Medicinal Chemistry of Ocean University of China(OUC) is a Pharmaceutical secondary discipline, featured as research of marine drugs, as well as one of the key constructive disciplines in “Project 211” and “Project 985”. It is also a positioned discipline of “Scholar of Mount Taishan”. And it was ratified as intensified constructive provincial key discipline by Educational Department in December, 2006.
The research of Medicinal Chemistry of OUC has developed in the directions of Marine Sugar Chemistry and Sugar Engineering, Marine Nature Medicinal Chemistry, Medicinal Synthetic Chemistry, and Marine Officinal Living Resources. With the development of discipline, the advantages in the field of innovative drugs have been distinct and predominant. It has formed into an excellent and innovative team, which was led by an academician, consisting of many talented faculties. The discipline has a complete educational system in addition to well-equipped research facilities.
Main Research Contents
Marine Glycochemistry and Carbohydrate Engineering
Leader: Professor Guangli Yu
Aiming at illuminating technical issues during Marine carbohydrate drug development. Conducting further study of structure bioactivity and structure-activity relationship of carbohydrates on the basis of keeping a favorable position in Glycobiology and Carbohydrate Combining with the research of biofilm endogenous sugar chain structure function and metabolic regulatory mechanism, discussing the effects of marine carbohydrate in living creatures. In addition, illuminating the biological basis that carbohydrate could be officinal, in order to develop new marine saccharides drugs.
Marine Nature Medicinal Chemistry
Leader: Professor Weiming Zhu
Aiming at solving the problems that existed in marine drug discovery of medicinal resources. Carrying out the research of active products which are generated by marine plants and animals like sponges, alga, corals, and symbiotic or extreme environment microorganisms. Finding out compounds that have high activity or innovative structures effectively by the means of new techniques and methods of chemistry, pharmacology and molecular biology. Furthermore, optimizing the structures and studying the structure-activity relationship of active products, so as to provide novel resources and lead compounds for the development of marine drugs.
Medicinal Synthetic Chemistry
Leader: Professor Tao Jiang
Aiming at synthesizing glycoconjugates and studying their structure-activity relationships, for offering candidate drugs. Designing and synthesizing candidate drugs by taking advantages of carbohydrates’ properties and function, with the help of Computer-Aided Drug Design; Developing synthetic methods to make active oligosaccharides, glycoconjugates, carbohydrate complexes; Glycosylating active compounds; Meanwhile, conducting total synthesis and structure optimization based on the lead compound of marine products.
Marine Officinal Living Resources
Leader: Professor Changyun Wang
Aiming at the study of marine organisms and focusing on the medicinal resources, evaluating the biomass, distribution, diversity and habitats of important medicinal resources with combination of marine biology and ecological methods; illuminating the characteristics of marine medicinal resources and their officinal essence with the methods of marine nature products chemistry, pharmacology and so on, to enrich the fingerprint data of medicinal organisms, at the same time, evaluating the potential value of marine resources to find out new marine medicinal resources. All these information will make contribution to the R&D of marine drugs and the improvement of Medicinal Chemistry, so that exploitation of marine resources could be rational and scientific.
The 12th Five-Year Plan
The predominant direction of the discipline has achieved international advanced level and been influential around the world after construction and development; Our research team has become Outstanding&Innovative team of Ministry of Education; Offering Doctoral Degrees in Pharmaceutical Sciences as well; Becoming a top technology platform of marine drugs, an academic exchange centre and a talented person cultivation base, in charge of the National Important Projects in marine drugs area; Making the whole discipline reach the level of national key discipline.
Specific Constructing Tasks and Goals
1. Team Development: Based on the present faculty, focusing on cultivating or introducing academic leaders(1-3) who are the winners of the National Science Foundation for Distinguished Young Scholars of China; Strengthening academic echelon construction of each research fields and expecting to introduce 10-15 young outstanding scholars. The number of Fixed faculty could reach 50-60, making sure 60-80 percent of them are PhDs.
2. Degree Program Establishment and Talents Cultivation: Improving infrastructure and research conditions, which make the degree program a top technology platform of marine drugs and a talented person cultivation base. Annual Goals: Postdoctors 2-3, PhDs ~20, Masters 40-50, Scholars 60-70.
3. Scientific Research: Conducting the following research mainly: ①Structure-activity relationship study of marine carbohydrates, discover the roles that marine carbohydrates play in lifetime, explaining the biological foundation that carbohydrates could be officinal; ②Finding medicinal leading compounds from marine organisms; ③Modifying structures and Synthesizing on the basis of bioactive compounds; ④Researching and developing innovative marine drugs and modern marine Chinese Traditional Medicine. Anticipate to finish the clinical study of 1-2 innovative drugs, start the clinical study of 1-2 innovative drugs, start preclinical study of 1-2 candidate drugs; Publishing 120-150 papers which are recorded by SCI; Applying for 20-30 patents; Conducting 2-6 “Project 863” programs and other National Key Programs, 6-10 NSFC as well.
4. Condition Improvement: The new labs occupies 2000m2, enlarge the Instrument Centre and the lab of bioactivity screening, purchasing apparatus that are essential for R&D of Drugs; For the purpose of becoming classic and innovative platform for developing marine drugs in China.
