Dr E Castellano-Sanchez, Dr M Knight
No more applications being accepted
Competition Funded PhD Project (European/UK Students Only)
About the Project
Our CRUK funded PhD studentship provides up to 3 years’ support to undertake research training within Barts Cancer Institute.
Barts Cancer Institute has an international reputation for cancer research, with world renowned experts in the field.
Our training programme aims to develop a cohort of scientists equipped both intellectually and technically to conduct the highest quality research on cancer.
Our research degrees are supplemented by a comprehensive support programme, providing training in a wide range of biomedical laboratory methods and other vital transferable skills.
To be eligible you should have, or be expecting, a 2:1 or 1:1 in a relevant science-based degree. Students for whom English is not a first language will also be required to meet our English language requirements.
Project Outline:
KRAS mutations occur in 30% of lung tumours, are associated with poor prognosis and an exclusion criterion for some treatments. A better understanding of the biology of RAS-driven lung cancer will help design more effective therapies.
Using a KRAS-driven lung cancer mouse model in which RAS binding to its effector PI3-Kinase (PI3K) can be disrupted we found that RAS-PI3K signalling is essential for lung tumour initiation and maintenance. We have strong evidence that blocking RAS-PI3K signalling modulates activity of proteins essential for the extracellular matrix remodelling by cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs), indicating that RAS-PI3K is essential to shape the tumour microenvironment that sustains tumour growth.
The goal of this project is to determine how RAS-PI3K signalling in CAFs modulates their gene expression patterns and ability to remodel the ECM in order to support tumour growth. It also aims to investigate the molecular mechanisms by which RAS-PI3K signalling controls ECM stiffness. Finally, clinical data sets and CAFs obtained from patient samples will be used to validate the clinical significance of our findings.
This project represents a highly novel approach that aims to identify essential signalling networks and mediators of tumour-CAF crosstalk that could be targeted in combination with existing therapies for the treatment of lung cancer.
For more information, including details on how to apply please see our website:
http://www.bci.qmul.ac.uk/study-with-us/postgraduate-research/cruk-phd-studentship-2017-18
Funding Notes
The studentship will cover tuition fees for PhD registration up to the Home/EU rate.
If you are considered an overseas applicant for fee purposes, you will be responsible for paying the difference between the Home/EU and overseas rate.
You will receive an annual stipend of £21,000 for 3 years.
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