PhD | Scholarship for Nigerians and Africans - Part 24

PhD Studentship in the Department of Haematology at University of Cambridge, UK

Functional characterization of novel regulators of haematopoiesis and platelet function in Danio rerio A PhD position is available jointly supervised by Dr Ana Cvejic and Professor Willem H Ouwehand who have an international track record in megakaryocyte and platelet biology and genomics. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) provide a new and powerful approach to identify novel regulators of haematopoiesis and platelet function. In a next step we want to explore the mechanisms by which common sequence variation exerts its effect on haematopoiesis. This PhD project will initially apply high-throughput screening methods in Danio rerio to determine the function of novel genes, identified by GWAS, in haematopoiesis. Further studies will focus on novel genes encoding proteins that are important regulators of transcription. The successful applicant will be trained in performing experiments with Danio rerio applying a variety of molecular biology and next generation sequencing techniques, state-of-the-art imaging systems, in situ hybridisation and immunohistochemistry and will mainly work in the Zebrafish genetics group of Dr Derek Stemple at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute.
We are seeking applications from ambitious and highly motivated individuals looking to work in an interdisciplinary environment with education, experience or interest in haematopoiesis. Applicants should have a first or upper second-class degree in biology, biochemistry or related subjects. Familiarity with molecular biology techniques would be advantageous. This 4-year studentship will cover University composition fees, College fees and a £16,500 stipend for UK/EEA applicants.

Scholarship Application Deadline: 15 April 2011

Further Scholarship Information and Application

PhD Position at LIRMM-INRIA, Montpellier, France: Whole body control framework for lower limb stability in computational rehabilitation

INRIA is the French national institute for research in computer science and control. DEMAR project’s research interests are centered on the human sensory motor modeling, including muscles, sensory feedbacks, and neural motor networks.

research direction:
Identification of biomechanical dynamics and muscle dynamics for neurologically damaged patient is already challenging as the system
response can drastically vary depending on the degree of the patient deficiencies. In FES (Functional Electrical Stimulation), movement
synthesis and control are still a challenging task due to the complexity of whole body dynamics computation and the nonlinearity of
stimulated muscle dynamics. One of the challenge concerns the feedback (torque, EMG, joint angle) that can be used to control joint angle,
torque or stiffness. Moreover, control strategies have to be designed in order to be performed on portable architecture and tuned through
advanced modeling and simulation.
In this context, the goal of this PhD work is to study the optimization-based motion synthesis and real-time control framework
which can generate stimulation patterns from the pre-computed motion synthesis database. Motion capture system together with the estimation of the Center of Mass would be used to assess the strategies. This work aims at the development of automatic method to establish deficient limb stability in computer-aided rehabilitation.
This PhD work is performed under the collaborative project named @walk (artificial walking) between INRIA DEMAR project and AI lab of
Stanford University.

Research background:
-Master in control engineering, computer science, biomechanics, robotics or related disciplines.
– good knowledge of C/C++ programming and matlab.

Scholarship Application Deadline: Contact Employer

Further Scholarship Information and Application

8 Fully Funded PhD Scholarships at the University of Salzburg, Austria: Biology, cognitive neurology, cognitive science, linguistics and psychology (clinical, cognitive, developmental and social)

We are inviting applications for 8 fully funded PhD scholarships in the following interdisciplinary areas: biology, cognitive neurology, cognitive science, linguistics and psychology (clinical, cognitive, developmental and social.students: salary for a period of 3 to 4 years (including health and social insurance), equipped work space, cover of research consumables, specific technological training courses (e.g. fMRI, EEG), presentation, writing and teaching skill training, full funding of congress participation, workshops and international courses, including stays in foreign partner laboratories.

Candidates must hold a master’s degree or equivalent with a relevant specialization in one of the above listed academic areas of the programme at the time of entry. Prior application is possible. The language of the graduate programme (teaching) is English; hence English proficiency is indispensable. The programme strives for equal representation of female PhD students so women are especially encouraged to apply.

Scholarship Application Deadline:9th May 2011

Further Scholarship Information and Application