A fully funded PhD position is available at the School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, for 3 years starting in September 2017. Scholarship covers maintenance (living) costs and tuition fees at the UK/European fee level, and international (non-European Union) candidates would have to pay the difference between home and international fees with their own funding.

Background: It is possible to manipulate the lifespan of model organisms by genetic, dietary, and pharmacological means. However, the fundamental mechanisms regulating ageing at the cellular and physiological levels are still poorly understood. Pharmacological manipulations offer a major avenue to elucidate mechanisms of ageing. Compounds such as those with a mitochondrial dysfunctional effect, antioxidants, and anticonvulsants can modulate lifespan in model organisms. However, the relation between mitochondrial function, oxidative stress, and biological ageing is complex, and the ageing field lacks coherent data demonstrating the effect of pharmaceuticals on mitochondrial function. This will be addressed in this project. This PhD project will bring in expertise in biochemistry, cheminformatics, and biogerontology to quantitate the impact of geroprotective drugs on various measures of mitochondrial function and relate these to the chemical structures of drugs. The aim is to develop computational models to investigate the role of mitochondrial function and specific structural motifs in modulating lifespan.

This is an interdisciplinary project based at the School of Life Sciences in the University of Sussex involving Dr Tara Ghafourian and Prof. Tony Moore, with external collaborators in biogerantology, synthetic chemistry, and bioinformatics at the University of Brighton (Dr Lizzy Ostler and Prof. Richard Faragher) and University of Kent (Dr Jennifer Tulett and Prof. Alex Freitas).

Entry requirements: You will have, or will be about to obtain a 1^st/2:1 Bachelor’s or MSc degree, or equivalent, in a relevant subject such as biochemistry, pharmacy, biology, or similar subject areas with a solid understanding of chemistry. You will be enthusiastic and committed to excellent research, self-driven and independent, be able to work well in a team as well as individually. Previous research experience in one of the relevant research areas such as biochemistry, chemistry, or molecular modelling will be an advantage but not necessary.

Since the scholarship normally only covers fees at the UK/EU rate, overseas applicants are kindly requested to state in their application how they propose to cover the difference between the UK/EU rate and the overseas fees (for more details please see http://www.sussex.ac.uk/study/pg/fees-and-scholarships/postgraduate-fees).

Contact for informal enquiries

For further information please contact the main supervisor, Dr Tara Ghafourian ([email protected]; 01273 872811).

source:jobs.ac.uk