Biocon Academy in association with American Chemical Society (ACS) Medicinal Chemistry Division and Pharma Innovation Sourcing Centre LLC USA, recently concluded the 4th edition of the Medicinal Chemistry, Drug Discovery & Development India 2019 (MCADDI 2019).

This residential course in medicinal chemistry and drug discovery and Development was held from 4th- 9th March, 2019 at the Biocon Academy Campus in Bangalore, India.

The five days programme was co-sponsored by the American Chemical Society Division of Medicinal Chemistry and the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC).

"We have a powerful technology pool around us. There are so many new technologies coming up such as gene therapies, cell therapies. We need accelerated models to take these technologies ahead and create a platform. We need to learn how to invest into technology and innovation. There is plenty of data lying in India in the form of crude oil. We have to convert it into refined oil. We need to focus on novel ways to change the paradigms to make this world a healthier to place", shared Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CMD, Biocon. 

MCADDI 2019 conducted several lectures on pharmaceutical development CMC topics including process optimization and development, bio-pharmaceutics and analytical sciences as well as integrated drug discovery and development case histories.

The sessions were designed to be highly interactive, and included case studies to enhance the learning process. The highlight of the programme was the inclusion of pharmaceutical development with the discovery value chain.

"India is traditionally very good in chemistry and generics but has shied away from discovery. Through this programme, we intend to tune the raw talent of the Indian chemists and biologists. There is so much potential in India which needs to be harnessed in the right manner. In the coming years, we do plan to incorporate more students into this programme. Also, we would be adding more content to the curriculum in the upcoming sessions", pointed out Dr Balu N Balasubramanian, MD, Pharma Innovation Sourcing Centre LLC USA.