Fully-funded White Rose BBSRC DTP Biology project: Developing novel enzymatic cascades for carbon-carbon bond formation

Lead supervisor: Dr Benjamin Lichman (Department of Biology)

Co-supervisor: Prof Gideon Grogan (Department of Chemistry)

The student will be registered with the Department of Biology

The selective formation of carbon-carbon bonds is a crucial method in synthetic and medicinal chemistry. However, traditional catalysts suffer from poor selectivity and the requirement for toxic or hazardous reagents. Nature, however, solves the problem of carbon-carbon bond formation by using enzymes. These biocatalysts act under mild, aqueous conditions, can act selectively, and have low negative environmental impact. 

In this project, you will develop a biocatalytic system for carbon-carbon bond formation originally derived from plants. You will express and purify enzymes using a variety of heterologous systems and synthesise potential substrates. Then, you will examine the scope of the biocatalytic system, exploring conditions and characterizing the products. You will also use crystallography to determine enzyme structures and then mutagenesis to engineer the enzymes. 

The Departments of Biology and Chemistry both hold an Athena SWAN Gold Award. We are committed to supporting equality and diversity and strive to provide a positive working environment for all staff and students. 

The WR DTP and the University of York are committed to recruiting future scientists regardless of age, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation or career pathway to date. We understand that commitment and excellence can be shown in many ways and we have built our recruitment process to reflect this. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds, particularly those underrepresented in science, who have curiosity, creativity and a drive to learn new skills.

Entry Requirements: Students with, or expecting to gain, at least an upper second class honours degree, or equivalent, are invited to apply. The interdisciplinary nature of this programme means that we welcome applications from students with any biological, chemical, and/or physical science backgrounds, or students with mathematical background who are interested in using their skills in addressing biological questions. 

Programme: PhD in Mechanistic Biology (4 years)

Start Date: 1st October 2023

Interviews: Friday 10 February 2023 or Monday 13 February 2023. Please keep these dates free.