MSc POSITION

DISCIPLINE OF MICROBIOLOGY (WESTVILLE CAMPUS), SCHOOL OF LIFE SCIENCE, COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE, ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE, UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU-NATAL

START DATE: JULY 2018

 RESEARCH DETAILS

Tuberculosis (TB) remains the leading cause of death among infectious diseases, accounting for an estimated 1.4 million deaths with 10.4 million new cases reported worldwide annually. Some of the drawbacks with TB treatment include co-infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), emergence of drug resistant TB, lack of biomarkers for early diagnosis and treatment, and failure to identify novel targets that can be used for anti-TB interventions. The rationale of the proposed study is to use a highly sensitive RNA-Seq technique to elucidate transcriptome profiles of drug resistant strains of M. tuberculosis during early infection of innate cells. The identified strain-specific molecular signatures, novel transcripts and transcriptional factors in genetically diverse M. tuberculosis strains can be used as potential novel drug targets and vaccine candidates. 

QUALIFICATIONS:

BSc Hons. Microbiology, Medical Microbiology, Molecular Biology or Genetics; At least one of the four subjects as a major at undergraduate level. Ideal candidate for the project should be familiar with tissue culture, standard microbiology techniques, PCR, Bioinformatics and sequencing technologies.

VALUE OF BURSARY: R50 000 p.a. (2 years).

DEADLINE for applications is 2 July 2018.

CONTACT DETAILS:

For more information, contact Dr N. Mvubu (mvubun@ukzn.ac.za), Tel 031 260 7404. Interested applicants should forward a cover letter and full CV (with the names and contact details of three referees) to the above email address.