Higher Degree by Research Application Portal
| Title | Designer RNA-processing Enzymes |
|---|---|
| Course | Doctor of Philosophy |
| Project opportunity | Designer RNA-processing Enzymes |
| Description | Manipulating the information content of RNA provides a safe route to changing the protein products of translation without permanently altering the genome. Pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) proteins offer a convenient single-component solution to designing new RNA-modifying tools, having an advantage over multicomponent systems such as CRISPR/dCas. Such tools have high potential in biotechnological applications in agriculture and medicine. However, off-target effects are a key issue encountered with designer nucleic acid modification tools. This project will use structural biology methods on existing PPR proteins to understand how natural selection avoids off-target effects through steric or allosteric regulation. These principles will be incorporated into the design of novel sequence-specific RNA-modifying enzymes to improve their biological selectivity. |
| Keywords | Structural biology, Synthetic biology, Protein design, RNA-binding proteins |
| Additional documents | |
| Opportunity status | Open |
| Open date | 28 Jul 2025 |
| Close date | 08 Sep 2025 |
| Research area | Biological Sciences |
| Citizenship status | Domestic |
| International | |
| Enrolment status | Future student |
| Contact | Prof Charlie Bond FRSC M310, 4th Floor (4.32) Bayliss Building, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Hwy, Crawley, WA 6009 |
| Scholarship details | |
| Scholarship type | Stipend scholarship |
| Scholarship value | AUD $370000 |
| Availability | As soon as possible |
| School | School of Molecular Sciences |
| Course type | Doctorates |