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PhD Research Project: DiMeN Doctoral Training Partnership: Bacterial-associated oncogenesis: Invest

Employer
Global Academy Jobs
Location
United Kingdom
Closing date
Jan 6, 2017

Job Details

Details

Background
The human intracellular bacterial pathogen Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (S.Typhi) causes systemic typhoid fever resulting in 27 million cases of disease and 200,000 deaths each year. S.Typhi is a stealth pathogen and a hallmark feature is its ability to also establish persistent chronic infections in the gall bladder where the pathogen is associated with causing cancer. Oncogenesis is exacerbated in humans carrying gene mutations that predispose individuals to gall bladder cancer. This is relevant to public health, as a link between infection and tumour development may result in personalised therapeutic protocols.

How S.Typhi persists in host cells and promotes oncogenesis is not known. S.Typhi initiates infections by injecting virulence proteins into mammalian host cells to direct uptake and replication within intracellular Salmonella-containing vacuoles (SCVs). From its intracellular niche, S.Typhi secretes the typhoid toxin into the extracellular milieu where it enters target host cells. Once inside the cell the toxin traffics to the nucleus where it reprogrammes cell cycle progression, causes DNA damage and manipulates cellular signalling through nuclease and ADP-ribosylase activities. Recent evidence shows that typhoid toxin mediates establishment of persistent infections in animal hosts, and persistence underlies S.Typhi-associated tumour development.

Project
The mechanisms by which typhoid toxin manipulates cells to drive persistent infections are not understood, and the significance of the toxin to S.Typhi’s stealth virulence strategy and bacterial-associated oncogenesis has not been addressed. The PhD project will investigate these research questions using purified toxin derivatives and infection models in combination with the latest advances in molecular cell biology, fluorescence microscopy, and automated high-throughput screening technologies.

The student will join the laboratory of Dr. Daniel Humphreys (first supervisor) at the Department of Biomedical Science (BMS), University of Sheffield. The project will establish assays to study mammalian cells intoxicated with typhoid toxin using molecular, biochemical, genetic and fluorescence imaging approaches. In particular, how the toxin perturbs nuclear functions in cells predisposed to oncogenesis during S.Typhi infection will be examined using high resolution using structural resolution microscopy at the Wolfson Light Microscopy Suite at the BMS.

Having established the project foundations an RNAi screen will be developed with Dr. Steve Brown (third supervisor) at the RNAi Screening Facility, University of Sheffield. The PhD student will be trained to use robotics and automated microscope systems to perform high-throughput RNAi screens aimed at identifying host genes required for cellular manipulation by the typhoid toxin.

Finally, the student will use Salmonella infection models, intoxication and cell transformation assays to investigate the significance of genes identified in the screen on pathogen persistence and the generation of bacterial-associated oncogenic phenotypes. These project components will be developed in the laboratories of the first supervisor and the second supervisor, Dr. Anjam Kahn, at the University of Newcastle.

To combat typhoid fever we need to understand the hijack mechanisms employed by S.Typhi to cause disease. By bringing together researchers from the University of Sheffield and the University of Newcastle, three areas of expertise will be combined to provide excellent scientific training and exposure to a broad range of techniques in a project of enormous biomedical significance.

Funding Notes

DiMeN DTP studentships are funded for 3.5 years and include:

- Tax-free maintenance grant set at the UK Research Council's national rate.
- Full payment of tuition fees at the Home/EU rate.
- A Research Training Support Grant to support your research studies.

Successful Home students will receive a full studentship. EU students will be considered for a full studentship/fees only support depending on the excellence of their qualifications and their employment/residency status.

Please carefully read the instructions on eligibility and how to apply at our website and use the link on the page to submit an application: http://www.dimen.org.uk/how-to-apply/application-overview

Company

Global Academy Jobs works with over 250 universities worldwide to promote academic mobility and international research collaboration. Global problems need international solutions. Our jobs board and emails reach the academics and researchers who can help.

"The globalisation of higher education continues apace, driving in turn the ongoing development of the global knowledge economy, striving for solutions to the world’s problems and educating a next generation of leaders and contributors."

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