Acoustic bubbles and droplet emulsions can be loaded with drugs and resonate when excited by ultrasound. This property allows us to research their use in medicine – for example, we think that ultrasound from outside the body can be used to stimulate bubbles to release drugs to the right cells at the right time. Bubbles also offer the opportunity to deliver medically important gases to different tissues to improve healing. One example is oxygen, which is not just important in fundamental metabolic processes, but also in the building and maintenance of our skeletons.

 

During this PhD you will develop methods to encapsulate gases in acoustic bubbles and droplets. You will use a range of state-of-the-art techniques in cellular imaging to measure release, and molecular methods to determine their effect on target cells and tissues.

 

You will work in a vibrant, multidisciplinary team between the Medicine and Engineering departments at the University of Southampton, and in collaboration with the University of Portsmouth. You need to have at least a 2:1 or equivalent and you will have any of the natural sciences.

 

The studentship will be funded at the current Research council stipend rate.

If you wish to discuss any details of the project informally, please contact Nicholas Evans Bioengineering research group, Email: n.d.evans@soton.ac.uk or phone +44 (0)23 8120 3293

 

This studentship is offered as part of the SoCoBio Doctoral Training Partnership: https://research.kent.ac.uk/socobio/

 

Apply here: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/program/fully-funded-phds-in-biological-sciences-from-the-south-coast-biosciences-doctoral-training-partnership-for-september-2020/?p4764