Session: General Posters:

There is a need for changes in order to engage undergraduate science students in more authentic experiences, in the content of practical classes. In this sense, we have implemented at the University of Malaga (Spain) a new course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) which aims to be a practical introduction of the early stages of the drug discovery process. Within the subject "Pharmacological Biochemistry", fourteen 4th year-Biochemistry undergraduate students have undergone this experience throughout the 2020-21 academic course. Working in groups of 4-5, they have faced a situation that resembles the real-life scenario found by a professional working in the Medicinal Chemistry area. Guided by the challenging driving question: "How could we find inhibitors of acetylcholinesterase, as new drug candidates for the treatment of Alzheimer”, students have been involved in a meaningful learning process focused on proposing solutions to this question and carrying them out in a practical way, both in vitro and in silico. By applying the scientific method, they have asked questions, discussed protocols, taken and analyzed results, and drawn conclusions with the support of the specialized literature. This was done in an autonomous way, working in groups and under the supervision and guide of educators. The sequences of activities included: 1) Bibliographic research of the main characteristics of Alzheimer's disease, its current therapies and the role of acetylcholinesterase as a target for the identification of new drugs for patients’ treatment. 2) Design of an in vitro enzymatic assay to facilitate the blind screening of acetylcholinesterase inhibitors. After a bibliographic and commercial research, students identified the reagents and instrumentation required for an effective implementation in the laboratory. 3) Planning, optimization and practical application of an in vitro protocol, allowing each group of students to identify a given enzyme inhibitor among a series of unknown samples supplied by the instructor. 4) In silico studies, aimed to examine in detail the link between the active center of acetylcholinesterase and those inhibitors identified by students in their in vitro “blind screening”. 5) Writing of a summarizing report and presentation to a diverse audience. Our results indicate that the application of this experience has been very satisfactory, in terms of academic performance and students’ perception.

José Antonio Torres-Vargas

Appearances