Award Summary
Open to Home students only. Fully funded with Home (UK) tuition fees and a stipend of approximately £21,805 per year, subject to annual inflationary increases.
Background
Mitochondrial diseases are among the most common inherited metabolic disorders. Despite advances in genetic diagnosis, important questions remain regarding the processes that drive disease progression and determine why some tissues are particularly vulnerable to mitochondrial dysfunction. Disease severity and progression vary considerably, even among individuals carrying the same genetic variant, and reliable biomarkers predicting clinical outcome are lacking. Improving our understanding of the biological pathways underlying mitochondrial disease is essential for the development of better diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic approaches. Advances in proteomic, genomic and transcriptomic technologies offer powerful opportunities to address these challenges.
This fully funded studentship forms part of the LifeArc Centre for Rare Mitochondrial Diseases and will leverage access to a well-characterised, unique cohort of mitochondrial disease samples.
Methods
You will apply single-cell proteomic and genomic technologies, integrating these data to investigate disease mechanisms at unprecedented resolution.
You will investigate how genetic variation, including differences in mtDNA variant levels between cells, influences cellular function, tissue vulnerability and disease severity. The project aims to identify molecular signatures and pathways underlying cellular dysfunction, assessing their potential as biomarkers and therapeutic targets across a broad spectrum of mitochondrial diseases.
Supervisory Team
You will join the internationally recognised Newcastle Mitochondrial Research Group, an interdisciplinary environment spanning mitochondrial biology, a highly specialised clinical service, human genetics, proteomics, bioinformatics and translational science.
You will be supervised byProfessor Rob Taylor, Dr Sarah Pickett and Professor Gavin Hudson, receiving training in single-cell proteomics, mass spectrometry, bioinformatics, statistical genetics and multiomic data integration, providing an excellent foundation for careers in academia, biotechnology or clinical diagnostics.
Number Of Awards
1
Start Date
1st November 2026
Award Duration
3 years
Application Closing Date
17th September 2026
Sponsor
LifeArc
Supervisors
Dr Sarah Pickett, Professor Gavin Hudson and Professor Rob Taylor
Eligibility Criteria
A 2:1 honours degree, or international equivalent, in a relevant subject. A Masters with strong research training element would be highly advantageous.
If your first language is not English, you need an overall IELTS score of 6.5 (at least 5.5 in all sub-skills) or equivalent language qualification.
Contact Details
Dr Sarah Pickett (sarah.pickett@ncl.ac.uk)
Professor Gavin Hudson (gavin.hudson@ncl.ac.uk)
Professor Rob Taylor (robert.taylor@ncl.ac.uk)
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