Designing fluorescent probes to detect lipid membrane phase changes

Chemistry plays an important role in all aspects of everyday life. Using our knowledge of chemistry to help understand and tackle errors in cellular signalling would provide an efficient pathway to understand and help provide future therapeutics for non-infectious diseases, such as cancer and diabetes. Membrane rafts, regions in which the lipids change phase from liquid-disordered to liquid-ordered, are thought to play a key role in cell signalling pathways, but their formation, structure and functions are not fully understood.

This project is fully computational, and will explore novel fluorescent molecules which can act as probes of the fluidity of the membrane. State of the art quantum chemical calculations will be used to design and characterise novel probes, while a hybrid quantum chemical / molecular dynamics (QM/MM) simulation strategy will be used to understand their function in different lipid membranes.

You will join a growing theoretical and computational chemistry group at NTU, within the world-leading REF2014 Biomedical Sciences Research Centre based on the scenic Clifton campus of the TEF Gold Award-winning Nottingham Trent University. The group has access to a brand-new high performance computing facility and expertise in quantum chemistry, molecular dynamics, molecular design and biophysics of probe molecules. You will be part of the wider postgraduate community within the School of Science and Technology, encouraging multidisciplinary research and collaboration between experts in Chemistry, Biosciences and Physics.

Specific qualifications/subject areas required of the applicants for this project:
Applicants should hold, or be expected to hold, an UK Master’s degree (or UK equivalent according to NARIC) with a minimum of a commendation, and/or a UK 1stClass / 2.1 Bachelor’s Honour’s Degree (or UK equivalent according to NARIC) in Chemistry or a related chemical subject (e.g. Chemistry and Molecular Physics; Natural Sciences).