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  Unravelling biological subtypes of neurodegenerative disease by multi-omics and machine learning (Ref FHMS - FF - 33 BIO)


   Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences

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  Dr Ayse Demirkan  No more applications being accepted  Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)

About the Project

We are seeking a highly motivated and skilled PhD student to join a collaborative team from University of Surrey, Section of Section Statistical multi-omics, to pursue a PhD in Bioscience and Medicine. The Section is one of the core teams of the People-Centered AI Institute and focuses on combining multi-omic data analysis methods to increase understanding of common diseases. In this PhD project we focus on neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson’s disease which have been earlier associated with genetic, microbial and metabolic markers. Our project aims to elucidate biological subtypes of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease by integrating genetic, metabolic, lifestyle and microbial type data together and provide the best machine learning algorithms for biological subtyping. The project will be realised by using publicly available datasets e.g. UKBIOBANK and is a part of a larger effort of harvesting multi-omics data by machine learning methods and user-friendly tools, to aid analytical options for healthcare and biomedicine experts.  

The student will be trained on analysis of large human datasets using bioinformatics, statistical genetics, and/or metagenomics tools, and will get proficiency in programming in R. Overall, this is a well-designed project ready to analyse existing data, with a high chance to deliver high impact publications. 

A suitable candidate would have a MSc in either genetic epidemiology, statistical genetics or bioinformatics. As the project requires hands-on data analysis skills we only encourage the candidates with proven experience to apply.

The student will be supervised by Dr Ayse Demirkan (main supervisor, [Email Address Removed] ) and Dr. Adam Mahdi (co-supervisor), and will further be supported by Prof Inga Prokopenko and Dr Samaneh Kouchaki. The PhD will also interact with external collaborator from pharma industry among the stakeholders. 

References

  1. De Leeuw, et al. Blood-based metabolic signatures in Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimers Dement (Amst) 2017 Sep 6;8:196-207 
  2. Wallen, et al. 3-Metagenomics of Parkinson’s disease implicates the gut microbiome in multiple disease mechanisms . BioRxiv https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.06.08.495316  
  3. Laske, et al. Signature of Alzheimer's Disease in Intestinal Microbiome: Results From the AlzBiom Study. Front Neurosci. 2022 Apr 19;16:792996
  4. Duvieusart, et al. Multimodal Cardiomegaly Classification with Image-Derived Digital Biomarkers, Annual Conference on Medical Image Understanding and Analysis, 13-27

Principle Supervisor- Dr Ayse Demirkan

Dr Demirkan (google h-index=52) has track record on statistical multi-omics and GWAS of metabolic phenotypes, gut bacteria, and their relation to clinical outcomes. She supervised integrative omics studies on gene methylation, expression and medication-metabolome association, including the online atlas from BBMRI-NL. Her recent focus is multi-omics research in neurodegenerative diseases, and translation of AI-aided applications to health research. She will be responsible for conceptualisation of the research and daily supervision of the PGR and curating an educational pathway and helping them in defining their long-term career goals. 

[Email Address Removed] 

Entry requirements

Open to UK and international students with the project starting in October 2023. Note that a maximum of 30% of the studentships will be offered to international students.

You will need to meet the minimum entry requirements for our PhD programme https://www.surrey.ac.uk/postgraduate/biosciences-and-medicine-phd#entry.

How to apply

Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the relevant principal supervisor(s) to discuss the project(s) before submitting their application.

Applications should be submitted via the [https://www.surrey.ac.uk/postgraduate/biosciences-and-medicine-phd programme page (N.B. Please select the October 2023 start date when applying).

You may opt to apply for a single project or for 2 of these Faculty-funded studentship projects

When completing your application, in place of a research proposal, please provide a brief motivational document (1 page maximum) which specifies:

  • the reference numbers(s) for the project or two projects you are applying for 
  • the project title(s) and principal supervisor name(s) 
  • if applying for two projects, please also indicate your order of preference for the projects
  • an explanation of your motivations for wanting to study for a PhD 
  • an explanation of your reasons for selecting the project(s) you have chosen

Additionally, to complete a full application, you MUST also email a copy of your CV and 1-page motivational document directly to the relevant project principal supervisor of each project you apply for. Due to short turnaround times for applicant shortlisting, failure to do this may mean that your application is not considered.

Please note that online interviews for shortlisted applicants are expected to take place during the week commencing 30th January.


Biological Sciences (4) Computer Science (8) Medicine (26)

Funding Notes

Funding is for 3.5 years and includes UKRI-aligned stipend (£17,668 pa for 2022-23), approved University of Surrey fees and a research budget. This studentship is funded by Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey.
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