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New Degree At Manchester University Combines The Study Of DNA And Pharmacy

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Pharmacogenomics combines the study of DNA with medicine to create a specialized medical recommendation for individual patients.

Manchester University announced Monday it’s introducing a master’s degree that combines pharmacy and the study of DNA. University officials say it’s the only master’s degree of its kind in the nation.

Pharmacogenomics studies patients’ genes and determines how they will respond to certain medicines.

Raylene Rospond is the dean of Manchester University’s College of Pharmacy. She says the genetics testing industry is expanding, and this degree could bring jobs and people to Indiana.

“This is not simply about understanding the science, it’s about helping individuals to get very specialized, personalized medicine so that they can get more effective care with a reduction in the type of side effects they might have experienced,” Rospond said.

According to the university’s website, students who graduate with a degree in pharmacogenomics can get jobs in genetics testing, the pharmaceutical industry or go on to get their doctorate in medicine, pharmacy or dentistry.

Classes for the one-year program are set to begin in summer 2016.

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