uncharacterised E3 SUMO ligase that alters recombination in Arabidopsis and now aim to transfer this knowledge to barley. The project will involve training a doctoral student in Oxford Nanopore DNA sequencing to analyse recombining barley genomes as well as super-resolution immunofluorescence to monitor proteins that control recombination at the cellular level. Experiments will also include CRISPR/Cas to target specific SUMO sites for site directed mutagenesis, followed up by recombination analysis. This will provide you with the opportunity to develop a modern set of skills for analysing eukaryotes as well as perform world-leading research.
- Perform super-resolution immunofluorescence on wild type barley and E3 SUMO ligase mutant with a panel of antibodies that bind to recombination proteins
- Cross the barley E3 SUMO ligase mutant to generate a mapping population that will be sequenced in the progeny to determine the recombination pattern
- Design CRISPR guide RNAs and mutate SUMO sites in proteins that control recombination and then analyse with molecular and cytological techniques
The second supervisor (Dr Celia May) is an expert on recombination in humans, so will bring expertise from this field to the analysis of barley genomes. The project will also have collaborator Prof Ari Sadanandom (University of Durham) to perform SUMO in vitro and in vivo analysis.
Techniques that will be undertaken during the project
Super-resolution microscopy, Nanopore whole genome sequencing and analysis, fluorescence in situ hybridization and immunocytochemistry
Enquiries
Project Enquiries to jh555@leicester.ac.uk
Programme enquiries to mibtp-admin@leicester.ac.uk
To apply please refer to
https://le.ac.uk/study/research-degrees/funded-opportunities/bbsrc-mibtp
Funding Notes
All MIBTP students will be provided with a 4 year studentship. This includes: Tuition fees at the UK fee rate*, a tax free stipend which for 2026/7 is £21,805 per year (2027/8 stipend to be confirmed), a travel allowance over years 1-3, a travel/conference budget, a generous consumables budget, use of a laptop for the duration of the programme. The University of Leicester will provide full overseas fee waivers for the duration of their study to all international students accepted at Leicester. The funder, UKRI, allows us to appoint up to 30% overseas students
