Admission requirements
Master students of Bio-Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biomedical Sciences, Life Science & Technology, Molecular Science & Technology. Required background knowledge is fundamental knowledge in biology, chemistry (Bachelor’s level) is needed.
Description
In this course, students will be introduced to the main drivers for miniaturization in the drug discovery, and clinical fields, as well as the analytical challenges that arise from these. After this introduction, the course will be divided into two main parts, given by Dr. Wouters, and Dr. Ali respectively. Part I, given by Dr. Wouters, will focus on different steps of a typical miniaturized analytical workflow; sample intake (single cell capillary sampling, microneedles, droplet microfluidics, acoustic sampling, etc.), and sample preparation and sample separation (microfluidics and microfabrication, miniaturized sample preparation, etc.). Part II, given by Dr. Ali, will focus on different analytical techniques that are often used in miniaturized workflows (MS imaging, nanospray MS, microcoil NMR, Raman spectroscopy, etc), data analysis pipelines, as well as the varying applications of miniaturized analytical workflows in drug discovery, medicine, and in portable lab-on-chip solutions.
This course aims to:
Understand the drivers for Miniaturized Analytical Systems, including sample- or volume-limited use cases, portability and small footprint, or the unique physical properties of microfluidic systems.
Give an introduction in the different design principles of miniaturized analytical workflows.
Get familiar with the latest developments in different steps of miniaturized analytical workflows; from sample intake to sample preparation and separation, and data acquisition.
Get insight into current applications of miniaturized analytical approaches in the pharmaceutical industry, medicine, lab-on-chip and point-of-care use.
Allow the students to design miniaturized analytical workflows to tackle biological, clinical, and pharmaceutical problems.
Note that these are expert lectures series and that hence the content might change every year.
Course objectives
At the end of this course the student is able to:
Describe and explain the main drivers for miniaturized analytical systems.
Describe and explain the different steps of current miniaturized analytical platforms.
Describe and explain the current applications of miniaturized analytical approaches in the pharmaceutical industry, medicine, lab-on-chip, and point-of-care use.
Design miniaturized workflows to answer specific experimental needs in biomedical studies.
Read scientific literature and can critically reflect on the rational and experimental approach of the study as well as on the results presented and conclusions drawn by the authors.
Present a scientific research paper to peers.
Timetable
This course is scheduled for semester 2, period 3
A detailed course schedule will be published on Brightspace.
Mode of instruction
Lectures (39.5).
Tutorial (3.5).
Tutoring (7).
Self-tuition (70).
Assessment method
For each individual exam, the grade is expressed either with pass or fail, or by using a decimal integer between 1.0 and 10.0 that should be ≥ 5.5. The final grade is expressed using an integer between 1 and 10 and can be rounded off/up to a half integer, with the exception of the grade 5.5. Final grades between 5.50 and 5.99 will be rounded up to 6.0. The final grade should be 6.0 to successfully complete this course.
Reading list
Will be announced during the course.
Registration
Application via uSis for both the course and exam is mandatory. Registration for the course closes 14 days before the start of the course or earlier when the maximum number of students is reached. Registration for the exam closes 7 days before the exam date or earlier when the maximum number of students is reached.
Contact
Coordinator: Dr. Bert Wouters (e-mail: b.wouters@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl; tel. +31 71 527 6218).
Co-Coordinator: Dr. Ahmed Ali (e-mail: a.m.a.m.ali@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl; tel. +31 71 527 2727).
Remarks
This information is without prejudice. Alterations can be made for next year.