Pharmacology

The Department of Pharmacology is part of the School of Therapeutic Sciences in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. It is an academic department working in the biomedical and pharmaceutical sciences.

Its research strengths lie in drug discovery, medicinal chemistry and pharmacology, including the study of novel antiprotozoal hybrids, copper-based anticancer complexes and biomaterial hydrogels for wound healing. Work in neuropharmacology and blood brain barrier biology addresses glioblastoma, Alzheimer disease and HIV associated neurocognitive disorders, while analytical drug quantification and therapeutics research cover HIV, chronic kidney disease and tuberculosis.

Further themes include targeted therapies for cancer, infectious diseases and neurodegeneration, and the linking of molecular innovation with patient centred outcomes. The department's publications show a focus on South Africa and its national and regional health priorities.