PhD Opportunity at Prof. Zheng's Lab - The University of Akron

Dr. Jie Zheng is a Professor and Chair of Dept. of Chemical, Biomolecular, and Corrosion Engineering at the University of Akron.

Prof. Zheng's Lab research is highly interdisciplinary, but mainly focuses on the sequence-structure-function relationship of biomolecules (proteins, peptides, and DNA/RNA) upon interacting with biological membranes, biomaterials, and other inorganic surfaces.

They uniquely integrate theoretical models, molecular simulations, and biophysical experiments to conduct fundamental and applied research at the interface of computational structural biology, biophysics, biomaterials, and nanotechnology, with the goals of better understanding of biophysicochemical interactions at the biological interfaces and rationally engineering biomolecules for practical applications in biomaterials and medicine. Currently, they are particularly interested in the research projects as described below.

(i) Amyloid Peptides Associated with Neurodegenerative Diseases

(ii) Smart and Tough Hydrogels

(iii) Multifunctional Superlow Fouling Biomaterials

(iv) Engineering Biomaterials for Biomedical Applications

(v) Development of Advanced Computational Algorithms and Models

Position Available

Two PhD student positions are available immediately in the group.

General requirement:

(1) CV, transcript, TOEFL with minimal score of 79 or above and oral score of 23 or above;

(2) M.S. degree is required;

(3) self-motivated, pro-activated, and positive attitude.

Simulation position:

(1) Experience with molecular dynamics simulation;

(2) Density function theory or data-mining is a big plus;

(3) Strong interesting and skills in programming.

Experimental position:

Either (1) Polymer synthesis training is a big plus or (2) Bioengineering with cells and protein engineering is a big plus.

Please contact him at zhengj@uakron.edu if you are interested!

For more information or questions, please contact them at yt29@uakron.edu.

P.S. If you have a M.S. degree, but without any publication, please do NOT bother to apply for this position.