Biochemistry

Entry requirements

MPhil - First or Second Class Honours Degree or equivalent award in an appropriate discipline or Appropriate research or professional experience which has resulted in appropriate evidence of achievement.

PhD - A Postgraduate Masters Degree in a discipline which is appropriate to the proposed programme of study or First or Upper Second Class Honours Degree or equivalent award in an appropriate discipline.

Months of entry

January, October

Course content

The University of Worcester welcomes applications to undertake research towards MPhil and PhD degrees in Biochemistry.

Research at Worcester has grown significantly in the last 10 years as the University itself has expanded. As a research student you will join a vibrant student community in our Research School and become part of our dynamic research environment.

The mechanics of life: discover the molecular machinery that lies at the heart of the cell and drives all living organisms. At Worcester, we look at the fascinating world of biochemistry from a variety of angles. Our Biochemistry team has a strong mix of academics with expertise in areas ranging from cancer immunology to genetics of plant breeding systems.

Key features

• Available as a full-time or part-time course, completed over a maximum of six years.
• All students are offered a wide range of optional training workshops throughout the programme focused around a wide range of themes.
• You will be allocated to one of two pathways depending on your experience and knowledge as a researcher.
• Access to an excellent range of research resources, including systems for protein purification, gravity chromatography, gene expression, electrophoresis and cell separation.

School of Science and the Environment

The School of Science and the Environment has a strong mix of academics with a high degree of professional and personal experience, enabling you to get the most out of your programme.

Supervision areas

Our staff have expertise in:

• Acute Myeloid Leukaemia
• Human cell culture and analysis
• Flow cytometry
• Protein redox regulation
• Cellular redox homeostasis
• Cancer immunology and immunotherapy
• Cancer cell signalling
• Viral replication
• Amino acid metabolism
• Cell signalling (Receptor Tyrosine Kinase and cell-cell)
• Ligand receptor interactions
• Apoptosis
• Genetics of plant breeding systems & hybridisation barriers
• Molecular biology
• Protein overexpression and purification
• X-ray crystallography
• Protein-protein interactions
• Enzyme Kinetics

Resources

Access to the University of Worcester’s virtual resources and its state of the art library facilities. The Biochemistry team at Worcester have an excellent range of resources available to support your learning and your research project, including:

• ÄKTA pure protein purification system
• BIORAD gravity chromatography systems
• NanoDrop 2000c spectrophotometer
• Gene expression systems including; bacterial, yeast, insect cell, mammalian cell and lenti-viral systems
• GuavaCyte flow cytometer
• Biological safety cabinet containment level-2
• PCR
• qRT-PCR
• GC-MS/MS
• LC-MS
• Gel imaging
• Various electrophoresis systems, including; SDS-PAGE, Western blot and immunoelectrophoresis
• ELISA
• Fluorescence microscopy
• MiniMACS cell separation system
• Large-scale microbial incubators
• Human cell culture facility