The group is led by Professor Irene Miguel-Aliaga and investigates how the gut and its neurons communicate with each other to maintain or perturb homeostasis (Linneweber 2014 Cell, Cognigni 2011 Cell Metab). Our recent work has shown that the digestive system of males and females is different, and that these differences can affect whole-body physiology – from reproductive output to susceptibility to tumorigenic insults (Hudry 2016 Nature, Reiff 2015 eLife). Our ongoing work is exploring these differences further in various directions, with the overarching goal of understanding how adaptable and diverse adult organs can be and why. To this end, we make use of several model systems, such as mouse and intestinal organoids (Perea 2017 EMBO J). We also use a variety of experimental approaches including genetics, transcriptomics, metabolomics and imaging, as well as a range of physiological and behavioural assays for phenotyping.

The London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMS) at Hammersmith Hospital is directly funded MRC research institute and enjoys close links with its partners at Imperial College and at the Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. The LMS research focuses on strengthening the basic science underpinning our understanding of human diseases and the translation of such high quality research into a clinical setting.

The Chain Florey Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme presents clinical trainees with a unique opportunity to study basic science supported by two world-renowned academic institutions, Imperial College and the Medical Research Council London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMS), formerly the Clinical Sciences Centre. The scheme has a variety of PhD projects on offer which focus specifically on basic science rather than on clinical research.
Chain Florey Clinical Research Fellowships provide an ideal base for those wishing to pursue a career in clinical academia. You should possess prior laboratory experience and need to demonstrate the skill base and motivation for a basic science PhD; each Fellow is expected to complete their PhD within the duration of the appointment.

The recruitment programme will be open until 31 January 2019. Applications can be submitted at any time and will be reviewed on an on-going basis.