Chemistry Taster Session: Chemistry and Drug Discovery and Development

Chemistry is central to the drug discovery process. Without this field there would be no small molecule drugs available today. So we would have to do without pain killers, anaesthetics, antibiotics, anti-cancer drugs – in fact pretty much every treatment apart from vaccines and antibody-based treatments. We will look at why chemistry is such an important subject to medicine look at some of the basic principles of drug discovery. Hopefully, by the end of the talk you will be able to design some life-saving drugs! The talk will also discuss the pathways to studying this material at university leading to careers in this area.

This session lasts between 60-90 minutes. The main session is preceded by a welcome presentation and ends with a Q&A where students are free to ask questions. It is aimed at year group 12 and 13 and is delivered via MS Teams.