FUNDAMENTALS OF DRUG ACTION I




Professors:

  1. Geoffrey Cordell (Rm. 539, 3-5381, Drug Discovery); e-mail: Geoffrey.A.Cordell@uic.edu,
  2. Darrick Kim (Rm. 375, 6-1230, Chemistry of Pharmacophores); e-mail: dshlkim@uic.edu,
  3. Karol Bruzik (Coordinator, Rm. 593, 6-4576, Stereochemistry of Drug Molecules); e-mail: kbruzik@uic.edu,
  4. Douglas Kinghorn (Rm. 531A, 6-0914, Natural Products as Drugs); e-mail: U11239@uicvm.uic.edu (D. Kinghorn),
  5. Anthon Hopfinger (Rm. 547, 6-4816, Biomolecular Structure); e-mail: hopfingr@uicvm.uic.edu,
  6. Sylvie Blond (Rm. 3002 MBRB, 6-5416, Cell and Molecular Biology); e-mail: u28264@uicvm.uic.edu (Blond),
  7. Alex Neyfakh (Rm. 3020 MBRB, 6-7231, Cell and Molecular Biology), e-mail: Neyfakh@uic.edu,
  8. Shura Mankin (Rm. 3052 MBRB, 3-1406, Cell and Molecular Biology). e-mail: shura@uic.edu (S. Mankin).

Lectures and Other Instructions:

Lectures will be held in Room 32 on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 8.30-9.20 AM.

Examinations will be administered on Thursdays in lecture halls 32 and 36 at 2.30-3.30 PM, except for the Exam V (Tues. Nov. 25, 2.30-3.30 PM.). On Tuesday, Aug. 26 there will be a mandatory "assessment" test administered at 2.30.30-3.30 PM in Rm. 134-3.

The grade for this test will not be added to the the total score for the course, and is meant only to provide information on the class background in the subject areas of the course. Your participation in this test will, however, add extra 20 points to the total course score, regardless of the test result. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays there will be recitations at 1.30-3.30 PM. (Section I, Tuesday, Rm. 231; Section II, Tuesday, Rm. 134-3; Section III, Wednesday, Rm. 8; Section IV, Wednesday, Rm. 134-1; Section V, Thursday, Rm. 32 and Section VI, Thursday, Rm. 134-3). The recitations will not be held during the exam weeks (see the recitation schedule in the course syllabus). The class break-up into recitation sections is given in the fifth floor display case. Each class section (26 students) has a TA assigned.


Instructional materials:

(1) "Introduction to Heterocyclic Chemistry: From Furan to Nucleotides" by Ludwig Bauer;

(2) Principles of Three-Dimensional Structure of Molecules by Karol S. Bruzik, also available at http://www.uic.edu/~kbruzik/text/phar331.htm;

(3) "Function of Biological Macromolecules" by A. J. Hopfinger. These materials will be distributed to the class prior to beginning instruction of the given section. In addition, molecular models are required for Section IV; these can be purchased from the UIC Health Sciences Bookstore. Other instructional materials/handouts will be provided as the course goes along.


Consultation with teaching personnel:

Each student has a teaching assistant (TA) assigned by the course coordinator (same as the TA for recitations). The TAs will be available for consultation during two office hours/week, scheduled during such time when no other activity is planned for P-1 students. The TA office hours will be also posted in the fifth floor display case. Should the student require help with the course material, he/she should first consult the assigned TA during the scheduled office hours. If further assistance is needed, the student should request an appointment with the professor in charge of the material being presented. E-mail could also serve for the purpose of making the request. The same format should be followed if questions arise regarding course administration and exam grading.


Examinations:

Exams (other than the "assessment" test) will be administered in Rooms 32 and 36 only. Students will be assigned the lecture room and the seat number by the TA in the foyer of the room 32. The total number of points for the course is 1000. Six examinations, each exactly 60 minutes in duration, are scheduled for the semester. The weights of the exams are as follows:

Each exam will be graded anonymously in the same manner. The third exam (midterm) will cover the first half of the material, with emphasis on the untested area after the Exam II. The final exam will cover the whole course, with emphasis on the untested area after the Exam V. Should there be any change of this schedule, students will be notified in advance of the changes.


Exam dates:
EXAMSDATE
Exam I (150 pts)Thursday, September 18, 2.30-3.30 PM., rm. 32 & 36
Exam II (150 pts)Thursday, October 9, 2.30-3.30 PM., rm. 32 & 36
Midterm (200 pts)Thursday, October 23, 2.30-3.30 PM., rm. 32 & 36
Exam IV (150 pts)Thursday, November 13, 2.30-3.30 PM., rm. 32 & 36
Exam V (150 pts)Tuesday, November 25, 2.30-3.30 PM., rm. 32 & 36
Final (200 pts)Date to be assigned


Missed Exams and Quizzes:

If a scheduled exam is missed, the student must notify the coordinator(312-996-4576) within 3 school days and state the reason. Notification must be followed up by a written excuse for our records. Notification of absence DOES NOT, however, constitute an automatic excuse. It is the policy of this course that a student be given an opportunity to make up exams, provided an acceptable excuse has been presented and accepted. An example of an acceptable excuse is an illness as proved by a letter from a doctor. The professor-in-charge will inform the student of the place and time of the make-up exam.


Exam Regrading:

The distribution of the graded exams will be directly after lectures. Should the student wish to have an exam regraded, he/she must present the exam to the professor in charge of that exam within 2 school days of the time the exam is handed back to you. (The professor in charge is solely responsible for its grading). No exceptions will be made. We reserve the right to duplicate any or all of your graded examinations, as evidence of your performance, prior to handing them back to the student.


Examination protocol:

  1. Examinations will bear only the college-provided identification number - no names will be used.
  2. Each examination booklet will have a seat number at the top of the first page. Seat numbers will vary from examination to examination.
  3. The top sheet of each examination booklet will bear the tally of points and will be retained by the professor in charge of the examination.
  4. The score will appear only at the bottom of the last sheet of the examination booklet.
  5. Students wishing to have any part, or all, of the examination regraded must follow the procedure below:
    1. State in writing what part(s) of the examination they would like to have regraded. The student must date his/her request and sign using the college-provided number only.
    2. Return this statement with the exam to your TA who will forward it for consideration to the Professor-in-charge.
    3. The regraded examination will be returned to the student via her TA.
    4. If the score is still unacceptable, the student may request the Dean's office to have the Professor-in-charge meet with him/her in the Dean's office to discuss the matter further.