Exploring the genetics of gut microbiomes spatially resolved in IBD patients (HILDEBRAND_Q26MMB)
Key Details
- Application deadline
- 6 January 2026 (midnight UK time)
- Location
- Quadram Institute Bioscience
- Funding type
- Competition Funded (Home and International)
- Start date
- 1 October 2026
- Mode of study
- Full-time
- Programme type
- PhD
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Welcome to Norwich
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Project description
Primary supervisor - Dr Falk Hildebrand
We are looking for a motivated and computationally interested student, to work in bioinformatic project on cutting-edge metagenomics and clinical translation. In the 4-year PhD project, the candidate will explore the evolution of the gut microbiome and changes in the epithelium in patients with Inflammatory Bowels Disease (IBD). To enable this, the candidate will develop new methods for high-resolution metagenomics and work with population genetics theory. This will cumulate in a new understanding of host-microbial interactions through acclimatization and adaptation, that will be validated in additional cohorts.
The project is a collaboration between the Quadram Institute (QIB), Earlham Institute (EI) and Imperial College. If you are interested in metagenomics, understanding the disease association of bacteria in the human gut, in-depth work with next-generation as well as 3rd generation sequencing technologies, then this PhD will be right for you. The ideal candidate will enjoy learning about metagenomic sequencing and researching disease in patient cohorts, working with machine learning techniques and programming computers. The candidate will learn about different flavors of metagenomic sequencing, how to analyze and interpret this data and use it to describe dysbiotic microbiomes.
Visiting international conferences and training courses as well as exchanges with international collaborators are part of student training. The candidate will be supervised by Prof Hildebrand (QIB, EI), Prof Papatheodorou (EI) and Dr Korcsmaros (QIB, Imperial College) in a collaboration centered at the multinational Norwich Research Park (NRP). The location hosts a vibrant and active research community and multiple startups, conveniently located adjacent to the University of East Anglia (UEA). Norwich is a mid-sized historical, medieval city with a large student community, situated at the Norfolk coast with an active pub and coffee scene. For further information and to apply, please visit our websites: https://quadram.ac.uk/about/student-opportunities/how-to-apply/ or https://www.falk.science/
The Microbes, Microbiomes and Bioinformatics (MMB) Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP) is open to UK and international candidates with relevant undergraduate degrees for entry in October 2026 and offers the opportunity to undertake a fully-funded 4-year PhD research project supported by the UKRI Medical Research Council in microbiology and microbial bioinformatics.
Our unique and comprehensive training programme empowers students to feel comfortable running sophisticated computer analyses alongside laboratory work and emphasises problem-based learning in microbial bioinformatics, professional development and research skills. All MMB DTP students undertake a Professional Placement.
Interviews for shortlisted candidates will take place on Tuesday 10 February 2026.
The MMB DTP is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. Students are selected without regard to age, disability, gender identity, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, ethnicity, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation or social background. We value curiosity, independence of thought, plus an aptitude for research that combines laboratory work and bioinformatics.
For information on eligibility and how to apply: http://www.uea.ac.uk/phd/mmbdtp
Entry requirements
At least UK equivalence Bachelors (Honours) 2:1. English Language requirement (MED/SCI equivalent: IELTS 6.5 overall, 6 in each category).
Funding
This project is awarded with a 4-year fully-funded studentship including direct payment of tuition fees to the University, stipend for living expenses (2025/26 rate: £20,780) and a Research Training Support Grant for each year of the studentship.
References
1. Bedarf J, ..., Hildebrand F (2025) A prebiotic diet intervention can restore faecal short chain fatty acids in Parkinson's Disease yet fails to restore the gut microbiome homeostasis. Npj Parkinson’s Disease
2. Frioux C, Ansorge R, Özkurt E, ..., Hildebrand F (2023) Enterosignatures define common bacterial guilds in the human gut microbiome. Cell Host & Microbe
3. Hildebrand F (2021) Ultraresolution Metagenomics: When Enough Is Not Enough. mSystems, 1-5.
4. Hildebrand F, Gossmann TI, Frioux C, et al. (2021) Dispersal strategies shape persistence and evolution of human gut bacteria. Cell Host & Microbe 29:1167-1176.e9.
5. Frioux C, Singh D, Korcsmaros T, Hildebrand F (2020) From bag-of-genes to bag-of-genomes: metabolic modelling of communities in the era of metagenomeassembled genomes. Comp Struct Biot J 18, 1722-1734