PhD studentship in the Tapon lab at the Francis Crick institute starting in September 2025

Application deadline: November 5th 2025

We are looking for an enthusiastic student with a degree in a biological discipline and a strong interest in developmental and regenerative biology. Skills in quantitative biology and computational approaches to biological data would be a plus.

How do cells in a developing organism stop growing and dividing when the correct body size has been reached? How is tissue size maintained in an adult organism? These fundamental questions have clear implications for cancer, where cells lose the ability to respond to tissue size boundaries, and for regenerative medicine, where the proliferative potential of quiescent cells must be unleashed in a controlled manner. Our goal is to unravel how a diverse set of cues acting at the local, tissue autonomous level (e.g. mechanical forces, tissue architecture, signalling pathways) are integrated with systemic signals (e.g. nutrient availability, hormones) to determine final animal size. We tackle this question using Drosophila, mice, and cell in culture.

For project details, please go to our application page.

PhD studentship covers:

• £26,125 tax-free student stipend (living allowance) per year for four years
• Tuition fees
• If applicable, reimbursement of the student visa application fee and immigration health surcharge