Link between antibiotic production and bacterial development (KELEMENGU20SCIO)

The widespread emergence of antibiotic resistant pathogens has led to an urgent need for a better understanding of antibiotic production in these organisms to underpin the discovery and development of new antimicrobial agents. Genome sequencing has revealed that ~5% of Streptomyces genomes encode proteins for natural product biosynthesis. Genes encoding biosynthetic enzymes for antibiotic production are usually clustered together in the genome of the producing organism, reflecting the coordinated regulation of their expression and greatly facilitating their isolation. Although considerable efforts are being made to characterise antibiotic biosynthetic pathways, we lack any information about the physiological role of antibiotics during the life-cycle of the antibiotic-produces strains. Streptomyces form multi-genomic filaments generating tissue-like, sub-cellular compartments: the vegetative mycelium, the aerial mycelium and spores. This complex cellular compartmentalisation requires intricate cellular organisation both in time and in space.

Successful candidate will elucidate the link between antibiotic production and cellular development using technologies of microbial molecular biology, cell biology together with analytical and structural characterization of natural products.

For more information on the supervisor for this project, please go here https://people.uea.ac.uk/g_kelemen
This is a PhD programme.
The start date of this project is 1 October 2020.
The mode of study is full-time.
The studentship length is 3 years. Please note 3 year studentships have a (non-funded) 1 year ‘registration only’ period.

Entry requirements: Acceptable first degrees are Biological Sciences, Biochemistry, Chemistry
The standard minimum entry requirement is 2:1.