Applications are invited for one postgraduate position in the pig nutrition research team lead by Professor John O’Doherty, an internationally recognized leader in animal nutrition, Prof. Torres Sweeney (Molecular Biology and Animal Genomics) and Dr. Ruth Hamill (Meat Quality).
Background: Physiological, biochemical and molecular processes influence the health status, nutrient utilisation, and meat quality in pig. Understanding of these processes will enable optimizing production strategies to lower the cost of production and ensure a minimum negative environmental impact of pork production while meeting the consumer’s expectations of a high quality. For example, adopting a nutritional strategy based on the nutrient requirement of pig may lead to a modest reduction in feed cost by 3% which represents a profitability of €2.00 extra per growing-finishing pigs. This is equivalent to a benefit of approximately €7.5 million per year for Irish pig producers. Dietary strategies were found promising in reducing wastage of nutrients in manure and thus minimizing the impact on the air and water quality. Our ongoing research indicates that drip losses in Irish meat are on average about 6.5% which is high in comparison to international standards. A mere 1.5 % reduction in drip loss from pork meat represents an additional 20,000 tonnes of saleable meat per year alone for pig processors.
This research project will explore the underlying molecular, biological and physiological mechanisms that contribute to the interactive effects of the pig’s health status and environment (nutrition, feeding management, feed ingredients and maternal feeding) on nutrient utilisation efficiency and subsequent pork meat and carcass quality. It is expected that a wide range of experimental techniques will be used including techniques relating to transcriptomics, proteomics, cell biology, immunology, nutrient utilisation, meat quality and environmental monitoring. This project is an inter-institutional project with a significant interaction with the pig industry.
Qualifications: First class BSc/MSc in Animal Science, Life sciences, Food Science, Agriculture, Biotechnology, Biochemistry or a related discipline
Fellowship Description: The fellowship provides a stipend of €21,000 per annum and is tenable for 4 years. The fellow is expected to be registered in UCD as a postgraduate.
Application Procedure: Interested candidates can submit full curriculum vitae (two pages maximum) and the contact details for two scientific referees to john.vodoherty@ucd.ie with a copy to ens_phd@ucd.ie
The last date of submitting application is October 1, 2011.
Further detail on this project is available in the following link
http://www.ucd.ie/earth/graduatetraining/phdprogrammeinearthandnaturalsciences/applyingforaphdposition