Deadlier together: Determining the mechanisms of action behind snake venom toxin synergy
Supervisors:
Steven Hall, Lancaster University
Andrew Jamieson, University of Glasgow
Summary:
Permanent injury due to snakebite envenoming effects approximately 400,000 people annually. This PhD studentship explores how various snake venom toxins work together to synergistically maximise the damage they do to both human and animal tissue. Specifically, we are interested in determining the precise mechanisms through which the major snake venom toxin superfamilies – snake venom metalloproteases (SVMPs), snake venom serine proteases (SVSPs), phospholipases A2 (PLA2s), and three-finger toxins (3FTxs) – interact with each other or their cellular targets to induce skin, muscle, and bone cell death. While it is widely accepted that many snake venom toxins act synergistically to enhance their toxic properties, few studies have specifically explored this synergy, and none have used chemical biology and pharmacology to explore their precise mechanisms of action in detail.
This studentship will provide the student with multidisciplinary training within pharmacology and chemical biology. The student will learn valuable skills in data acquisition, analysis, and visualisation. They will have many opportunities to present their findings orally in platform and poster presentations. They will also help write academic manuscripts for publication in peer-reviewed scientific journals. This comprehensive training will ensure that the student is well-equipped and competitive for whatever career they choose to pursue upon completion.