Understanding Cell Signaling through Therapeutic Drugs

Catalog description

This course presents advanced concepts in cellular signaling by analyzing the molecular mechanisms responsible for the therapeutic benefit, unanticipated toxicity, and limited effectiveness of particularly well-known drugs that target specific signal transduction pathways. The topics are designed to promote an enhanced understanding of the complexities of multiple signaling pathways, and a sophisticated appreciation of how these pathways are integrated to produce cellular responses. The course has a translational emphasis by focusing on the multiple molecular actions of current FDA-approved drugs, as well as discontinued drugs that were removed from the market due to unanticipated toxicity or limited effectiveness. The lectures provide an advanced analysis of the molecular responses that led to the success or failure of these drugs, encouraging students to develop sophisticated analytical skills that allow them to define how different signaling pathways are integrated. Lectures presented by instructors provide an in-depth overview of different signaling pathways, and manuscript discussions promote additional advanced analysis that creatively engages the students.