The objective of the Purdue Drug Discovery Training Program (PDD-TP) is to provide predoctoral students with a comprehensive and balanced perspective of drug discovery and development, and to develop a multi-disciplinary approach toward the design of novel molecular entities with promising medicinal activity, with subsequent optimization and preclinical evaluation. Trainees will take an integrated curriculum that expands their breadth of knowledge and experimental approach toward the discovery of novel targets for drug development, and will participate in a research embedding project outside their primary laboratory for further experience and training. Trainees will also participate in program-specific activities intended to enhance communication, critical thinking, leadership, management, mentorship, networking, and entrepreneurism. Activities include a journal club, formal presentations of cross-disciplinary research, organization of seminars in drug discovery, unique opportunities to engage experts in the evaluation of drug pipeline candidates, and participation in a mock drug panel review. Every effort will be made to maximize the diversity of training program applicants, and to recruit and retain trainees of diverse backgrounds. PDD-TP trainees will graduate with a comprehensive skill set and exposure to drug discovery and pipeline development, and with experiences that will continue to serve them long after they enter the biomedical workforce.
Activities in drug discovery are often disjointed, creating inaccurate perspectives on the steps required to advance drug candidates through the development process. The mission of the Purdue Drug Discovery Training Program is to provide trainees with the instruction and key experiences that will enable them to define a critical path for the synthesis, testing, and optimization of drug candidates of their own design. We propose education and training activities that strengthen the knowledge base and skill sets needed for productive drug optimization, as well as for avoiding the many pitfalls that can emerge along the development pathway.
