Developmental Biology

Entry requirements

We require applicants to hold, or be about to obtain, an Upper Second class Honours degree, or the equivalent qualification gained outside the UK, in a related subject area for entry to a PhD programme. A Lower Second class Honours degree may be considered if applicants also hold a Master's degree with a Merit classification.

Months of entry

January, April, September

Course content

Our PhD/MPhil Developmental Biology programme enables you to undertake a research project that will improve understanding of Developmental Biology.

Developmental Biology is the study of the processes by which complex organisms develop from fertilised eggs.

Research in Manchester investigates the fundamental events underlying normal development and how these are subverted in disease.

Specific interests include:

• pluripotency, cell fate specification and differentiation;
• patterning and organogenesis;
• cell signalling;
• epithelial development and morphogenesis;
• cell adhesion in development;
• the developmental role of genes involved in human diseases including epidermal, heart and craniofacial defects.

The Healing Foundation Centre investigates the cellular and molecular basis of tissue repair and regeneration.

Our research utilises a variety of model organisms including Caenorhabditis elegans, Dictyostelium, Drosophila, chick, mouse, Xenopus and zebrafish, and a diversity of state-of the-art techniques including various types of genetic analysis, transgenesis, gene targeting, expression profiling, functional genomics, proteomics, imaging, electron microscopy and X-ray crystallography.