PhD studentship: Cardiometabolic phenotyping and bone health in midlife and older age: A comparison across ethnic groups

Location:  Southampton General Hospital
Closing Date:  Tuesday 04 December 2018
Duration: Three years


An opportunity exists for a PhD student to work within the Medical Research Council Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit at the University of Southampton. The main aim of this PhD is to determine how cardiometabolic health relates to bone and muscle outcomes in three ethnic groups in the UK, in an existing longitudinal cohort study, South Acton and Brent Revisited Study (SABRE). The PhD will be supervised by Dr Kate Ward, Professor Elaine Dennison and Professor Cyrus Cooper.


Ethnicity is a risk factor for osteoporosis and cardiometabolic disease. Whilst individuals of European descent have the highest risk for fracture, they have lower risk of Type II diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Well-described differences in body composition are likely to be contributing factors to these ethnic differences. Much less is known about sarcopenia (loss of muscle mass and function) risk and ethnicity.  Some studies report ethnic differences in physical capability and muscle strength both important components of sarcopenia. Also, intramuscular fat depots are a feature of ageing muscle and insulin resistance and are related to poorer function, though risk factors for increases in intramuscular fat are not fully understood. Given the contribution of body composition to sarcopenia risk, and relationships between muscle, fat and bone important to understand whether these ethnic differences in body composition are related to differences in bone health, and whether they identify groups, otherwise thought to be at lower risk of fracture, at risk of poor musculoskeletal health.


The project will provide training in epidemiology, physiological measurements, imaging and image analysis, nutrition. The focus will be on training in epidemiological methods and data analysis. Training will be given in the acquisition of all of the data used in the project, either in on-going SABRE or in other studies of musculoskeletal ageing MRC LEU are running, for example the Hertfordshire Cohort Study follow-ups. There is a methodological sub-project of image analysis, analysing vertebral scans from dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and in assessing appropriateness of sarcopenia definitions in the cohort. There will also opportunity to apply the research questions to other cohorts, for example Hertfordshire Cohort, National Survey for Health and Development, the Gambian Bone Ageing Study


The Unit houses a large team of statisticians, providing a supportive environment to early career researchers.  Extensive training is available both informally and formally within the Faculty of Medicine.

This PhD studentship is funded by the National Institute for Health Research Southampton Biomedical Research Centre.  The funding will cover all fees and stipend (£14,777/year).  If you wish to discuss any details of the project informally, please contact Dr Kate Ward ([log in to unmask]).


Further details and application forms can be found at: https://jobs.soton.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx?ref=1062818AF


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