This course is not currently offered, please contact the school or faculty of your program.

Course description

This course focuses on the discovery of new scientific concepts from plants and how these could possibly be developed into commercial products. The emphasis is on learning new skills in biodiscovery and how we can apply our academic knowledge in the real world with the aim to increase students¿ employability. The course includes the discovery of new drugs (many medicines come from plants) and nutritional aspects (development of healthy food). It covers medicinal plants and new food sources with an emphasis on Australian natives, showcasing the value of plant and metabolic diversity. The course is highly interdisciplinary, covering all aspects from initial screening to translational research and commercialisation. Topics include the selection of plants based on their environment, screening of bioactive compounds with medical or nutritional value, compound isolation, functional characterisation, bioavailability, mode of action, and translational research, including human trials and commercialisation.