Student opportunities
Restoring vision in Usher 1B and Stargardt’s disease using next-generation gene therapies
This research project position is open to expressions of interest from PhD students.
Project title: Restoring vision in Usher 1B and Stargardt’s disease using next-generation gene therapies
Supervisors: Dr Jiang-Hui (Sloan) Wang, Associate Professor Guei-Sheung (Rick) Liu and Professor Lauren Ayton AM
Email: sloan.wang@unimelb.edu.au
Suitable for: PhD
Scholarship
Successful applicants will receive a Centre for Eye Research (CERA) PhD Stipend Scholarship to support PhD research studies for this project at CERA. This prestigious award includes a living allowance stipend of $39,500 per annum (2026 rate) equivalent to the Melbourne Research Scholarship (University of Melbourne).
- Applications open – 5 September 2025
- Applications close – 5 May 2026
- Project start date (anticipated) – 1 February 2026
This PhD project will focus on creating and validating AAV-based strategies to reconstitute large retinal disease genes in vivo:
- Design and optimization of dual-AAV vectors employing either split intein reconstitution or ribozyme-mediated mRNA ligation.
- Evaluation in disease models: The project will test these strategies in relevant preclinical models of USH1B (Myo7a deficiency) and Stargardt disease (Abca4 deficiency) – measuring biochemical rescue, photoreceptor function and retinal structure.
- Mechanistic insights: Comparative studies will identify the strengths and limitations of intein versus ribozyme approaches, informing translational development.