is familiar with the field researched, has a better understanding of the research trends of its academic frontiers, and can pose scientific questions on the research topic engaged in, design experiments reasonably, and use advanced technical lines and research methods, and his/her research results provide independent insights and academic value. Relevant research results meet the standards for the award of a master's degree as stipulated by the Academic Committee of the University and the Academic Committee of the College.

2. Thesis proposal

According to the "Requirements of Nanjing Tech University on the Thesis Proposal of Graduate Students", graduate students should generally write a proposal at the end of the third semester or the beginning of the fourth semester. The proposal should be roughly 5,000 words long; more than50references should be read, at least two-thirds of which should be foreign papers. The proposal should include:

(1) Research significance of the subject and its current status at home and abroad;

(2) The accumulation of work related to the subject and the achievements of existing research work;

(3) The difficulties of the subject and key problems to be solved; proposed research methods, technical lines, experimental programs and their feasibility;

(4) Planned progress and expected results.

3. Thesis review and defense

Academic master students can apply for defense after completing all the links and credits stipulated in the cultivation plan. Specific requirements for thesis review and defense are detailed in the Detailed Rules for the Master's Thesis Defense and Review and Degree Application of Nanjing Tech University.

4. Academic achievement requirements

Academic achievements should be consistent with the thesis direction. The requirements are detailed in the Measures for Assessment of Scientific Research Achievements of Master's Degree Applicants of Nanjing Tech University.

VIII. Criteria for Graduation and Degree Awarding

The criteria for graduation and degree awarding shall conform with the relevant regulations of the university.