The BBSRC-funded South West Biosciences Doctoral Training Partnership (SWBio DTP) involves a partnership of world-renown universities, research institutes and industry across the South West and Wales.
This partnership represents a distinctive group of bioscientists, with established international, national and regional networks, and widely recognised research excellence.
We aim to provide students with outstanding interdisciplinary research training within the following themes, underpinned by transformative technologies:
These are growth areas of the biosciences and for which there will be considerable future demand.
The award:
This project is one of a number that are in competition for funding from the South West Biosciences Doctoral Training Partnership (SWBio DTP).
Programme Overview
You will be recruited to a broad, interdisciplinary project, supported by a multidisciplinary supervisory team, with many cross-institutional projects available. There are also opportunities to:
• apply your research in an industrial setting (DTP CASE studentships).
• undertake research jointly with our core and associate partners (Standard DTP studentships with an
associatepartner).
• work with other national/international researchers.
• undertake fieldwork.
Our structured training programme will ensure you are well equipped as a bioscience researcher, supporting careers into academia, industry and beyond.
Project Description
With the future prospect of growing crops under harsher environmental conditions, the use of hydroponics is projected to increase over the new few decades (20% over the next 5 years, with industry currently being estimated at $100Bn). Lettuce – an economically important crop – is often grown hydroponically. Under these simplified growing conditions, lettuce crops are commonly destroyed by largescale devastating outbreaks of root-rot caused by species of the parasitic oomycetes Pythium. This typically results in a 10-20% total annual loss.
Host microbiomes play a key role in determining pathogen invasion success. For example, bacteria often compete for limiting resources, which could suppress successful colonisation of the host by the pathogen. On the other hand, bacteria often produce compounds that facilitate the growth of others (metabolic cross-feeding) with the potential to enhance successful pathogen invasion.This raises an important question – can we predict and optimise host-microbiome interactions to limit disease incidence? This project will combine mathematical, experimental evolution and genomic approaches to understand and manipulate the microbiome in a lettuce hydroponic system with the aim of preventing pathogen invasion.
We will track the assembly and succession of rootassociated and free-living microbial communities in an experimental hydroponic lettuce-microbiome system. Plant-microbe communities will be cultivated under different resource regimes, half of which will be experimentally invaded with Pythium. We will use fluxbalance analyses (FBA) to calculate the flow of metabolites in the system and predict bacterial growth rates under different growing conditions. The outcome of FBA will be compared to experimental data to determine whether single-species metabolic fluxes can be used to predict community assembly, succession, and Pythium invasion. In microbial communities, temporal changes can result from both ecological and evolutionary selection acting over similar timeframes, as well as physiological changes mediated by gene regulation. To determine the genetic changes underpinning community interactions, we will sequence a subset of bacterial genomes before and after long-term evolution with and without Pythium. We will determine the relative roles of mutation and gene regulation in determining species interactions and invasion resistance using a combination of genomics and transcriptomics.
We will achieve these aims using a highly interdisciplinary approach. Depending on the preference of the candidate, these will include microbiome research (Hesse), molecular evolution (Taylor), statistical modelling (Padfield) and experimental evolution (Buckling). We will closely work together with Concert Bio (Paul Rutten) – a new company that both monitors and enhances hydroponic microbiomes.
Part Time and Flexible Study Options
Part time study options maybe available please discuss with the supervisor. For further information please see - https://www.swbio.ac.uk/project-adjustments-part-time-study-and-flexible-working/
Due to complexities and restrictions associated with visas for part-time studies, we are currently unable to accept part-time international students to the programme.
Entry Requirements
Applicants should 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. Applicants with a Lower Second Class degree will be considered if they also have Masters degree or have significant relevant non-academic experience.
In addition, due to the strong mathematical component of the taught course in the first year and the quantitative emphasis in our projects, quantitative/mathematical experience is needed. This can be demonstrated through one or more of the following:
- Undertaking units as part of your degree that have a significant quantitative/mathematical component*
- Maths or Physics A-level (grade B and above)
*Significant mathematical component examples include; maths, statistics, bioinformatics.
Applicants must ensure they highlight their quantitative/mathematical background within their application and to upload any supporting evidence.
To support accessibility to PhD training opportunities, these studentships are only available to applicants that have not previously obtained or about to obtain a PhD degree (or equivalent).
How to apply
The closing date for applications is midnight on Monday, 5 December 2022. Interviews will be held between 1st and 15th February 2023.
If you have any general enquiries about the application process please email [Email Address Removed].
Project-specific queries should be directed to the primary supervisor.
For further information and to submit an application please visit - https://www.exeter.ac.uk/study/funding/award/?id=4584
Selection Process:
Please note, the studentship selection process will take place in two stages:
For further information please go to - https://www.swbio.ac.uk/programme/selection-process/
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