Pasture-associated laminitis: Digesting the dilemma!

An exciting team of experienced PhD supervisors awaits an enthusiastic graduate to help drive key studies in equine welfare research.
You will be supported by leading researchers from Scotland’s Rural College (Prof C.McG. Argo & Dr P.K. Morrison), The University of Aberdeen’s Rowett Institute (Prof Wendy Russell and Dr Madalina Neacsu) and The Director of Equine Sciences at WALTHAM (Prof P.A. Harris) in a project directed to identify biomarkers capable of predicting laminitis risk for individual animals.

This 3.5 year fully funded studentship will be based at SRUC’s Aberdeen campus. The project is one of two, linked PhD studies which will improve our understanding of grazing management and grass digestion on laminitis susceptibility. The respective postgraduates will work closely with equine veterinary practices across the North East of Scotland to identify laminitis cases and to support each other during field collection of data and samples. This project capitalizes on the state-of-the-art facilities and training available at the world class Rowett Institute to identify biomarkers of laminitis from within the gastrointestinal microflora and blood/urinary metabolome. The project will capture management-related data directly from owners and their animals and comprises a unique opportunity to develop skills in a wide range of highly-transferrable and sought-after techniques including bioinformatics. Appropriate training and support will be provided.

The region supports large numbers of horses, is within easy reach of the Cairngorm National Park, is rich in cultural and coastal features and has excellent transport connectivity.

Registering University: University of Aberdeen.

Candidates should have (or expect to achieve) a minimum of a 2.1 Honours degree in a relevant subject (a degree in Veterinary Medicine and MRCVS registration would be desirable but not essential). A Masters degree in a relevant subject would be desirable.