MCOPS Diamond Jubilee Celebrations Lecture Series organized by the Department of Pharmaceutical Quality Assurance held on 14 October 2023 at 10:30 am in PGR conference hall. The esteemed speaker for the session was Dr T Thanga Mariappan, Scientific Director & Head of Pharmaceutical Candidate Optimization at Bristol Myers Squibb R&D Centre, Bengaluru. The event began with opening remarks, a warm welcome speech, and an introduction to the esteemed speaker by Dr Sudheer Moorkoth, Head of the Department Pharmaceutical Quality Assurance Department.

Dr Thanga emphasized on the importance of India's youth on the global stage and discussed the relatively low level of achievements in the field of drug discovery. Drawing a comparison between space research and drug research, he explained why drug research can be even more challenging than rocket science. The speaker elaborated on the stages of drug discovery, focusing on animal models for mechanistic understanding of the disposition of New Chemical Entities (NCEs) and drug disposition. He engaged the audience with a hypothetical example of a compound A and B featuring various scenarios of solubility and metabolism. This case study encompassed usage of different in-vivo animal models, including Portal vein cannulation in rat study, Intestinal perfusion with mesenteric sampling, pH-dependent absorption model and Bile duct cannulated rats. He explained each models and elaborated on the advantages and disadvantages of each model. Dr Thanga encouraged the audience to work together to solve the case study he presented. He also explained the reasons for choosing these models to evaluate the new NCEs. He concluded his lecture by delivering a powerful take-home message, imparting wisdom to motivate aspiring youths in their careers, and presenting an equation for success and happiness. Following the lecture, the audience had the opportunity to ask questions, which Dr Thanga graciously answered. Dr Sudheer Moorkoth delivered closing remarks, expressing gratitude to the speaker for sharing his valuable insights. He also thanked the attendees for their active participation in the event. The lecture provided valuable insights into drug discovery and mechanistic understanding, and it served as a source of inspiration for the future generation of pharmaceutical researchers. The program concluded with the felicitation of the esteemed speaker by Dr C Mallikarjuna Rao, Principal, MCOPS and Dr Krishnamurthy Bhat, Vice Principal, MCOPS.