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A 3-year PhD project in statistical genetics/bioinformatics is available in the Section of Epidemiology and Biostatistics in the Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine at the University of Leeds. A number of fully-funded Medical Research Council studentships are available to the University and these will be awarded competitively to the best candidate across a number of possible projects. The project is entitled "Combining next-generation sequence data with other information to identify disease-susceptibility variants" and will be supervised by Professor Jenny Barrett and Professor Dave Westhead (Faculty of Biological Sciences). Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have enabled the discovery of many common genetic variants that are associated with disease. However, rare genetic variants with moderate effect sizes are likely to contribute significantly to the heritable component of disease, and most studies have lacked the power to detect these. The development of new generation sequencing (NGS) is now permitting the sequencing of complete genomes, or complete exomes (the protein coding part of the genome), for multiple individuals with disease and the comparison of these with healthy control individuals. Such studies can reveal rare variations and their association with disease. However, with a limited number of samples, many variations will show some over-representation in diseased compared with healthy subjects. The aim of this project is to develop statistical and bioinformatic methods to screen and prioritise these variants for further investigation. The project will use simulation to evaluate methods and will apply these to data from GWAS and NGS data of melanoma cases and controls. Further details of the studentship conditions, including details of how to apply, can be found at http://www.findaphd.com/search/PhDDetails.aspx?CAID=860&LID=735. Details of this and other projects available can be found at http://www.leeds.ac.uk/medhealth/grad/prospective/MRC-DGTHomepage.htm. (See the final project listed under the Genetics and Disease research theme). Informal enquires can be made to Jenny Barrett ([log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>). The project would suit a graduate with a strong degree (equivalent to at least a UK upper second class honours degree) in a mathematical or computational subject or a graduate in a biological subject with a strong background in maths/statistics. No prior knowledge of genetics is required. The closing date for applications is 1 March 2012. Jenny Barrett Professor of Statistical Genetics Section of Epidemiology and Biostatistics Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine University of Leeds St James's University Hospital Beckett Street Leeds LS9 7TF Tel: +44 113 2066613 www.personal.leeds.ac.uk/~medjhb<http://www.personal.leeds.ac.uk/~medjhb> You may leave the list at any time by sending the command SIGNOFF allstat to [log in to unmask], leaving the subject line blank.