BBSRC SWDTP studentship: Using physiology to improve the sustainability of fish aquaculture

Aquaculture is rapidly growing and will soon overtake wild-capture fisheries as our dominant source of seafood (FAO, 2010). Farming of salmon and trout is economically the most important within the EU and is rightly promoted as a healthy source of animal protein. However, ironically the culture of these carnivorous species may aid in the collapse of ocean fisheries, due to the requirement for wild-caught fishmeal in their diet. The student will join a dynamic and well-founded team using physiological approaches to investigate novel ways of improving sustainability of aquaculture. Together with existing industrial collaborations, this will provide great support to the development of the PhD student. This project focuses on the physiological and energetic processes associated with digestion and recovery of blood chemistry following a meal. In particular, the “alkaline tide” (rise in blood pH and bicarbonate after a meal) is only recently discovered in fish (Cooper and Wilson, 2008) but has a number of important, but poorly understood, whole organism repercussions (e.g. acid-base, ion and osmotic regulation, respiratory gas transport, nitrogenous waste excretion). These incur energetic costs that raise metabolic demand after a meal and detract from energy invested in growth. This PhD project will study the integrated functions of multiple systems and tissues and aims to combine in vivo and in vitro physiology with gene and protein expression to assess dietary manipulations designed to improve the efficiency of converting food into growth. It will assess the applicability of such diets in fish species that include carnivores, omnivores and herbivores used in aquaculture globally.

This project has been shortlisted for funding by the BBSRC South West Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP), a collaboration between the Universities of Exeter, Bristol, Bath and Rothamsted Research institute. This project is one of a number that are in competition for funding. Studentships will be awarded on the basis of merit. The four year programme is designed to provide training in cutting edge world-class bioscience and food security research, including a structured first year of tailored taught courses and the completion of two laboratory rotations before progression onto the three year PhD. In addition, following the postgraduate training policy of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), all students will complete a three month professional internship, providing an invaluable experience of work outside of academic research. For further details about the programme please see http://www.bristol.ac.uk/swdtp/

Applicants for this studentship must have obtained, or be about to obtain, a First or Upper Second Class UK Honours degree, or the equivalent qualifications gained outside the UK, in an appropriate area of science or technology.

The studentship will cover a stipend at the standard Research Council rate (£13,726 per annum for 2013-2014), research costs and tuition fees at the UK/EU rate for students who meet the residency requirements outlined by the BBSRC (see http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/web/FILES/Guidelines/studentship_eligibility.pdf).

Application procedures:

Please upload the following documents to the studentship application form -
http://www.exeter.ac.uk/postgraduate/money/studentships/application/

• CV
• Covering letter (outlining your academic interests, prior research experience and reasons for wishing to undertake the project).
• Transcript(s) giving full details of subjects studied and grades/marks obtained (this should be an interim transcript if you are still studying)
• 2 references (if your referees prefer, they can email the reference direct to [Email Address Removed])

If you have any general enquiries about the application process please email [Email Address Removed] or phone +44 (0)1392 725150/723706/723310. Project specific queries should be directed to the supervisor.

The closing date for applications is midnight on Tuesday 2nd April 2013. We anticipate that interviews will take place at the end of April.