PHARMACEUTICAL

Pharmaceutical Engineering is a branch of pharmaceutical science and technology that involves development and manufacturing of products, processes, and components in the pharmaceuticals industry (i.e. drugs & biologics). While developing pharmaceutical products involves many interrelated disciplines (e.g. medicinal chemists, analytical chemists, clinicians/pharmacologists, pharmacists, chemical engineers, biomedical engineers, etc.), the specific subfield of "pharmaceutical engineering" has only emerged recently as a distinct engineering discipline. This now brings the problem-solving principles and quantitative training of engineering to complement the other scientific fields already involved in drug development.

Common Specialities :

  • Pharmaceutical Development Sciences - broadly, assays or techniques for discovering, modifying, or designing drug substances or excipients; in particular, rational drug design - as a relatively recent alternative to traditional trial-and-error drug discovery processes - relies upon principles of engineering more than many other pharmaceutical sciences such as formulation or medicinal chemistry.
  • Bio-/Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Science - optimal processes for producing drug substances & products with quality and efficiency
  • Clinical Science - applying engineering principles toward conduct of studies to assess safety & efficacy, for the medical community and regulators
  • Regulatory Science - scientific bases for regulatory decision-making (typically by the FDA, in the U.S.), with an emphasis on risk-benefit analysis
  • Pharmaceutical Devices - designing instruments, tools, or implants which facilitate the making, handling, or use of drugs (e.g. drug delivery chips)