Organelle Function MPhil – (M.Phil.)

The MPhil is a one-year research degree where students get the opportunity to study a specific research project. The MPhil degree can act as a stand-alone degree for applicants who would like to gain experience in a specific area, or can be linked to a PhD programme. Rather than register on a direct entry 3 or 4 year PhD, some postgraduates may first register on a one-year MPhil programme. Subsequently students may then wish to transfer on to a full PhD programme with a further 2 or 3 years of study.
Specific mechanisms promote the correct folding and assembly of newly synthesised proteins and ensure that these molecules are transported to their appropriate compartment within a eukaryotic cell. Many diseases, such as cystic fibrosis, are related to defects in one or more of these processes and our work is focused on two broad themes. The first encompasses how proteins are transported into and across the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and mitochondrial membranes and how they are folded and assembled in these organelles. The second involves defining the machinery and mechanisms responsible for the sorting and transport of proteins between the different compartments of the endomembrane system and in maintaining organelle identity. Our goal is to understand the underlying mechanisms for each process and how they are regulated. This knowledge will provide us with an intellectual framework within which specific diseases can be studied.