Regenerative medicine PhD

Our Regenerative medicine PhD students are based within, and members of, our specialist research Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Devices.

The research centre has a long-standing reputation for pioneering, patient-driven treatments and technological innovation in regenerative medicine. We welcome students across our priority research areas, further information through contact with the centre under our 'Join us for study' page. Clinical applications specialisms include: cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, musculoskeletal trauma and diseases, neurodegenerative diseases and sensory dysfunctions, and wound healing. We also work across key enabling technologies, multidisciplinary research interests surrounding the structure, design and functional performance of advanced materials for use in biological and environmental systems. This includes biomaterials capable of full integration with the surrounding tissue, development of mathematical models and in-vitro cell modelsto predict biological responses.

We welcome expressions of interests from graduates wanting to join us in this work. These specialisms have allowed us to complete numerous projects, and publish research with PhD team members. These can be explored more fully through the Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Devices' page on our university research website.

We have welcomed many PhD students to the centre and given them their first steps towards work in postdoctoral research, medicine and industry.

If you would like to work with the centre towards your PhD in Regenerative Medicine, please do contact us through the details available on our webpage.

Apply to 'Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences' in the portal

Key information

As a Regenerative Medicine PhD student, you will benefit from

being embedded in a key project theme within the Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Devices
state-of-the-art research facilities, specific to your work, on the university's Moulsecoomb campus. These include for example, geochemical and geotechnical laboratories, microscopy laboratories (optical and scanning electron microscopes), specialist microbial and water quality laboratories
a supervisory team comprising two or sometimes three members of academic staff. Depending on your research specialism you may also have an additional external supervisor from another school, research institution, or industry.
desk space and access to a desktop PC, either in one of the postgraduate offices on the sixth floor of the award-winning Cockcroft Building.
access to a range of electronic resources via the university’s Online Library, as well as to the physical book and journal collections housed within the Aldrich Library and other campus libraries.

Academic environment

You will be working within one of the specialist areas that are the expertise of the Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Devices. Please visit our website for further information.

As a member of the Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Devices you are a member also of the School of Applied Sciences along with a community of over 30 PhD students, and have access to the expertise of other scientists to expand your interests and understanding of career possibilities. The school allows experts in numerous fields of research to collaborate on projects both within their disciplines and in truly cross-disciplinary research. Consequently, research projects can encompass the use of electrochemistry in biomedical research, bacterial responses to biomaterials, genomic analysis of gut microflora through to computational modelling of drug delivery systems and carbon capture by inorganic complexes. This allows us to tackle global problems using multidisciplinary research approaches.

The school supports a number of research centres and research groups in the life sciences and we also ensure that we reach out to communities that will benefit from our work both locally and around the globe.

Some of our supervisors

Dr Derek Covill

I am happy to supervise students in a variety of areas including digital fabrication (additive manufacturing, CAD/CAE, electronics), design engineering, sports engineering, and biomedical engineering.

Dr Paul Harris

I supervise PhD students who use numerical methods (such the boundary element method and finite element method) to solve problems in applied mathematics.

PhD projects that I am interested in supervising include using combined boundary element and finite element methods for modelling the motion of biological cells due to chemotaxis, the use of the finite element method to model deformations of the spinal cord (in relation to the medical condition syringomyelia) and the use of the finite element method in image analysis (such denoising images and segmenting images).

Dr Andrei Lukashkin

Physiology and biophysics of the mammalian cochlea with focus on cochlear micromechanics and generation of optoacoustic emissions; Hearing impairment as a consequence of genetic mutation, noise and age-related hearing loss; Development of new types of hearing aid and new ways of drug delivery into the cochlea.

Prof Wendy Macfarlane

The Diabetes Research Group (DRG) work directly with patients with Type 1, Type 2 and Gestational Diabetes, utilising state of the art technologies to provide novel and more effective therapeutic interventions.

PhD Students at University of Brighton

Karen Sargent

CGMS technology for improved outcomes in patients with gestational diabetes.

Victoria Ordor

Continuous Glucose Monitoring Systems (CGMS) as a motivational tool in young obese individuals. PhD sponsored by the Niger Delta Development Commission.

Elaine Sharp

Investigating the role of psychological time perspective in adherence to self-care in young adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D)

Madeline Honey

The effect of anti-psychotic drugs on long-term beta-cell survival and pancreatic function.

Alice Hagan

Elucidation of the Mechanism of Action of Locally-delivered Novel Chemotherapeutic Agent Combinations from Drug-eluting Embolisation Systems. PhD sponsored by an 1851 Royal Commission Fellowship in collaboration with BTG. PhD Awarded 2018

Dr Nouf Alhasawi

Protection of islet cells for transplantation therapy in type 1 diabetes. PhD awarded 2016

Dr Ben McCutcheon

Mining bugs for drugs: Discovery and characterization of novel bioactive compounds from the human gut microbiome. PhD awarded 2016.

Dr Sandeep Kumar

Expression, subcellular localisation and regulation of programmed cell death gene 4 (PDCD4) in human pancreatic cells in response to hypoxia. PhD awarded 2015.

Dr Jonathan Nzakizwanayo

Investigation of host-microbe interactions in the probiotics. PhD Awarded 2014.

Dr Angela Sheerin

PhD students

Previous PhD students

Vishal Birar (2016)

The effects resveratrol and new novel analogues of this stilbene have on sirt1 activation

Badr Ibrahim (2010)

Mechanisms of replicative senescence in Werner's Syndrome cells.

Dominic Burton (2007)

Analysis of replicative senescence: a genomics approach

MRes projects

Previous MRes students

Marcin Matczak 2022-current

Does air pollution, particularly ultrafine particles (UFPs), accelerate the ageing of the ‘healthy’ lung? 

Chloe Rogers 2022-current

Examination of the effects of novel anti-ageing compounds on human premature ageing diseases 

Sophie Nezha 2022-current

A biomimetic substrate platform for the in vitro control of cell phenotypes

Martha Teneeketzi 2020-2021

THE EFFECT OF URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS ON BLOOD-BRAIN BARRIER FUNCTION

Tegwen Elliott 2017-2018

Development of an in vitro model of gastric inflammation in pernicious anaemia and the effect of treatment with cobalamin.

Rasphal Flora 2014-2015

Investigating the pathogenicity of Klebsiella pneumoniae and its associated virulence factors in cases of clinical disease.

MSc projects

Previous MSc students

Kiera Condon 2021-2022

The Role of Soluble Amyloid and Senescence in Brain Endothelial Cell LRP1 Expression and Associated Blood Brain Barrier Dysfunction.

Shannon Furness 2016-2017

The Effect of Curcumin on Cellular Senescence, Viability, Proliferation, and Apoptosis in Breast Cancer Cells in Vitro.

Duo Li. 2015-2016

Do senescent cells contribute to mucus secretion in COPD patience?

Aimee Hunt 2014-2015

The effects of adenosine, rotenone and resveratrol on senescence and mucin secretion within an immortalised rat tracheal epithelial cell line (SPOC1).

Jack Barker 2013-2014

Efficacy of the novel antiseptic coating, gendine, in the inhibition of Klebsiella pneumoniae growth and biofilm formation on urinary catheters.

Caroline Gill 2013-2014

he Role of Virulent Klebsiella pneumoniae in Pyogenic Liver Abscesses in Diabetic Patients.

Alexandra Appell 2012-2013

A novel treatment strategy for bacterial keratopathy.

Prof Susan Sandeman

I supervise students in research areas related to biomedical materials and tissue engineering. I'm particularly interested in cell-biomaterial interactions and in strategies to understand changing tissue dynamics in disease and injury in order to optimise functional tissue repair and replacement.

Current PhD Students

Sertan Kiziloz (2023 -). Optimising the wound dressing interface.

Previous PhD Students

Natalia Noriega (2019-2023) Optoelectronic bionanomaterials for ophthalmic biosensing

Grace Cooksley (2019-2022) Optoelectronic nanomaterials to reduce the complications associated with cataract surgery

Neda Hedari (2017-2021)The role of senescence in bioartificial liver design

Emma Ward (2017-2021)A new class of two dimensional optoelectronic materials in accommodating intraocular lens design

Wulan Koagouw (2017-2021)Integrative Assessment of Marine Pollution - Impact of Pharmaceuticals on Marine Bivalves

Flavia Bonalumi (2017-2020)Engineering a bioartificial liver prototype using cell loaded macroporous hydrogel scaffolds

Tochukwu Ozulumba (2015 - 2019)Nanostructured scaffolds for remediation of environmental and biological tissue contaminants

Elsie Fok (2013) The development of advanced corneal epithelial stem cell delivery systems for the treatment of corneal epithelial defects

Yishan Zheng (2012) Hybrid filtration adsorbent systems for extracorporeal applications

Dr Nadia Terrazzini

I am leading research on Candida albicans immunomodulation of skin and mucosa responses and how this may affect the progression of inflammatory skin diseases and the healing of chronic wounds.

For further supervisory staff including cross-disciplinary options, please visit research staff on our research website.

Making an application

You will apply to the University of Brighton through our online application portal. When you do, you will require a research proposal, references, a personal statement and a record of your education.

You will be asked whether you have discussed your research proposal and your suitability for doctoral study with a member of the University of Brighton staff. We recommend that all applications are made with the collaboration of at least one potential supervisor. Approaches to potential supervisors can be made directly through the details available online. If you are unsure, please do contact the Doctoral College for advice.

Please visit our How to apply for a PhD page for detailed information.

Fees and funding

Funding

Undertaking research study will require university fees as well as support for your research activities and plans for subsistence during full or part-time study.

Funding sources include self-funding, funding by an employer or industrial partners; there are competitive funding opportunities available in most disciplines through, for example, our own university studentships or national (UK) research councils. International students may have options from either their home-based research funding organisations or may be eligible for some UK funds.

Learn more about the funding opportunities available to you.

Tuition fees academic year 2024–25

Standard fees are listed below, but may vary depending on subject area. Some subject areas may charge bench fees/consumables; this will be decided as part of any offer made. Fees for UK and international/EU students on full-time and part-time courses are likely to incur a small inflation rise each year of a research programme.

MPhil/PhD
	Full-time	Part-time
UK	£4,786	£2,393
International (including EU)	£15,900	N/A
International students registered in the School of Humanities and Social Science or in the School of Business and Law	£14,500	N/A

PhD by Publication
Full-time	Part-time
N/A	£2,393

Contact Brighton Doctoral College

To contact the Doctoral College at the University of Brighton we request an email in the first instance. Please visit our contact the Brighton Doctoral College page.

For supervisory contact, please see individual profile pages.