MSc Natural Product Drug Discovery

Natural products possess enormous structural and chemical diversity that cannot be matched by synthetic molecules. They are an incredibly important source of biologically active compounds for both human healthcare and agriculture, and recent technological advances mean that their application can now be fully explored.

This Master’s course will equip you with theoretical and practical knowledge in the science of natural product discovery, from microorganisms to plants and animals. Your studies will include nutriceuticals and herbal extracts, antibiotics and antimicrobial resistance and the major human diseases.

We place an emphasis on translational research and the drug discovery process, taking natural products from bench to bedside. And you’ll gain a thorough cross-disciplinary grounding with a unique mix of organic chemistry, pharmacology, phytochemistry and microbiology; ideal preparation for a research-based career, taking theoretical knowledge through to practical application.

On our one-year Master’s programme, studying with academic and industrial experts who are currently active in natural product research and drug discovery, you'll gain the key skills, and discover the latest cutting-edge methods, in natural product discovery.

Your learning will combine lectures, seminars and laboratory practicals, as well as an independent research project and self-guided study. Our expert team is based across the Norwich Research Park, including the School of Pharmacy and the John Innes Centre. Guest speakers from the pharmaceutical and biotech sector will also present sessions covering topics such as the industrial applications of natural product research.

In your first semester, you’ll gain a solid theoretical foundation in all aspects of the subject, including natural product drug discovery, human physiology and the targeting of human diseases, and natural product chemistry and genetics.

In your second semester, you’ll put the theory into practice, designing, executing and interpreting your own experiments using the very latest methods and technologies. All of which will culminate in your hands-on, laboratory-based Master’s research project, which you'll deliver with the expert guidance of a member of staff.

Students need to have: Bachelors degree 2:1 or equivalent in Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Sciences or a related subject.