Details
The zebrafish is a superb model system for study of the inner ear. Many key developmental events that form the vestibular apparatus—including epithelial folding, fusion and perforation to establish the semicircular canal ducts—are complete by 5 days post fertilisation. However, several important steps take place during the post-embryonic period, including continued development of the semicircular canals and otoliths. These later developmental events remain largely undescribed. Moreover, inner ear defects in homozygous viable lines at post-embryonic stages remain uncharacterised.
The successful applicant will use a variety of imaging and computational image analysis techniques to generate a 3D morphometric atlas of post-embryonic stages of otic development in the wild-type zebrafish, with a focus on development of the semicircular canal system. This work will form an important reference point to generate in-depth morphometric and behavioural phenotypic profiles of selected mutant lines at post-embryonic stages. Two genes of interest are adgrg6 (gpr126) and bmper, both of which form models for human disease. Knowledge of the genetic pathway disrupted will allow the student to test hypotheses concerning gene function.
The successful applicant will gain experience in use of the zebrafish as a model system. They will receive training in state-of-the-art imaging using equipment housed in the Light Microscopy Facility (https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/lmf). Wild-type and mutant lines will be crossed to transgenic lines of interest for live fluorescence imaging. There will also be the opportunity to use micro-computed tomography (µCT) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The student will analyse 3D-rendered semicircular canal morphology using morphoHeart, software developed for the heart in the Noël lab, but applicable to other organs. The student will receive training in both open-source (morphoHeart, Fiji) and available commercial packages (arivis) for image analysis, including 3D rendering of fluorescence and µCT data.
The project will incorporate a clinical placement, hosted by Dr Meena Balasubramanian, a clinical geneticist specialising in relevant human disorders. This part of the project will provide a unique opportunity to gain insight into patient care. The student will undertake a review of the clinical literature to gain a comprehensive knowledge of the causes and symptoms of human developmental disorders of the vestibular (balance) system, and of the current treatments available. This will provide important context and relevance for their project, together with experience of the clinical sector.
We are seeking a motivated student with interests in developmental biology and disease modelling. This interdisciplinary project combines both wet bench work and computational work (image analysis). There will be ample opportunity to contribute to experimental design, and to gain skills and experience in presentation, teaching and outreach.
Academic and pastoral support will be provided throughout via an interdisciplinary supervisory team and an established Advisory Programme. The student will join the well-funded and friendly Whitfield lab (see blog).
Please apply for this project using this link: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/postgraduate/phd/apply/applying
Science Graduate School
As a PhD student in one of the science departments at the University of Sheffield, you’ll be part of the Science Graduate School. You’ll get access to training opportunities designed to support your career development by helping you gain professional skills that are essential in all areas of science. You’ll be able to learn how to recognise good research and research behaviour, improve your communication abilities and experience the breadth of technologies that are used in academia, industry and many related careers. Visit http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/sgs to learn more.
Funding Notes
A fully-funded 3-year studentship from the Anatomical Society is available in the Whitfield lab to study post-embryonic development of the zebrafish inner ear. The studentship is open to applications from UK, Irish, or European citizens who have spent at least three years at a UK or Irish institute of higher education. Please contact Tanya Whitfield (t.whitfield@sheffield.ac.uk <>t.whitfield@sheffield.ac.uk>) for informal enquiries. Deadline for applications: Friday 27th February 2026.
First class or upper second 2(i) in a relevant subject. To formally apply for a PhD, you must complete the University's application form using the following link:
https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/postgraduate/phd/apply/applying
References
"Baxendale, S. et al. & Whitfield, T. T. Bmper is required for semicircular canal duct morphogenesis in the zebrafish inner ear. bioRxiv (2021). https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.06.27.450014
Geng, F.-S., Abbas, L., Baxendale, S., Holdsworth, C. J., Swanson, A. G., Slanchev, K., Hammerschmidt, M., Topczewski, J., & Whitfield, T. T. (2013). Semicircular canal morphogenesis in the zebrafish inner ear requires the function of gpr126 (lauscher), an adhesion class G protein-coupled receptor gene. Development, 140(21), 4362–4374. https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.098061
Sánchez-Posada, J., Derrick, C. J., & Noël, E. S. (2025). morphoHeart: a novel quantitative tool to perform integrated 3D morphometric analyses of heart and ECM morphology during embryonic development. PLoS Biology, 23(1), e3002995. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3002995
Tanya Whitfield:
https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/biosciences/academic-staff/people/tanya-whitfield
Emily Noël:
https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/biosciences/people/academic-staff/emily-noel
Read about life in the Whitfield lab on our blog: https://whitfield-lab-news.blogspot.com/
Bluesky (DRN Research Cluster): @drn-sheffield.bsky.social
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