May 2023

Mitochondria produce energy, but that’s not all: they also contain their own genome. In the age of precision medicine, how important is it that we consider mitochondrial genetics, and can we do this without nuclear DNA getting in the way? Authored by Robyn Kiy, the UK winner of the IUPHAR International Students' Poster Competition 2023.

"Public engagement goes beyond simply communicating scientific facts; it involves two-way dialogue and building relationships with community members to understand their perspectives and needs", explains Sam Illingworth, who has created a new handbook, 'Community Engagement for Researchers'.

How is drug repurposing shaping the research and development of new drugs? Anna Moelder explores the topic, including recent examples.

Marco Bonfanti explores how he helped to pull together the 2023 Glasgow Early Career Life Sciences Symposium, reflecting on the success of the day-long event.

PROTACs, heterobifunctional molecules enabling targeted protein degradation, offer therapeutic potential beyond traditional inhibitors. Despite challenges such as the hook effect and poor oral bioavailability, the unique event-driven pharmacology of PROTACs makes them a promising avenue for treating diseases, including cancer. 

A question from school pupils illuminates the barriers between pharmacology and prospective undergraduate students. Teaching assistant Dr Molly Carlier reflects that the perception of science being a difficult subject to study turns students away from studying pharmacology and shares public engagement resources that can be used to combat this perception.

Running a research lab is a complex progress, but seeing the lab come to life is an amazing experience. In the first of a new series,  Aisah Aubdool speaks to the Mauro lab to learn about Professor Claudio Mauro’s experience in establishing his group at the University of Birmingham.

On 1-2 July 2023, 100 delegates attended the IUPHAR Education Section (IUPHAR-Ed) Satellite Meeting at the University of Strathclyde preceding the World Congress of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (WCP2023) in Glasgow. The meeting welcomed educators from 58 different institutes from across 6 continents of the world to share best practices and teaching innovations in pharmacology and related disciplines.

Professor Emeritus Danny Hoyer looks at how psychedelics can be used as mental health treatments, outlining some of the trials taking place to explore bringing these treatments to the public.

Could long-term substance addictions be cured from a single drug dose? This article investigates claims of the psychedelic drug ibogaine doing just that and unearths the impact the growing demand for its root source, the iboga shrub, is having on the environment. Winner of the Pharmacology Matters ECP writing competition 2023.

Apathy is a neuropsychiatric syndrome characterised by motivational deficit and emotional blunting. Surprisingly, it is often treated the same as depression, despite not responding to typical antidepressants. A better understanding of apathy will help develop an improved treatment approach. Runer up in the 2023 ECP writing competition.
 

This piece by Marcus Ilg is a runner-up for our 2023 ECP writing competition. Judges enjoyed Marcus’ descriptive language, and ability to explain this subject matter to a wide audience.

How can the world of STEM create environments which encourage neuro-inclusion, and reduce barriers for neurodiverse individuals? Four pharmacology students from King's College London spoke to Prof Sara Rankin, who is working in this field, to find out more.