Science Lesson No. 7

Todd and Faye Davis are pharmaceutical scientists. Faye Brady Davis trained under Todd’s direction. He is her mentor, meaning he has much more experience than her—in more ways than one. But what exactly is a pharmaceutical scientist? What do they do, exactly?

First of all, let me say, they are NOT pharmacists. Todd does have a degree in pharmacy, but he is not a practicing pharmacist—not anymore, anyway. Annette saw to that.

A pharmacist works with existing drugs. They dispense medications and educate patients concerning their use. Pharmaceutical scientists work to develop new drugs and can be involved in any of the processes it takes to get a new drug to market: discovery, testing, development, and manufacturing. It can take a long time to get a drug to market and many compounds do not make it through the rigorous processes that are involved. Todd thinks he’s got a real winner with the compound xe51β. He and Faye work tirelessly to see how the drug interacts with disease-causing cells. They also test the compound in animals, making sure it’s safe and effective.

How does it turn out? Well, you’ll have to read The Blow-up Man to find out. Trust me—it won’t be boring. Bye for now, Nina B.