Questions on Research Methods
Q1. Part 1 of this exercise related to finding and assessing the quality of information available in the literature. As part of your final year project you may be required to obtain your own data experimentally or use experimental data from the literature; this will require skills in planning experiments and data interpretation.
Consider, for example, conducting a microbiological assay where inhibition of growth of bacteria is determined when different concentrations of drugs are applied. What factors may lead to variability or errors within the results and how could these variations or errors be minimised?
(You should write approximately 100 words.)
Q2. Why is it important to have information on physico-chemical properties (such as logarithm of the octanol:water partition coefficient (log P) and log aqueous solubility (log S)) in drug development i.e. what role do these properties play in determining formulation and drug uptake / distribution in the body?
(You should write approximately 100 words.)
Q3. Is predicting ADME and potential toxicity of drug candidates early in the drug development process important or should the focus of research be to maximise efficacy of the candidate molecules?
Your answer should include a discussion of the advantages and limitations of using simple screening tools.
(You should write approximately 200 words. This should be a well-reasoned scientific argument written in good, scientific English.)