MEDSCI 318 : Pharmacokinetics and Drug Toxicity

Medical and Health Sciences

2021 Semester One (1213) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

Considers the biochemical processes involved in achieving clinically-relevant drug concentrations that result in therapeutic effects and drug toxicity, from drug input, distribution, and elimination plus the ways in which these processes are described (pharmacokinetic modelling). Explores factors such as drug-drug interactions, pharmacogenetics, dosing and pharmacokinetic considerations in selected populations and that may influence both clinical effectiveness and drug toxicity.

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: MEDSCI 204 and 30 points from MEDSCI 203, 205, BIOSCI 203 Restriction: MEDSCI 303, 306, 321

Course Contacts

We recommend you contact the course coordinators using our course specic email: 
medsci318contact@auckland.ac.nz  

Course Coordinator: 
Dr Rachel Cameron (Senior Tutor) 
SMS Teaching Hub, Room B505-102, Ext 83186, r.cameron@auckland.ac.nz 

Course Directors:
Dr Jacqueline Hannam
503-302-J, Ext 82869, j.hannam@auckland.ac.nz

Associate Professor Malcolm Tingle 
503-302-I, Ext 84949, m.tingle@auckland.ac.nz

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2: Critical Thinking
Capability 3: Solution Seeking
Capability 4: Communication and Engagement
Capability 5: Independence and Integrity
Capability 6: Social and Environmental Responsibilities
Graduate Profile: Bachelor of Science

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Summarise and communicate the role of input, distribution and elimination processes on drug concentration, and explain how physicochemical properties of drugs relate to pharmacokinetic principles. (Capability 1)
  2. Discuss the patient and environmental factors that influence pharmacokinetics, including the problems encountered with the use of drugs in selected diseases and populations. (Capability 1 and 2)
  3. Summarise and communicate the role of exposure, concentration and time on toxicity and its consequent impact on biochemistry and the clinical effectiveness of drugs. (Capability 1 and 2)
  4. Critically discuss the relevance of non-clinical species to the prediction of human drug safety. (Capability 1 and 2)
  5. Apply scientific reasoning and methods to experimental design for drug concentration and drug toxicity. (Capability 1, 2, 3 and 5)
  6. Demonstrate competency of a selected range of skills, including observation and measurement, an appreciation of variability, precision and inaccuracy, data analysis and interpretation. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5)
  7. Develop and demonstrate safe and effective animal handling skills and discuss the ethical use of animals in pharmacology in the New Zealand context. (Capability 1, 5 and 6)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Workshops 5% Individual Coursework
Laboratories 25% Individual Coursework
Tests 20% Individual Test
Final Exam 50% Individual Examination
Assessment Type Learning Outcome Addressed
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Workshops
Laboratories
Tests
Final Exam
To pass this course, you must achieve a minimum of 45% in each of the 4 assessment types (workshop, laboratory, test and final exam) and a minimum of 50% of the available marks overall.
To pass the laboratory component of the course, you must also attend at least 75% of the laboratory sessions.

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in and a total of around 150 hours, which includes revision and examination time.

For this course, you can expect a total of 24 hours of lectures, 24 hours of laboratories, 12 hours of tutorials, 4 hours of tests/exams, and 86 hours of reading and thinking about the content and working on assignments and/or test preparation.

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

Attendance is required at scheduled activities including labs & tutorials to receive credit for components of the course.
Lectures will be available as recordings. Other learning activities including tutorials & labs will not be available as recordings.
The course will not include live online events.
Attendance on campus is required for the exam.
The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

Learning Resources

We do not recommend the purchase of any one particular textbook to support course content. However, you may nd the following textbooks useful for helping with laboratory write-ups or for background reading for the lecture/laboratory material: 

1. Ritter JM, Flower RJ, Henderson G, Loke YK, MacEwan DJ, Rang HP. Rang & Dale’s Pharmacology. 9th ed. Edinburgh: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone; 2020. 
2. Katzung BG. Basic and Clinical Pharmacology. 14th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill; 2018. 
3. Brunton LL, Knollman BC, Hilal-Dandan, R. Goodman & Gilman’s The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics. 13th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill; 2018. 

N.B. Copies of Rang & Dale’s Pharmacology are available in the library or online via Clinical Key (connect via the library’s website).

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

2021 will be the first offering of this course. 

Digital Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and your assessment is fair, and not compromised. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the University Website for information about how to proceed.

The delivery mode of this course may change in accordance with changes to New Zealand Government recommendations. Updates for this course will be provided on the course Canvas page.
Note: this course cannot be taken remotely at Level 1
Level 1: All main teaching activities will be conducted on campus and in person.
• Lectures: on campus, recorded lectures will  be available.
• Labs, tutorials: on campus, remote versions will not be available.
• Tests, exams: on campus, you must attend in person unless you are unwell or other circumstances outside your control prevent you from attending. You must complete the exam to pass the course. 
Level 2: All teaching activities are remote
• Lectures: delivered remotely, available at the timetabled time and recorded lectures will be available.
• Labs, tutorials: delivered remotely, available at the timetabled time and recorded versions will be available. 
• Tests and quizzes: delivered remotely at timetabled time.  
• Exams: delivered remotely at timetabled time. You must complete the exam to pass the course.
Level 3/4: All teaching activities are remote
• Lectures, labs, tutorials: delivered remotely, available at the timetabled time and recordings of the sessions/online versions will be available.
• Tests and quizzes: delivered remotely at timetabled time.
• Exams: delivered remotely at timetabled time. You must complete the exam to pass the course.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course you may be asked to submit your coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. The final decision on the completion mode for a test or examination, and remote invigilation arrangements where applicable, will be advised to students at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date of the assessment, or in the case of an examination when the examination timetable is published.

Published on 11/12/2020 02:10 p.m.