Faculty of Health and Life Sciences
Department of Biological and Medical Sciences
1 Year,
full-time Masters by Research funded Studentship (Fees and Project Costs only)
Eligibility: Home, EU and International
applicants
Bursary: There is NO Bursary attached to this
Studentship
Fees and Project costs: Fees and project
costs will be met by the University for the one full-time year of the
Studentship.
Closing
date: 3
February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: Development of
advanced fluorescence collation spectroscopy (FCS) approaches to study the role
of chaperone variants in the biogenesis and functional expression of brain
nicotinic receptors involved in cognition.
Director of Studies: Dr Isabel Bermudez
Project Description:
Our
research programme on the genetic basis of backward speech and cognitive
functions has revealed complex interactions between variants of nicotinic
receptor subunits and the chaperones that regulate their biogenesis and
trafficking to the cell surface. As shown by our fretting confocal microscopy
data, these interactions and their consequences for the trafficking of the
receptors appear to be governed by the affinity between the chaperone and the
receptor subunits. To determine how the interactions are regulated and how they
drive trafficking we need to analyse the molecular dynamics of these
interactions. An innovative and highly advanced approach to do this is by
advanced confocal microscopy approaches such as dual colour fluorescence correlation
spectroscopy (FCS) as this approach allows to insight the temporal dynamics of
protein-protein interactions. The
project will comprise two phases: a) Phase 1, engineering of fluorescent
chaperones and nicotinic receptor subunits. Several fluorescent proteins will
be engineered in order to determine the fluorophores that lead to accurate
measurements of protein fluctuations and diffusion. Phase 2 will focus on
developing the FCS conditions required to measure protein fluctuations and
diffusion so that the dynamics of the interactions between chaperones and
nicotinic receptor subunits and the rate of trafficking are quantified.
The
appointed candidate will acquire experience and expertise on tissue culture,
standard molecular biological techniques and advanced confocal microscopy.
Contact:
ibermudez@brookes.ac.uk
Requirements:
Applicants
should have a first or upper second-class honours degree from a Higher
Education Institution or acceptable equivalent qualification in biological
science or related discipline. Non-UK Applicants must have a valid IELTS
Academic test certificate (or equivalent) with an overall minimum score of 7.0
and no score below 6.0 issued in the last 2 years by an approved test
centre.
How to apply: Applicants should
email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an application form.
Faculty of
Health and Life Sciences
Department of
Biological and Medical Sciences
3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship
Eligibility: Home, EU and International applicants
Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees (2021/22
bursary rate is £15,609)
Fees and Bench
fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years of
the funded Studentship.
Closing date: 3 February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: Exploring the role of extracellular vesicles in cancer metastasis
Director of
Studies: Professor Susan Brooks
Other
supervisors: Dr Priya Samuel, Dr Ryan Pink
Project
Description:
How cancer cells spread (metastasise) around the
body is not well understood, but it is crucially important as there are
currently no ways to prevent it, and is ultimately the cause of death in most
cancer patients. During the process, the cancer cells interact with, and
influence, normal cells including endothelial cells that line blood vessels,
fibroblasts of the connective tissue, and immune cells.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are released by all
cells. They carry cargo, including proteins and RNA molecules, which are taken
up and signal to other cells. EVs are deregulated in pathological conditions,
including cancer. However, the range of ways in which they can contribute to
metastasis has not been fully explored.
We have shown that EVs released by cancer cells
carry proteins with an altered glycosylation pattern. They interact with a
receptor on the surface of normal target cells, which may lead to the seeding
of a ‘pre-metastatic niche’, helping the cancer cells to colonise the new
tissue.
The aim of this project is to interrogate these
interactions, and especially to understand how cancer cells in the blood stream
are ‘snared’ by endothelial cells before invading into a new site. The
project will involve the use of cell culture, functional assays of cell
adhesion and migration, flow cytometry,
advanced microscopy, gene knockdowns and protein and genetic analysis to
study the response of normal cells to EV signals from cancer cells. We are
seeking a motivated and talented student to join our vibrant team on this
fascinating project.
Contact: p.samuel@brookes.ac.uk
Requirements:
Applicants should have a first or upper
second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution or acceptable
equivalent qualification in biological science or related discipline. Non-UK
Applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent)
with an overall minimum score of 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last
2 years by an approved test centre.
The studentship requires you to undertake 6
hours teaching per week during semester time.
How to apply: Applicants should email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an application form.
Faculty of
Health and Life Sciences
Department of
Biological and Medical Sciences
3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship
Eligibility: Home, EU and International applicants
Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees (2021/22
bursary rate is £15,609)
Fees and Bench
fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years of
the funded Studentship.
Closing date: 3 February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: Fat fetuses: endocrine control of adipose tissue development
Director of
Studies: Dr Alison Forhead
Other
supervisors: Laura Gathercole, David Meredith
Project
Description:
Background Development of adipose tissue before birth is
crucial for energy storage, adipokine secretion and thermogenesis in the
neonatal period and has implications for cardiometabolic health in later
life. Near term, changes in the
structure and function of adipose tissue are observed in both human and ovine
fetuses in association with developmental increases in circulating cortisol and
thyroid hormones. Offspring born
preterm, before the rises in maturational hormones, are at greater risk of
hypothermia at birth and insulin resistance in adulthood.
Project Aims
The aim of the project is to determine the role
of cortisol and thyroid hormones in the regulation of growth and development of
adipose tissue in utero, and the molecular mechanisms responsible.
The project will test the hypothesis that normal
rising concentrations of these hormones mature adipose structure and key
biological functions near term.
The specific objectives are to examine in sheep
fetuses treated with glucocorticoids or thyroid hormones:
1. the relative proportion of white and brown
adipocytes, and white adipocyte size, in the perirenal adipose depot
2. the adipose transcriptome and differential
gene expression
3. the expression of key proteins in
thermoregulatory, insulin and adipokine signalling and other pathways
The postgraduate student will elucidate novel
mechanisms responsible for the development of adipose tissue before birth. Specifically, they will define the molecular
pathways by which hormones regulate maturation of adipose structure and
function with consequences for the short and longer term. Skills learnt will include stereology,
RNA-sequencing and bioinformatics analysis and Western blotting.
Contact: aforhead@brookes.ac.uk
Requirements:
Applicants should have a first or upper
second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution or acceptable
equivalent qualification in biological science or related discipline. Non-UK
Applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent)
with an overall minimum score of 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last
2 years by an approved test centre.
The studentship requires you to undertake 6
hours teaching per week during semester time.
How to apply: Applicants should email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an
application form.
Faculty of
Health and Life Sciences
Department of
Biological and Medical Sciences
3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship
Eligibility: Home, EU and International applicants
Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees (2021/22
bursary rate is £15,609)
Fees and Bench
fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years of
the funded Studentship.
Closing date: 3 February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: Uncovering the secret life of transcription factors
Director of
Studies: Dr Barbara Jennings
Other
supervisors: Dr Korneel Hens
Project
Description:
Precise control of gene expression is critical
for the development and survival of all animals. Failure of gene regulation
during development usually results in death of the embryo or birth defects, and
in adult life leads to disease including cancer. Transcription factors that
recognize specific DNA sequences play a central role in gene regulation. Their
action can be either to enhance (activate) or inhibit (repress) transcription
of specific target genes. Most transcription factors do not have intrinsic
activator or repressive activity but recruit co-factors that regulate
transcription. For example, the Groucho family of co-repressor proteins are
recruited by many different transcription factors that repress transcription
during animal development. Although the importance of gene repression is well
established, the molecular mechanisms underlying repression by transcription
factors is not well understood.
The aim of this project is to uncover molecular
mechanisms used by transcription factors to repress transcription. The project
will focus on transcription factors that recruit Groucho family proteins, using
the fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) as a model system. The successful
applicant will examine the effects of specific mutations that they will
engineer into the gene encoding Groucho on gene expression and development.
They will be taught skills including molecular biology, CRISPR, confocal
microscopy, single cell sequencing and bioinformatics. This project will be
carried out in collaboration with the Oxford Brookes Centre for Functional
Genomics, the Oxford Brookes Centre for Bioimaging and Dr Jordi Solana.
Contact: bjennings@brookes.ac.uk
Requirements: Applicants should have a first or upper
second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution or acceptable
equivalent qualification in biological science or related discipline. Non-UK
Applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent)
with an overall minimum score of 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last
2 years by an approved test centre.
The studentship requires you to undertake 6
hours teaching per week during semester time.
How to apply: Applicants should email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an application form.
Faculty of
Health and Life Sciences
Department of
Biological and Medical Sciences
3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship
Eligibility: Home, EU and International applicants
Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees
(2021/22 bursary rate is £15,609)
Fees and Bench
fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years
of the funded Studentship.
Closing date: 3 February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: Functional characterisation of a novel class of insect ligand-gated
ion channels
Director of
Studies: Dr Andrew Jones
Other
supervisors: Prof
Philip Biggin (University of Oxford)
Project Description: Insect ligand-gated ion channels (LGICs) are molecular targets of
highly effective insecticides. Further studies of these receptors will help
understand better how insecticides work and aid in the design of novel
compounds that selectively target pest species whilst sparing non-target
organisms. The restricted use of neonicotinoids in the European Union amidst
fears that they are having adverse effects on pollinators such as the honey
bee, Apis mellifera, has resulted in the use of an older class of pesticides,
pyrethroids, to which pests have become resistant. There is thus the need to develop
novel and safer pest control agents.
The project will functionally characterise a novel class of insect
LGIC, a serotonin-gated ion channel, recently identified at Oxford Brookes
University. Techniques used will include PCR, DNA cloning, two-electrode
voltage-clamp electrophysiology and, in collaboration with Prof. Philip Biggin
at the University of Oxford, three-dimensional homology modelling of the LGICs.
The serotonin receptor from insect pests that damage crops, such as moths and
beetles, as well as from non-target insects, such as the honey bee, will be
studied to determine whether there are differences that can be exploited in the
rational design of improved insecticides that have higher selectivity for pests
over beneficial species.
Contact: a.jones@brookes.ac.uk
Requirements: Applicants should have a first or upper
second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution or acceptable
equivalent qualification in biological science or related discipline. Non-UK
Applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent)
with an overall minimum score of 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last
2 years by an approved test centre.
The studentship requires you to undertake 6
hours teaching per week during semester time.
How to apply: Applicants should email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an
application form.
Faculty of
Health and Life Sciences
Department of
Biological and Medical Sciences
3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship
Eligibility: Home, EU and International applicants
Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees
(2021/22 bursary rate is £15,609)
Fees and Bench
fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years
of the funded Studentship.
Closing date: 3 February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: Barking up the right tree: the evolutionary and ecological drivers of
niche diversification and an adaptive radiation in the feather-legged Assassin
bugs.
Director of
Studies: Dr Verena Kriechbaumer
Other
supervisors: Dr Matt Bulbert, Dr Saad Arif; Professor
Christiane Weirauch (University of California Riverside)
Project
Description: Would you like to do fieldwork in Australia
while developing expertise in genomics, systematics, ecology and behaviour
through a UK-US collaboration? In this project you will investigate how an
interplay between habitat use and dietary specialisation is potentially
responsible for driving niche separation and a suspected adaptive radiation in
the Feather-legged Assassin bugs (Reduviidae: Holoptilinae). The feather-legged
assassin bugs are specialist ant-eaters that use unparalleled luring strategies
to capture their prey. Their distribution is largely restricted to the tropics
of the old-world continents of Africa, Asia and Australia. Uniquely to
Australia though we see shifts in morphology, and habitat preference, and a
seven-fold increase in body size in a single genus. We hypothesize this shift
in characteristics is driven by the unique diversity of predatory ant species
to Australia and dispersal to new habitat types. This project aims to
reconstruct a comprehensive phylogeny of these bugs, using cutting-edge
phylogenomic methods, with an emphasis on the Australian endemics, in order to
answer questions like (but not limited too): Did adapting to being bark fauna
pre-date the spread of feather-legs to drier and hotter climatic zones? Has an
escalation in body size, reminiscent of an adaptive radiation, occurred through
either a co-evolutionary arms race or trailing exploitation? Does the shift in
body size and leg morphology reflect a co-option from using legs for defence
against ants to a predatory device to feed on ants? For this project you will
be based in the Conflict Ecology Lab at Oxford Brookes University, travel to
Australia for fieldwork and gain excellence in systematics from one of the
world’s leading entomology departments based at the University of California,
Riverside, USA.
Contact: mbulbert@brookes.ac.uk
Requirements:
Applicants should have a first or upper
second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution or acceptable
equivalent qualification in biological science or related discipline. Non-UK
Applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent)
with an overall minimum score of 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last
2 years by an approved test centre.
The studentship requires you to undertake 6
hours teaching per week during semester time.
How to apply: Applicants should email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an
application form.
Faculty of
Health and Life Sciences
Department of
Biological and Medical Sciences
3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship
Eligibility: Home, EU and International applicants
Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees
(2021/22 bursary rate is £15,609)
Fees and Bench
fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years
of the funded Studentship.
Closing date: 3 February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: Understanding the tissue specific role of ECSIT in mitochondrial
complex I assembly
Director of
Studies: Prof Sue Vaughan and Dr Paul Potter
Project
Description:
We have identified a point mutation (N209I) in
evolutionary conserved intermediate in toll signalling (ECSIT), an assembly factor
for mitochondrial complex I, that exhibits a profound, tissue specific,
reduction in complex I assembly in heart tissue resulting in hypertrophic
cardiomyopathy (https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.04.01.438015v1).
We have also shown that in mutant cardiac tissue there is a defective
processing of the ECSIT protein, which appears to be cleaved in normal tissue.
We will analyse the processing of tagged ECSIT constructs, firstly to confirm
cleavage of ECSIT as part of this process and then define the critical cleavage
site residues through further site directed mutagenesis. Using the
cardiomyocyte lines, HL-1 (murine) and AC16 (human). In parallel, we will carry
out in vitro mutagenesis of endogenous ECSIT using CRISPR Cas-9 in these
cardiomyocyte cell lines to establish an in vitro screen for ECSIT residues
critical to complex I assembly. The global KO of ECSIT is embryonic lethal and
so the tissue specificity of the requirements for ECSIT will be studied by
siRNA knockdown of ECSIT in a range of relevant, tissue derived cell lines. In
addition to the reduced assembly of complex I, the expression of complex I
components are specifically reduced in mutant tissue. We will investigate the
control of complex I component expression in primary tissues and cell lines,
looking at changes in transcription factors that may influence expression.
These studies will aid our understanding of the requirements for efficient
complex I assembly and its contributions to cardiac disease.
Contact: ppotter@brookes.ac.uk
Requirements:
Applicants should have a first or upper
second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution or acceptable
equivalent qualification in biological science or related discipline. Non-UK
Applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent)
with an overall minimum score of 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last
2 years by an approved test centre.
The studentship requires you to undertake 6
hours teaching per week during semester time.
How to apply: Applicants should email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an
application form.
Faculty of
Health and Life Sciences
Department of
Biological and Medical Sciences
3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship
Eligibility: Home, EU and International applicants
Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees (2021/22
bursary rate is £15,609)
Fees and Bench
fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years of
the funded Studentship.
Closing date: 3 February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: The influence of diet on
gene expression at the single cell level
Director of Studies: Dr Casper Breuker
Other
supervisors: Dr Korneel Hens, Dr Jordi Solana
Requirements:
Applicants should have a first or upper
second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution or acceptable
equivalent qualification in biological science or related discipline. Non-UK
Applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent)
with an overall minimum score of 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last
2 years by an approved test centre.
The studentship requires you to undertake 6
hours teaching per week during semester time.
Project
Description: Why do we fancy a sugary
desert but not a dry piece of bread after a large meal? Why do we continue
eating when no longer hungry? In a world struggling with obesity, it is crucial
to understand the molecular mechanisms involved in food choice. This is an exciting
opportunity to join the labs of Dr Korneel Hens and Dr Jordi Solana to study
these processes using state-of-the-art single-cell sequencing techniques.
Nutritional homeostasis involves adjusting feeding behaviour and post-digestive
physiology to balance food intake with energy expenditure. Regulation of gene
expression plays an important role by modulating diverse biological pathways
such as nutrient sensing, feeding behaviour, reward signalling and metabolism.
Single cell analysis methods have emerged as a powerful tool for investigating
gene regulation with single cell resolution. One of the most recent methods is
ACME dissociation and SPLiT-seq. This method allows fixing and dissociating
cells, preserving their physiological gene expression patterns, and obtaining
thousands of single cell transcriptomic profiles. We will generate samples of
two different lab model organisms exposed to several dietary regimes. First, we
will study the brain of the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster. We will use ACME and
SPLiT-seq to identify neuronal populations that are involved in the
transcriptional response to changes in diet. We will also use the freshwater
planarian Schmidtea mediterranea. Planarians have the ability of growing while
fed, but, most interestingly, shrinking when starved. Using ACME and SPLiT-seq
we have already identified putative energy storing cell types, as well as
multiple neuronal cell populations.
Contact: khens@brookes.ac.uk
How to apply: Applicants should email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an application form.
Faculty of
Health and Life Sciences
Department of
Biological and Medical Sciences
3 Year, full-time funded PhD Studentship
Eligibility: Home, EU and International applicants
Bursary p.a.: Bursary equivalent to UKRI national minimum stipend plus fees (2021/22
bursary rate is £15,609)
Fees and Bench
fees: will be met by the University for the 3 years of
the funded Studentship.
Closing date: 3 February 2022
Start Date: September 2022
Project Title: Leishmania attachment in the sand fly vector
Director of
Studies: Dr Jack Sunter
Other
supervisors: Prof Sue Vaughan
Project
Description:
Background: Leishmaniasis is a devastating disease that affects millions of people
around the world. The disease is caused by the Leishmania parasite which is
transmitted through the bite of the sand fly; therefore, understanding the
developmental cycle of the Leishmania parasite in the sand fly is critical to
controlling the transmission of this disease. Leishmania is a unicellular
flagellate parasite and in the sand fly the parasite has two forms – free
swimming or attached. The parasite attaches to the lining of the gut in the
sand fly through its flagellum, forming a complex structure call an attachment
plaque. Attachment is central to the biology of Leishmania yet we understand
very little about the molecular underpinnings of this process.
Aim: This exciting project using cutting edge molecular biology and imaging
techniques will unravel the regulatory pathway that controls differentiation
from a free swimming to attached parasite.
We will mine a comparative proteomic screen to
identify proteins upregulated in attached parasites. Then using CRISPR/Cas9
genome modification we generate Leishmania parasites expressing these candidate
proteins endogenously tagged with fluorescent proteins. Advanced fluorescence
light microscopy will then be used to identify those with a role in
differentiation. The function of these proteins and others identified by
bioinformatics will be analysed by generating deletion mutants using CRISPR
approaches in combination with cutting-edge light microscopy and 3D electron
microscopy approaches to define the points at which the mutants fail during
differentiation.
Contact: jsunter@brookes.ac.uk
Requirements: Applicants should have a first or upper
second-class honours degree from a Higher Education Institution or acceptable
equivalent qualification in biological science or related discipline. Non-UK
Applicants must have a valid IELTS Academic test certificate (or equivalent)
with an overall minimum score of 7.0 and no score below 6.0 issued in the last
2 years by an approved test centre.
The studentship requires you to undertake 6
hours teaching per week during semester time.
How to apply: Applicants should email hlsapplications@brookes.ac.uk to request an
application form.