2.44905 PHARMACOKINETICS

The course aims to develop a basic understanding of pharmacokinetic principles relevant to pharmacy, and to provide students with an understanding of the concepts of bioavailability and bioequivalence. On completion, the student should be able to: explain the purpose of capsules as a dosage form; evaluate basic properties of capsule dosage forms; other forms of capsules including micro capsules and nanocapsules; to appreciate the importance and need of high quality packaging materials as an integral component of drug products; predict basic pharmacokinetic properties of a drug based on its mechanisms of elimination and plasma binding; explain the principles of bioavailability; understand bioequivalence and generic substitution; and appreciate in vivo and in vitro evaluations of these parameters.

Contact hours: 4 hours per week (2 Lectures and 2 tutorials).

Assessment: Tests, assignments, (60%), final exam (40%).

Prerequisite: Completion of Year 3 courses.