The purpose of this PhD studentship is to determine the contribution of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) S. aureus to skin ageing and chronic wounds, alongside testing the selectivity and efficacy of a novel S. aureus-targeted endolysin technology for the management of AMR S. aureus skin/wound infections. The PhD project will involve analysis of patient samples, alongside detailed mechanistic experiments carried out within the groups of Dr Wilkinson/Prof Hardman and Prof Thomas. The student will also undertake an industry placement with Cica Biomedical to assist with important pre-clinical studies. This PhD project relates to a program of work investigating novel endolysins with Micreos Pharma (£400K direct funding over last 2 years), and previous grants from the National Biofilms Innovation Centre (FTMA and POC awards 2021-2022) that have generated important pilot data for this studentship. A match-funded studentship has also been supported by the University of Hull and Hull York Medical School, which will closely align to the NBIC studentship.

PG Dip Offshore Wind Energy and the Environment - Aura CDT in Offshore Wind Energy and The Environment. 1st year is the PG Diploma and research and Industry preparation Years 2-4 are a PhD

Bees, our foremost pollinators, are vital for ecosystem stability and global food security - providing pollination services worth hundreds of billions of pounds annually. The UK is home to ~245 species of wild bees performing more pollination than managed honeybees and bumblebees. Unfortunately, wild bee populations are declining, under pressure from multiple causes - one key factor being nutrition. Bees feed offspring with pollen gathered from the landscape. But human influences such as agricultural intensification are altering nutritional landscapes for bees [3,4], and fundamentally affecting gene expression, growth and reproduction. Most of what we know about bee nutrition comes from studies in social bees like honeybees or bumblebees [5,6], where nutrition influences caste determination, development, pathogen resistance and others. However, the nutritional ecology of other bees, particularly solitary bees, is largely unstudied. Human activity is also changing climates and raising average temperatures. Temperature affects animals' metabolic rate, physiology, digestion, and nutrient assimilation, as well as gene expression. Dr Gilbert's recent work [7] has identified the need to store enough carbohydrate and fat to survive the winter as potentially critical for solitary bees' nutritional ecology. But we know little about how this is regulated, how climate change will affect bees, and how bees will deal with changing nutritional landscapes. We are now in a position to understand not just whether but how different nutritional landscapes and climates affect bees. This exciting project combines field ecology with cutting edge molecular approaches to address a crucial knowledge gap about how bees are being affected by human-altered nutritional landscapes addressing issues relevant for pure ecological science, conservation biology, agriculture and crop science. At Hull, Dr Gilbert's lab has pioneered rearing protocols for the economically and ecologically important solitary bee, Osmia bicornis providing an unprecedented window onto bee nutritional ecology. At Leeds, Dr Duncan's lab uses cutting-edge molecular tools to understand how bees are influenced by their environment conducting groundbreaking work on how nutrition affects gene expression in developing bees plus recent work on the environmental and molecular control of reproduction in O. bicornis. The student will capitalise on this opportunity to synthesize the research of these two groups creating collaborative links. Using manipulations within controlled laboratory environments, the student will establish how dietary macronutrients affect the fitness of solitary bee larvae in response to changes in rearing temperature. They will use high-throughput sequencing technology to examine genome-wide expression profiles of larvae receiving different diet and temperature treatments, to understand the molecular and physiological mechanisms underlying bees' responses to landscape and climate change. Nutritional cues are known to alter gene expression [8], but to date studies have focussed largely on a few genes, and only in honeybees. The student will compare larvae receiving different treatments in (1) choices larvae make about which nutrients to consume, (2) correlates of fitness such as body size and overwinter survival, and (3) expression of growth- versus diapause-related genes. Outcomes:The findings will shed light on the optimal nutrition for bees informing active measures such as wildflower strips to conserve and promote these vital pollinators as the climate changes. Results will show the physiological effects of different nutritional landscapes upon bees allowing an understanding of the resilience of solitary bees to landscape change in a changing climate. The results will provide comparisons and contrasts with existing knowledge of social bee gene expression, physiology and nutrigenomics, providing unparalleled insights into bee nutritional ecology.

Primary production and carbon export across the Flamborough frontal system: interaction with offshore wind energy. 1st year is the PG Diploma and research and Industry preparation. Years 2-4 are a PhD at one of the CDT universities.

The primary research question focuses on understanding what happens to the victims of modern slavery over time, particularly after they are identified and supported by statutory bodies. The study also aims to answer: How can ongoing safety from traffickers be ensured? How do victim-survivor experiences vary culturally and internationally? At what point does a victim-survivor transition to becoming a survivor-leader, taking control of their own life? What policies and services have been most effective, and what is missing from the perspective of victim-survivors? Methodology: The project employs a longitudinal approach, which involves returning to the same group of victim-survivors over time to better understand their experiences post-victimization. This approach will explore the reintegration of survivors into their communities, the risk of re-trafficking, and the long-term effects of having been trafficked. This longitudinal method contrasts with the current snapshot-based studies, filling a significant gap in existing research. Collaborations: The project is a collaboration between The Salvation Army and The Wilberforce Institute. The Salvation Army, with its international reach and experience working directly with victim-survivors, is establishing an international survivor forum. This provides a platform for involving "experts by experience" in the research. The Wilberforce Institute, known for its research into crime and exploitation, complements this by bringing academic rigor to the project. Envisaged Outputs: -The project will produce empirical data on the long-term reintegration of victims and inform policies to better address modern slavery. Some envisaged outputs include: -Policy Recommendations: Focusing on empowering survivor voices in policy delivery and improving both domestic and international understanding of the victim-survivor journey. -Establishment of a Shared Forum: A platform for exchanging ideas and interventions among victim-survivors, policymakers, and practitioners. -Ethical Guidelines: Developing guidelines to engage victim-survivors without re-traumatizing them. -Sustainable Support: The study aims to influence policy to provide meaningful support and create employment or volunteering opportunities for survivors.