New PhD opportunity in environmental toxicology

Frog 2
Dr Lanctôt uses frog tadpoles to study how chemical burdens change during their development from larval to adult stages (Photos: C. Lanctôt)

By Dr Chantal Lanctot,

The Australian Rivers Institute and Griffith Sciences is seeking a strong and independent PhD student in the field of environmental toxicology. The candidate will work with Dr Chantal Lanctôt on research related to her Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) project “Metal toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics in developing anurans: how metamorphosis influences metal burdens”, in collaboration with Dr William Bennett (Griffith) and Dr Tom Cresswell (ANSTO).

The project explores mechanisms and consequences of contaminant exposures in organisms with complex life cycles (amphibians or other species), and the dynamic nature of toxicity risk associated with changing environmental conditions.

Stripped marsh frog, in Southport
Adult striped marsh frog (Limnodynastes peronii), a common species in Eastern Australia. (Photos: C. Lanctôt)

The successful PhD candidate will gain experience in ecotoxicology, animal physiology and environmental chemistry, and have opportunities to apply advanced analytical and imaging techniques such as Inductively Coupled Plasma – Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), synchrotron-based Xray fluorescence microscopy and radiotracing techniques. Opportunities to conduct studies for short periods at ANSTO are available. Post-graduate top-up scholarships are available through the Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering (www.AINSE.edu.au) for students interested in conducting studies at ANSTO as part of this collaborative opportunity.

The project will begin in early 2019.

The principal laboratories are located at Griffith University on the Gold Coast, Australia.

For more details and application forms click here: https://www.griffith.edu.au/research-study/scholarships/environmental-toxicology-phd-scholarship

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