Research Fellow

at  University College London

ABOUT US

University College London is consistently ranked as one of the top ten universities in the world (QS World University Rankings 2010-2022) and is No. 1 in the UK for Research Power in Medicine as well as Health and Life Sciences (Research Excellence Framework 2021). The Division of Medicine is the largest department in UCL’s Faculty of Medical Sciences and is research intensive, with a near-equal mix of internationally renowned clinical and non-clinical scientists, many of whom enjoy close contacts with various world-leading London hospitals. The Division excels at interdisciplinary research, teaching and clinical practice with national and international impact.

This exciting project, generously funded by the US National Institutes of Health, is in the lab of Prof Jennifer Rohn. A collaboration between three leading urinary tract infection (UTI) labs, the post is for 3 years in the first instance. UTI is a pressing global problem in terms of healthcare burden and the antimicrobial resistance crisis, but its pathophysiological mechanisms in humans is poorly understood. The human urothelium is lined by a thin layer of polysaccharide-containing mucous, called the GAG layer, which is thought to protect the bladder from infection and insult. However, some bacteria can subvert this protective layer by utilizing the polysaccharides for their own purposes. The project’s overall objective is to determine the contribution of GAG degradation by uropathogens to UTI and catheter-induced UTI to progression and severity. The candidate will contribute by leveraging the Rohn lab’s innovative human 3D-UHU microtissue model to answer these questions, working closely with the two collaborating labs, run by Chelsie Armbruster (Univ at Buffalo, New York) and Nicole De Nisco (Univ of Texas, Dallas). Please contact Kinga Podolak (k.podolak@ucl.ac.uk) with any questions.