Phd topic - (Jul/05/2012 )

Hi bioforumers
I am about to choose a Phd topic about molecular diagnosis of one of the important zoonotic diseases of public health importance in Africa. Iam thinking of Bovine tuberculosis what do you think?

some more details would be nice...it's hopefully more than just designing a primer pair for the bacterium...

Is there a need for a better molecular diagnostic tool for this bacterium?

With just a quick google search, I found a paper from 1999 describing a PCR based test for bovine tuberculosis:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1189527/

So what do you plan to do to improve on already existing tests? How would you make a significant and unique contribution to the field?

leelee on Fri Jul 6 02:43:46 2012 said:

Thank you,What about a new rapid tool for epidemiological screening of the disease in milk? I think it may be useful but Iam still searching

hobglobin on Thu Jul 5 15:48:03 2012 said:

I think the Phd topic must be more advanced and complicated than the master topic but to what extent?

desertrose on Fri Jul 6 09:10:50 2012 said:

your supervisors should know...you can only suggest and review the literature what is already done...

What I do not really understand is the fact that you (the "student") are the one that is "finding" a good PhD topic.

Is this normal in your country?

In belgium its a little bit the other way around: professors find intersting topics and search for PhD people...
Its rare that students come up with their own ideas.. basically because students often arent realistic enough or dont know a lot or not enough to come up with ideas.

Anyway, it seems that you are going to do something with tropical animal husbandry? Why not check research facilities (in other countries) in this area and see what kind of topics they offer?
In belgium for example we have some open topics (still looking for students) , maybe you can get some inspiration from those?
If you want, I can give you some links and perhaps that could give you some inspiration or who know, perhaps you would even like one of them and come the belgium haha

Actually I can't find any working project in my area & my supervisor just arrived from a foreign country and I thought we could start together in a new project

desertrose on Sat Jul 7 11:53:18 2012 said:

I still find it a bit weird, it seems that all the "effort" comes from you..

But what is your working area? Because, to be honest: "molecular diagnosis of one of the important zoonotic diseases of public health importance in Africa" , thats not very specific...

Just to give an example: http://www.ugent.be/en/news/vacancies/scientific , check those PhD topics in the field of "Department of Virology, parasitology and immunology", you see that many are in the field of molecular diagnsis or zoonotic diseases..
Is this the kind of work you look for?
Anyway, maybe some of those topic can help you in finding something for you.. as the are pretty specific.

desertrose on Sat Jul 7 11:53:18 2012 said:

Doesn't your supervisor already have an area of interest though? I find it very odd that they would be coming to a new country with no funding or research project already ongoing, or at least planned.

What do you mean you can't find a project working in your area? Do you mean no one is doing any research where you are located? Or that no one is working in your chosen field.

If you are planning to start a new PhD project with this supervisor, let me ask you the following:
- do they have any expertise or a track record in the field of that project? If not, how will they be able to help you and teach you when things are getting complicated or don't work wee

- do you REALLY want to start a PhD with someone who doesn't already have funding?

- what if you are unsuccessful in getting the funding

- what does the university think of you starting a PhD on a project without funding? Will they even approve it? I doubt it.