Next Generation Glycan Sensing for Early Cancer Diagnosis

About the Project

Early diagnosis remains one of the greatest challenges in cancer treatment. Subtle molecular changes often occur long before clinical symptoms appear, yet existing diagnostic tools struggle to detect them with sufficient sensitivity and accuracy. This PhD project aims to address this challenge by developing new glycan sensing technologies with the potential to significantly improve early cancer diagnosis.

Glycans are complex sugar structures that modify proteins and lipids on the surface of cells. Changes in protein glycosylation are closely linked to the initiation and progression of many cancers, including prostate, ovarian, breast, colon and brain cancers. Although glycoproteomic studies have identified cancer specific glycan signatures, there remains a critical gap between this knowledge and practical diagnostic technologies capable of detecting these structures reliably in complex biological samples.

In this PhD project, you will develop advanced sensing platforms capable of detecting a broad range of glycans with high affinity and specificity. The research combines polymer chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, synthetic molecular recognition and nanochemistry in a highly interdisciplinary framework. You will work at the interface of fundamental molecular design and real world biomedical challenges, contributing to sensing technologies aimed at the early detection of cancer.

You will join a dynamic and interdisciplinary team of postdoctoral researchers and PhD students working on complementary aspects of an early cancer diagnostic assay. This collaborative setting provides strong scientific support while allowing you to develop and lead an independent research project that feeds into a larger diagnostic platform.

The project has strong translational relevance and is linked to major initiatives in prostate cancer research funded by Prostate Cancer UK https://prostatecanceruk.org/research/research-we-fund/ria17-st2-020 and in ovarian cancer research through the DISARM project https://disarm-project.eu

It offers the opportunity to contribute to research with clear clinical impact while gaining a broad and highly transferable skill set. Training will span molecular design, materials development and bioanalytical sensing, providing excellent preparation for careers in academia, biotechnology or the diagnostics sector.

This project will suit highly motivated candidates who enjoy tackling intellectually challenging, open-ended problems and who are excited by the opportunity to contribute to research with real world diagnostic impact.

We are seeking motivated candidates with a strong academic background in Chemistry, Engineering, Materials Science, Physics or Biology. Applicants should hold a first or upper second-class bachelor’s degree or an MSc degree and demonstrate enthusiasm for interdisciplinary research at the chemistry biology interface.

Funding Notes

This position is available only to home students or self-funded students.