Course content

What is Nanomedicine ?

Nanomedicine is the application of Nanotechnology (materials with sizes in the nanometre range, i.e. 10-9 m) to promote innovation in Healthcare. Nanomedicine is a revolutionary interdisciplinary science, which combines knowledge from Pharmacy, Physics, Biology, Chemistry and Medicine to treat conditions and diseases of the human body at a molecular level. It has many applications, from drug therapy and diagnostics to individual cell repair, to artificial tissues and radiation therapy. The NANOMED EMJMD focuses on the Drug Delivery applications of Nanomedicine.

What is an EMJMD ?

Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degrees (EMJMDs) are highly integrated study programmes delivered by an international Consortium of Higher Education Institutions. They aim at fostering excellence, innovation, and internationalisation in Higher Education Institutions. EMJMDs are supported by the EACEA (European Education and Culture Executive Agency) of the European Commission and are part of the Erasmus + programme.

A key focus of EMJMDs is on encouraging mobility. The NANOMED curriculum is thus designed so that courses are held at different Partner Universities of the consortium, ensuring students spend time in at least two different countries of the consortium and has included two Traineeship periods as the research component of the degree.

Course content

The NANOMED EMJMD is a 23 month-long programme (120 ECTS) that is taught exclusively in English with a strong research component, including traineeships in the first and second years.

It offers high quality education in the emerging field of Nanomedicine with a strong emphasis on multidisciplinarity. Designing nanomedicines for drug delivery requires the combination of knowledge from various fields such as Pharmacy, Biology, Chemistry, Medicine, Physics or Engineering, which is why our Master programme values students from different backgrounds. The NANOMED EMJMD provides both theoretical and practical knowledge for 3 semesters (Semesters 1, 2 and 3, 30 ECTS each) combined with a final internship (Semester 4, 30 ECTS).

Semester 1 : Courses at Université Paris Cité OR University of Patras

Introduction to pharmaceutical formulation: from classical forms to nanoparticles.

Training will either take place in Patras or in Paris and will concern the Basis of Pharmaceutical Technology, i.e. Biopharmacy aspects, formulation, production as well as the related controls. This first step provides the essential knowledge necessary to work in Pharmaceutical domains and to introduce innovative drug delivery systems as used in Nanomedicine

An introductory biology or chemistry unit will be offered to non-pharmacy students with a background in chemistry or biology. Considering that some specific knowledge in both domains is required to efficiently design and develop pharmaceutical forms and in particular Nanomedicines, basic courses on biology will be provided to Chemists and chemistry courses to Biologists.

Semester 2 : Courses at Université Paris Cité

Basic Nanomedicine and Biomolecules

The Basic Nanomedicine module covers the design of nanovectors for various administration routes as well as their subsequent characterization and evaluation (theoretical and practical courses). The first three months are dedicated to taught classes and the semester is completed by a three-month long traineeship carried out at one of the research teams within the Consortium network.

A two-week long Summer School is organized at the end of semester 2 (July) in one of the four partner universities of the NANOMED Consortium to give students the opportunity to benefit from high quality conferences of an Invited Professor. During the Summer School students will also be in charge of organizing and participating in a two-days-long Workshop. This Workshop will give NANOMED students from first and second year as well as local PhD students the opportunity to present their research projects (oral and poster communications will be organized).

Semester 3 : Courses at Université d’Angers OR University of Pavia

Semester 3 will be dedicated to the Advanced Nanomedicine part of the curriculum. Students choose one of two specialization pathways and move to either the Université d’Angers, France or the University of Pavia, Italy depending on their route.

Strategy of Nanomedicine Development for Clinical Application

The Université d’Angers offers this specialization pathway focused on Clinical applications of Nanomedicine.

Production and Biotechnology applications of Nanomedicine

This curriculum, focusing on the biotechnological aspects, is offered by the University of Pavia

Semester 4 : Traineeship at Partner University OR outside the Consortium

During the final internship period (6 months from January to June), students will apply this new knowledge to the successful achievement of research and development projects on Nanomedicine in either an academic team or selected private companies.

During the two-day-long workshop held in July, 2^nd year students will defend their Master’s thesis in front of an international jury composed of external experts and NANOMED Professors.