Prof M Mooney
No more applications being accepted
Funded PhD Project (European/UK Students Only)
About the Project
Background:
Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) is recognized as the leading natural cause of death in US and EU beef and dairy herds contributing annually to the loss of over 1 million animals with a total economic cost to the US agri-food industry of up to US $2 billion. BRD is a multi-factorial disease arising in immuno-compromised animals through establishment of synergistic viral-bacterial infections. Rapid and sensitive detection of BRD-associated viral infections in live animals is recognized as key to minimising the economic impact of this disease. Early identification of infections through screening test methods can improve overall disease outcome and enable targeted treatment of animals. Such approaches can also assist the introduction of effective disease eradication schemes and reduce the risk of reintroduction of BRD-associated infections back onto farms which have gained disease-free status. The project will be supervised by Dr Mark Mooney, Professor Gordon Allan, and Dr Darren Gray of the Institute for Global Food Security, School of Biological Sciences, Queen’s University Belfast.
Research plan:
This studentship will from part of a larger multidisciplinary project aimed at developing low cost infection screening platform capable of detecting BRD-associated viral infections. The successful applicant will design and produce recombinant antigenic markers (proteins) for a range of viral agents which can be incorporated into multiplex diagnostic assay formats to determine the infection status of animals. The completion of this research will enable the candidate to develop skills spanning a range of interdisciplinary fields involving antigen synthesis and production, protein extraction and purification, structural and functional characterisation, and diagnostic marker assay development and optimisation.
Closing date for applications is 1st June 2018 (or when a suitable candidate is identified). Applicants should quote the PhD project title and supervisors in their applications.
Funding Notes
Funding is confirmed for 3 years (open to citizens of the EU) and an annual stipend (£14,777 for 2018/19) will be paid monthly. PhD project start date will be 01/10/2018.
Candidates should have or expect to obtain a 2:1 or higher Honours degree or equivalent in a biological, chemistry, or life sciences related subject. The applicant will register at the School of Biological Sciences with research work carried out within the Institute for Global Food Security. Some foreign travel may be required. Hands-on molecular biology experience in recombinant protein production, molecular cloning, immunoassay development or protein analysis would be advantageous.
References
For informal discussions about the project and your suitability, please contact Dr Mark Mooney (mark.mooney@qub.ac.uk).
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