Centre for Integrative Mammalian Physiology & Pharmacology

MRes in Experimental Physiology & Drug Discovery (Bio-Imaging) 

  1-year fully funded studentships still available to start October 2011 (for EU students only)

PET scan of F-DOPA

MRes in Experimental Physiology and Drug Discovery (Bio-Imaging) is a unique 12 month full-time multi-disciplinary course which aims to give all participants an introduction to the different aspects of biomedical imaging (including hardware and probe development, in vivo and in vitro experimental application, software development and data analysis). In addition, participants will be given training in comparative anatomy, physiology and pharmacology of laboratory animals, they will also obtain a Home Office Personal licence and hands-on experience of a range of in-vivo techniques used in research. 

NK cell harnessing a target cell

Students will follow already taught courses in Biomedical Imaging, and Experimental Physiology and Drug Discovery. Students will also be taught transferrable skills subjects, such as safety awareness, intellectual property management, time and project management and presentation and communication skills. In addition, students will undertake an individual research project throughout the course and submit a research thesis.

Aims and Objectives

Provide science graduates with

• an introduction to the different aspects of biomedical imaging
• the ability to perform biomedical imaging, such as probe development or the experimental application of imaging in vivo
• intensive hands-on in vivo functional biology research training

• the ability to perform the physiological and pharmacological studies in drug development

Content and Structure

Part A: Bio-imaging, animal handling, Home Office training course, comparative anatomy and physiology and drug discovery.

Part B: Six practical modules focused on in vivo research skills (problem solving, e-learning, journal club and lectures).

Part C: 21 week in vivo research project

Career opportunities

The course will provide students with an insight into the principles of drug discovery and translational medical science. Importantly, those students wanting to undertake a PhD in in-vivo science will have gained a Home Office personal licence and be confident in animal handling and techniques. The students will thus be well equipped to make rapid progress in research. Furthermore, having learned about biomedical imaging from development to application, they will also be better equipped to develop a fully integrative approach to their research problem. The multidisciplinary nature of the course will give students the ability to appreciate the importance of translating the results of scientific and clinical discoveries into potential benefits to healthcare.