Postgraduate research in biochemical sciences
Our biomedical research, including Biochemical Sciences, was ranked third in the country in the last Research Assessment Exercise (2008). Over 65 per cent of our research was world leading or internationally excellent, and over 95 per cent was internationally competitive. We welcome talented PhD students to work with us.
PhD
Programme
We value our PhD students – their research education is important to us because they will become the academics, researchers, medical and health care professionals and policy makers of the future. PhD students are initially registered for a probationary period and proceed to full PhD registration after one year, subject to a successful upgrade viva. Students will be expected to demonstrate original thought and a capacity for critical evaluation. The research towards a PhD would normally take approximately three years, with a further year to write the PhD thesis and take the viva voce exam. The University and the Faculty provide a programme of training in generic, transferable skills, as well as research skills, as these are clearly important for the future employment prospects of our graduates.
www.surrey.ac.uk/biochemistry
Entry Standards
Candidates should have a good honours degree (Upper Second) in an appropriate discipline, but prior experience in research or industry may be acceptable. Enthusiasm for, and commitment to, independent study is essential, as is a good command of the English language. Please contact the Faculty Graduate School to discuss your experience and qualifications.
Funding
There are funding opportunities such as Faculty research scholarships and research council scholarships. These and other scholarships are advertised as and when they become available on the Faculty Graduate School website: www.surrey.ac.uk/fhms/gradschool
Fees
UK/EU students - £3,828
Overseas students 2011/12 entrants onwards - £14,440
Overseas students pre 2011/12 entrants - £13,780
Find out more about our fees and funding policies.
Apply now
Programme length
33–48 months full-time
45–96 months part-time
Start date
1 October, 1 January, 1 April, 1 July
Director of the Faculty Graduate School
For general enquiries
T: 0800 980 3200 or
+44 (0)1483 681681
E: pg-enquiries@surrey.ac.uk
For admissions enquiries
T: +44 (0)1483 689730
E: fhms_gradschool@surrey.ac.uk
Biochemical Sciences research overview
Research
The aim of the Department of Biochemistry and Physiology is to study biological processes in animals and man at the biochemical and molecular levels. Academics in the Department are engaged in research that uses biochemical and molecular techniques to investigate problems relating to human health and safety. We research in the broad areas described in the Research Themes.
Research environment
The Department of Biochemistry and Physiology uses the Faculty core technology programme that supports equipment-intensive research technologies and promotes their use in multidisciplinary research. It includes transcriptomics, bioinformatics, proteomics, metabolomics, advanced microscopy and fluorescence-activated cell sorting. Biochemical Sciences research is supported by NMR and animal facilities, including dedicated suites for transgenic work. We also have all the standard analytical and project-specific equipment you would expect for biochemical sciences research, including that for animal behavioural studies, electrophysiology and molecular biology.
Biochemical Sciences research themes
Cardiovascular Disease, Diabetes and Metabolism
This multidisciplinary theme focuses on the study of the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying cardiovascular disease and metabolic diseases such as obesity and diabetes. The theme brings together scientists and physicians with expertise in cell and molecular biology, immunology, physiology, nutrition and appetite regulation, drug development, chemistry and the regulation of sleep and circadian rhythms. Research aims to translate this understanding into effective treatment with improved nutrition regimes and drug treatments that target the underlying abnormalities, and to develop diagnostic methods including molecular bio-markers.
www.surrey.ac.uk/fhms/research/cardiovascular
Sleep, Chronobiology and Neurodisorders
Our research draws upon expertise in sleep physiology and EEG analysis, neuroendocrinology, molecular genetics, rest-activity and waking performance monitoring, circadian photoreception, shift work, sleep disorders, nutritional physiology, neuropharmacology, psychopharmacology, clinical pharmacology, neurotoxicology and neurodegeneration.
Research activities are supported by medical and clinical staff in state-of-the-art facilities at the Surrey Clinical Research Centre. The separate Clinical Investigation Unit provides facilities for controlled light-exposure and ultrasound endothelial-function measurement. Radioimmunoassay labs enable the measurement of circadian hormones.
Project-specific technologies include patch-clamp and multielectrode array electrophysiology set-ups and state-of-the-art imaging and microdialysis methodology, allowing a broad range of in vivo and in vitro research.
www.surrey.ac.uk/fhms/research/sleepandchronobiology
Drug Design, Cancer and Toxicity
Research in drug design encompasses the entire spectrum from bench to bedside, with the aim of enabling the delivery of novel, safe therapeutics to patients, leading to an increase in health and wellbeing within the general population. Our multidisciplinary approach draws together worldleading researchers from across the University, coupled with strong collaborations with academic partners and the pharmaceutical sector. Such partnerships allow us to develop novel approaches to the design and isolation of therapeutic agents, their testing within in silico and in vitro models, and ultimately the translation of such research into clinical practice.
Current research interests include: the development of novel therapeutic agents derived from natural plant products; the use of ‘-omic’ level measurements, coupled with in silico modelling, to develop systems-level understanding of cellular response to chemical challenge; the role of the nuclear receptor proteins in coordinating cellular response to chemical challenge, and their role in the diseases of aging; the molecular mechanisms of DNA damage repair, with particular emphasis on their role in human degenerative diseases; breast, ovarian and prostate cancer research, both developing novel therapeutics and understanding the development of multiple-drug-resistance phenotype within these diseases.
www.surrey.ac.uk/fhms/research/drugdesign
Materials and Nanobiology
This multidisciplinary theme brings together active researchers in chemical sciences, biosciences, engineering, electronics and ethics, all focused on the application of functional nanomaterials at the physical and life sciences interface.
www.surrey.ac.uk/fhms/research/materialsandnanoscience
Apply for postgraduate research in biochemical sciences
PhD Programme
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