Hannah Eyre UTS Medicinal Chemistry Transcript

[Upbeat music playing, shot of entrance to lab, Hannah opens door]

Hi you’re here- I’m Hannah come this way.

[Camera follows Hannah through corridor]

Text: The Graduate Tour Medicinal Chemistry

[Interviewer] So medicinal chemistry… what is that?

Medicinal chemistry is the intersection of biology, pharmacology and organic chemistry.

[Interviewer] Okay say you have to simplify that a little more?

Yeah sure. So we use those three sciences to be able to design drugs for the treatment of disease, infection and other illnesses. Here, you’ll need this.

[Hannah hands interviewer a lab coat]

[Interviewer] Thanks

[Hannah opens door and enters lab with interviewer]

So basically I work in antibiotic drug design. I take the understanding we have of bacteria and look at new ways to design drugs to stop them in their tracks.

[Interviewer] So is that because humans are becoming more and more resistant to antibiotics?

Yes. So I’m not sure about you, but I’ve actually taken antibiotics before and stopped before the course was over. Whilst this treats the symptoms, it doesn’t actually get rid of all of the bacteria in your body. On top of that, the bacteria has actually learned how to fight off the antibiotics in future treatment.

[Interviewer] So are you curing disease?

Not quite- disease is caused by infection, so what I’m trying to do is stop the infection once it’s inside the body.

[Camera fast-forwards following Hannah through lab to a computer, which Hannah is working at]

[Interviewer] What are we looking at here?

Right now I’m drawing up drugs that we already know stop bacteria. I’m hoping to use this in order to create new drugs that will do it even better.

[Interviewer] So what I can see on that screen right now is the science behind a drug that I might one day take?

Hopefully. Unfortunately, it does take up to ten years from discovery until it’s at the consumer’s shelf because of all the obstacles we go through. However, even if they don’t create the new drug it will help contribute to further research.

[Interviewer] So why did you pick medicinal chemistry?

I had a passion for organic chemistry and I really feel like drug design will be able to contribute to society

[Shots of Emma working in lab]

[Interviewer] I’m guessing you did all three sciences in high school, right?

No actually, I studied photography, literature and psychology in high school, but after a couple of years off I developed a love for nutrition which led me to chemistry.

[Interviewer] Okay so it looks like you’ve got your hands full here, are we right just to show ourselves out?

Yeah no worries, the door is just that way

[camera fast-forwards exiting lab]

Source video: https://youtu.be/K8T1hNQ80zc

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