The rapid development of chemical, physico-chemical and instrumental techniques and their wide spread application in Pharmaceutical Chemistry, together with the introduction of several new drugs, has created a need to write this book of Pharmaceutical Chemistry. Pharmaceutical chemistry is the study of drugs, and it involves drug development. This includes drug discovery, delivery, absorption, metabolism, and more. There are elements of biomedical analysis, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics. Pharmaceutical chemistry work is usually done in a lab setting. Drug discovery is the core of pharmaceutical chemistry. The drug discovery process includes all the stages of drug development, from targeting a disease or medical condition to toxicity studies in animals, or even, by some definitions, testing the drug on human subjects. Typically, conditions that affect a larger percentage of the population receive more attention and more research funding.

Antiulcer drugs and cholesterol- reducing agents are currently the therapeutic areas of greatest emphasis. To develop a drug to target a specific disease, researchers try to understand the biological mechanism responsible for that condition. If the biochemical pathways leading up to the disease are understood, scientists attempt to design drugs that will block one or several of the steps of the disease's progress. Alternatively, drugs that boost the body's own defense mechanism may be appropriate. This book is written with an idea to provide coverage of different methods of analysis. It will be useful for analysts, quality control chemist and research and development chemists working in drug industry. This book has been designed to serve the needs of pharmaceutical students as an introductory manual in the field of medicinal or pharmaceutical chemistry.