Self-funded project: Homeostatic mechanisms in human urothelium: balancing of tissue regeneration and differentiation with implications for regenerative medicine and cancer

Application accepted for either MSc by Research or PhD.

The urothelium is the self-regenerating epithelium that lines the bladder, where it is highly specialised to function as a urinary barrier. Although normally a mitotically-quiescent tissue, urothelium shows a rapid and highly regenerative response to damage. Whether there is a specific progenitor or stem cell population remains controversial, as no such cell has been unequivocally identified. An alternative hypothesis is that all cells remain capable of switching into a regenerative phenotype, irrespective of differentiation state. The project will examine this hypothesis in a well-established cell culture system, using a combination of cell and molecular biology approaches to examine the role of cell:cell interactions, downstream signal transduction and epigenetic regulation.

The Department of Biology at the University of York is committed to recruiting extraordinary 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 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.