Nawigacja okruszkowa
Widok zawartości stron
Widok zawartości stron
The PhD Programme in Biology is carried out in English, in a full-time, eight-semester system.
This PhD programme covers courses representing various areas of biological sciences, including training in modern methodology and mastering skills useful in professional academic and non-academic careers. Choice of facultative classes and the possibility of gaining credits for courses offered outside of the University ensures flexibility and helps to adjust participation in courses to the individual research plan of the student.
For everyone who will be accepted for the PhD programme in Biology, a scholarship is guaranteed.
PhD students are recruited for the specific research topics offered by the faculty members. Some of the competitions listed below are held outside the OAS system (Online Application System). We kindly ask you to follow the recruitment rules described in each competition.
Each year, PhD students and their advisors/promotors write an individual research plan for a given year. Until the end of four semesters, students’ achievements are evaluated (mid-term evaluation) by the committee.
Doctoral dissertations are prepared under the supervision of a scientific staff of the Faculty of Biology (members of the Institute of Botany, Institute of Environmental Sciences or Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research). PhD programme in Biology leads to the scientific Doctoral title in the discipline of biology. More information about the programme can be found here.
Widok zawartości stron
The coexistence of sexual and asexual reproduction is a major conundrum in life sciences. While asexual reproduction offers clear advantages, such as avoiding the costs of producing males and reducing mating-related risks, theory and predicts and most observations confirm that sexual lineages should be more persistent due to the benefits of recombination and sexual selection. However, there are notable exceptions, ancient asexual lineages often termed as ‘evolutionary scandals’, such as bdelloid rotifers, oribatid mites or murrayid tardigrades, that challenge our understanding of evolution.
Thus, the central question of this project is to understand why certain asexual lineages endure over geological time. Specifically, the project aims to investigate whether ancient asexuals have evolved compensatory genetic recombination mechanisms to counteract the loss of sexual reproduction.
To achieve its objectives, we will undertake a comprehensive comparative analysis of the genomic architecture of ancient and recent asexual tardigrade lineages. Recent advancements in genome sequencing techniques will facilitate the acquisition of tardigrade genomes from individual specimens, a substantial improvement over previous methodologies that required pooled samples of thousands of animals.
Documented experience with bioinformatics (preferably in genomics and/or transcriptomics) is strongly advantegous.
Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK/Prof. Mark Blaxter.
[1] Brandt A. et al. (2021) Haplotype divergence supports long-term asexuality in the oribatid mite Oppiella nova. PNAS, 118: e2101485118. [https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2101485118]
[2] Laine V.N. et al. (2022) Genomic signature of sexual reproduction in the bdelloid rotifer Macrotrachella quadricornifera. Genetics, 220: iyab221. [https://doi.org/10.1093/genetics/iyab221]
[3] Vakrusheva O.A. et al. (2020) Genomic signatures of recombination in a natural population of the bdelloid rotifer Adineta vaga. Nature Communications, 11: 6421. [https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-19614-y]
