Human lung 3D culture model to assess antiviral effects of novel compounds against SARS-CoV-2 variants at University of Westminster on FindAPhD.com

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Dr A McCormick, Dr M V Dwek, Dr Hassan Morad No more applications being accepted Self-Funded PhD Students Only

London United Kingdom Biotechnology Genomics Immunology Molecular Biology Structural Biology Virology

About the Project

The School of Life Sciences at the University of Westminster is pleased to offer a self-funded opportunity for a prospective PhD researcher starting in September 2023. The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 and resulting pandemic has highlighted the need for effective tools and physiologically relevant methods for assessing viral infectivity and potential antiviral drug candidates that are limited-to-date. In this project a human lung 3D model consisting of an air/liquid interface, with upper and lower human lung epithelial cells obtained from diverse individuals, will be evaluated as a tool for screening novel antivirals and repurposed drugs against SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory viruses that might lead to future pandemics. The project will also work towards developing a more sophisticated “breathing” lung-on-a-chip system.

Entry requirements and how to apply

Candidates should normally have a minimum classification of 2.1 in their Bachelor Degree or equivalent and preferably a Masters degree. Applicants whose secondary level education has not been conducted in the medium of English should also demonstrate evidence of appropriate English language proficiency normally defined as IELTS: 6.5 (overall score with not less than 6.0 in any of the individual elements).

You can read more about what should be in a PhD research proposal here:

https://www.westminster.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research-degrees/entry-requirements/how-to-write-your-research-proposal

You can read more about our entry requirements here:

http://westminster.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research-degrees/entry-requirements

Funding Notes

Information about costs – These opportunities are self-funded only *2023/4 fees per annum:
Home £5,800 full-time, £2,900 part-time.
Overseas £14,850 full-time, £7,425 part-time.
Bench Fees circa: £4,000 pa
* Minimum full-time enrolment before submission is 33 months. Following that there is a six month no fee period for writing up. Should a doctoral research student not have submitted by the end of the no fee period then a £1,500 fee is applicable.

References

• Morad, H.O.J., Luqman, S., Pinto, L.G., Cunningham, K.P., Vilar, B., Clayton, G., Shankar-Hari, M. and McNaughton, P.A. 2022. Artemisinin inhibits neutrophil and macrophage chemotaxis, cytokine production and NET release. Scientific Reports. 12 (1), pp. 1-18.
• Hatami Fard, G., Moinipoor, Z., Anastasova-Ivanova, S., Iqbal, H.M.N., Dwek, M., Getting, S.J. and Keshavarz, T. 2022. Development of chitosan, pullulan, and alginate-based drug-loaded nano-emulsions as a potential malignant melanoma delivery platform. Carbohydrate Polymer Technologies and Applications. 4 100250.
• Morad, Hassan, Suaib Luqman, Chun-Hsiang Tan, Victoria Swann, and Peter A. McNaughton. "TRPM2 ion channels steer neutrophils towards a source of hydrogen peroxide." Scientific reports 11, no. 1 (2021): 1-16.
• Jones AR, Iacoangeli A, Adey BN, Bowles H, Shatunov A, Troakes C, Garson JA, McCormick AL, Al-Chalabi A (2021). A HML6 endogenous retrovirus on chromosome 3 is upregulated in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis motor cortex. Sci Rep. 11(1):14283.
• Azimi, T., Loizidou, M. and Dwek, M. 2020. Cancer cells grown in 3D under fluid flow exhibit an aggressive phenotype and reduced responsiveness to the anti-cancer treatment doxorubicin. Scientific Reports. 10 (1) 12020.
• Fachal, L., Aschard, H., Beesley, J., Barnes, D.R., Allen, J., Kar, S., Pooley, K.A., Dennis, J., Michailidou, K., Turman, C., Soucy, P., Lemaçon, A., Lush, M., Tyrer, J.P., Dunning, A.M. and Dwek, M. 2020. Fine-mapping of 150 breast cancer risk regions identifies 191 likely target genes. Nature Genetics. 52, pp. 56-73.
• Garson JA, Usher L, Al-Chalabi A, Huggett J, Day EF, McCormick AL (2019). Quantitative analysis of human endogenous retrovirus-K transcripts in postmortem premotor cortex fails to confirm elevated expression of HERV-K RNA in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Acta Neuropathol Commun. 7(1):45.
• Peiris, D., Spector, A.F., Lomax-Browne, H., Azimi, T., Ramesh, B., Loizidou, M., Welch, H. and Dwek, M. 2017. Cellular glycosylation affects Herceptin binding and sensitivity of breast cancer cells to doxorubicin and growth factors. Scientific Reports. 7 43006.
• Morad, H., Luqman, S. and McNaughton, P. 2017. O30 Natural compounds affecting neutrophil migration. Biochemical Pharmacology. 139 (1), p. 119.
• López-Dávila, V., Magdeldin, T., Welch, H., Dwek, M., Uchegbu, I. and Loizidou, M. 2016. Efficacy of DOPE/DC-cholesterol liposomes and GCPQ micelles as AZD6244 nanocarriers in a 3D colorectal cancer in vitro model. Nanomedicine. 11 (4), pp. 331-344. https://doi.org/10.2217/nnm.15.206
• Sutherland, K.A., Parry, C.M., McCormick, A.L., Kapaata, A., Lyagoba, F., Kaleebu, P., Gilks, C.F., Goodall, R., Spyer, M., Kityo, C., Pillay, D., Gupta, R.K. and DART Virology Group 2015. Evidence for Reduced Drug Susceptibility without Emergence of Major Protease Mutations following Protease Inhibitor Monotherapy Failure in the SARA Trial. PLoS ONE. 10 (9) e0137834.
• Sutherland, K.A., Goodall, R.L., McCormick, A.L., Kapaata, A., Lyagoba, F., Kaleebu, P., Thiltgen, G., Gilks, C.F., Spyer, M., Kityo, C., Pillay, D., Dunn, D. and Gupta, R.K. 2015. Gag-Protease Sequence Evolution Following Protease Inhibitor Monotherapy Treatment Failure in HIV-1 Viruses Circulating in East Africa. AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses. 31 (10), pp. 1032-1037.
• McCormick, A.L., Parry, C.M., Crombe, A., Goodall, R.L., Gupta, R.K., Kaleebu, P., Kityo, C., Chirara, M., Towers, G.J. and Pillay, D. 2011. Impact of the N348I Mutation in HIV-1 Reverse Transcriptase on Nonnucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitor Resistance in Non-Subtype B HIV-1. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 55 (4), pp. 1806-1809.