Gut microbiota as predictor of effectiveness to drug and nutritional therapies in Crohn’s disease

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Crohn’s disease is an incurable inflammatory condition of the gut associated with high morbidity, poor quality of life and significant healthcare costs. Diet, the host immunity and the gut microbiota / microbiome are involved in the undelying aetiology of the disease. Current therapies for active Crohn’s disease include drug and nutrition-based therapies which are effective in around 50-60% of patients. Identifying predictors of efficacy to drug and nutrition-based therapies is important to ensure the right patient receives the right type of efficacious treatment for the best and long-lasting disease control.

This PhD will explore microbial predictors of effectiveness to drug and nutritional therapies for Crohn’s disease in children. The student will perform sequencing-based microbiome analysis and targeted and untargeted metabolomics in faecal, urine and blood samples collected from children with Crohn’s disease receiving drug and nutrition-based therapies. This project may lead to the development of new, more potent and personalised, dietary therapies for children with Crohn’s disease.

This PhD opportunity is a collaboration between academics in the University of Glasgow, clinicians from 4 children hospitals across Scotland and a major industrial partner specialised in the production of proprietary nutritional therapies for the management of Crohn’s Disease. The student will be working in collaboration with another PhD student who will focus on the delivery of the drug and nutritional intervention and the clinical aspects of the trial. The two students will be working in parallel, each with distinct individual objectives.

Candidates should have a 1st class BSc (Hons) or a 2:1 with relevant experience in microbiology, nutrition, biology, biochemistry, chemistry, computational biology, bioinformatics or life sciences in general.

During the course of the PhD, the student will receive training in molecular microbiology, nutritional sciences, deep-sequencing, bioinformatics and analytical chemistry. The student will work in partnership with the National Health Service. and receive training in analysing of large multi-omic and clinical parameter datasets.

The student will experience cutting-edge research within a multidisciplinary team working at the interface between clinical medicine, nutritional sciences, microbiology informatics and lab based research https://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/medicine/research/humannutrition/thebingogroup/  

The student will also be in close interaction with the industrial partner involved in this study and will exchange knowledge with them regularly, offering a unique industrial slant to this research post.

NOTE: Once you apply through the online portal, please forward your application reference number and CV to [email protected]

Project Start Date: 8th April 2025

Application Deadline: 7th March 2025