BBSRC iCASE PhD studentship in pre-clinical antibody Development for prevention of AMR bacteria

Applications are invited for a 4 year PhD studentship to work in the Mucosal Infection and Immunity group within the Faculty of Medicine of Imperial College London at the St Mary’s Campus in collaboration with Kymab based in Cambridge, UK (http://www.kymab.com/).

We are seeking a highly motivated student to work on a BBSRC Industry CASE funded research project. The aim of the project is to develop models and assess therapeutic antibodies for use in treating anti-microbial resistant bacterial infections. Respiratory infection with antibiotic resistant ESKAPE pathogens (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter species) contributes to a high burden of disease. The rise of bacteria with resistance to the current generation of antibiotics means there is a clear present need for new drugs as part of a broader antimicrobial resistance strategy including stewardship, surveillance and education. One strategy is to use broad spectrum antibodies to reduce pathogen load in the lung in both prophylactic and therapeutic settings. The use of monoclonal antibodies in infectious disease settings is becoming more widespread, with more than 40 monoclonal antibodies currently being evaluated in preclinical and clinical studies.

The first part of the project will be spent developing in vitro and vivo models of bacterial lung infection with A. baumannii and Methicillin Resistant S. aureus (MRSA). The second part of the project will be to investigate known broadly neutralising anti-bacterial antibodies, including mutation of known antibody structural regions targeting the conserved bacterial epitopes. This work will be undertaken at Kymab where the student will spend up to 1 year learning cutting edge antibody mutation, isolation and purification techniques and assay methods. Training at Kymab will enable the student to bridge the academic and translational spaces. The final part of the project will be testing these novel antibodies against infection.

Dr John Tregoning (http://www1.imperial.ac.uk/medicine/people/john.tregoning/) is the academic supervisor. Applicants must have a first or upper second class degree from a UK University, or equivalent, in a relevant area of biochemistry, immunology or microbiology. Experience in molecular biology is a major advantage. Applicants must also meet Imperial College’s English language requirements see
http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/registry/admissions/pgenglish

To apply: please send a single PDF document including a one-page cover letter discussing research interest and experiences, a two-page CV, a copy of available transcripts, and contact information of two references to Dr John Tregoning ([Email Address Removed]) with subject line “BBSRC_iCASE_PhD_App” before the closing date of 31st May 2018.