PhD studentship: Development of translational cancer cell and tissue models to study anticancer drug response and resistance

Award Summary

100% home fees and annual tax-free living allowance £19,237 (UKRI rate 2024/25).  

Overview

Are you interested in learning how to model cancer and examine the response to therapies? In preclinical drug discovery it is crucial to use the most relevant cellular models to mimic the disease for drug testing. This project focuses on advancing cellular model systems to study the efficacy of anticancer drugs and to understand how different cell types impact therapy outcome and drug resistance. 

Tumour cells constantly interact with their surrounding tumour microenvironment, including cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs). CAFs support cancer progression and can also hamper anticancer drug efficacy. Standard 2D tumour cell cultures often fail to replicate the tumour microenvironment crosstalk, while more complex models are too elaborate for high-throughput drug screening. 

In this PhD project, you will assess and establish different culture systems, including 3D co-cultures and primary patient samples, for drug discovery. You will use these models to characterize anticancer drugs and determine the impact of non-cancerous cell types. You will also investigate how therapies alter the phenotypes of fibroblasts themselves. 

Why apply? 

As a PhD student, you will be supported by a cross-disciplinary team with extensive expertise in drug discovery and cancer biology. You will become proficient in cutting-edge techniques, including advanced 3D cell culture models, high-content imaging, and state-of-the-art molecular biology assays (e.g., CRISPR). 

Our team is passionate about accelerating the discovery and development of new anticancer therapeutics. If you have enthusiasm for research, excellent analytical and strong communication skills, we invite you to apply and join the Newcastle Cancer Drug Discovery Group, an integrated team of cancer biologists, pharmacologists, structural biologists, and medicinal chemists. Further details about us: Cancer Research Horizons Newcastle University . 

Number Of Awards

1

Start Date

September 2024 (alternatively January 2025) 

Award Duration

3 years

Application Closing Date

05/08/2024 

Sponsor

Newcastle University (FMS) 

Supervisors

Dr Ute Jungwirth 

Eligibility Criteria

You must have, or expect, at least a 2:1 honours degree or international equivalent, in a subject relating to biomedical sciences, including biochemistry and pharmacology. Further qualifications (MRes) are advantageous. 

• This studentship covers the Home fee rate for UK and EU applicants with pre-settled/settled status. Successful international candidates will be required to make up the difference between home and international fees. 
• English Language requirements: IELTS 6.5 overall, with 5.5 or more in each sub-skill. 

How To Apply

To apply for the PhD studentship, you must register and apply through the University’s Apply to Newcastle Portal 

Once registered select ‘Create a Postgraduate Application’.  

In the ‘Course choice’ tab use ‘Course Search’ to identify your study programme:  

In ‘Course choice’ tab, put ‘Postgraduate Research’ in 'Type of Study', ‘Full Time’ in ‘Mode of Study’, ‘2024’ in ‘Year of Entry’, code ‘8440F’ in ‘Course Title’, blank in ‘Research Area’. Press ‘Search’, select ‘PhD Translational and Clinical Research (FT)’, and save selection.  

In the ‘Further Details’ section provide:  

• a ‘Personal Statement’ (mandatory) - upload a document or directly write into the form stating how your interests/experience relate to the project. 
• ‘Studentship/Partnership Reference’ field: studentship code TC101 
• when prompted for a research proposal, select ‘Write Proposal’. Type in the title of the advertised research project. A research proposal is not required. 

Supporting Documentation: 

• CV 
• Degree certificates/transcripts 
• English qualification if English not first language 

Contact Details

General enquires: ute.jungwirth@ncl.ac.uk 

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