PhD Scholarship Project: Engineering synthetic cells for next generation biotechnology

About the project

About the Project The Elani Group is seeking a motivated PhD student to develop the next generation of synthetic cells for applications ranging from biosensing to advanced therapeutics. Rather than modifying living organisms, we take the fundamental components of biology, including membranes, proteins, nucleic acids, and molecular machinery, and assemble them into entirely new cell-like systems. These synthetic cells can be programmed, controlled, and designed for specific tasks, while lacking the ability to replicate or evolve. This PhD project will focus on the design, construction, and testing of synthetic cells that respond to biologically and medically relevant stimuli. The long-term goal is to create programmable systems that could serve as entirely new classes of diagnostics, smart materials, and cell therapies. The Elani Group is a vibrant, multidisciplinary team of around 20 researchers with expertise spanning chemical biology, synthetic biology, and molecular bioengineering. We're particularly excited to see candidates with experience in the molecular and physical sciences looking to apply these skill sets to biology, but also very open to hosting candidates with more traditional synthetic biology backgrounds. This PhD offers an opportunity to tackle one of the most fundamental questions in modern bioengineering: How far can we engineer biology, and what becomes possible when we build it from scratch? This scholarship is open to all applicants regardless of their fee status. It covers both tuition fees and a tax-free contribution to maintenance costs of £25,000 per annum for 42 months. The Department of Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London offers an advanced 3-4-year research degree that provides in-depth specialist training and knowledge in a topical area pertaining to Chemical Engineering and related Engineering and Science disciplines. The Department has state-of-the-art experimental and computational facilities and is the home of the Automated high-throughput platform suite , the Sargent Centre for Process Systems Engineering and the Sustainable Futures Lab . The Department holds a Silver Athena Swan award for good practice in supporting academic women and gender equality renewed in 2024. This award recognises the good practices already in place for supporting women at all stages as well as our commitment to removing barriers to equal progress and achievement. Deadline: 01 November 2027 for the first selection round 11 January 2027 for the second selection round 01 March 2027 for the third selection round (subject to availability of scholarships) In order to be considered for the Chemical Engineering PhD Scholarships, you will need to submit your PhD application for admission through the online admissions system . Full details on the application and selection process can be found on our webpages . We encourage all interested applicants to contact Prof Elani y.elani@imperial.ac.uk before making an application.

Research areas