This project explores how environmental stress influences ageing through the lens of the epigenetic clock, using the model hymenopteran, Nasonia vitripennis. Arthropods form the majority of animal life on Earth and are critical to ecosystem function, yet their populations are declining at unprecedented rates under climate change. To understand how temperature extremes and other environmental pressures affect arthropod health and longevity, there is a pressing need for biomarkers that capture biological age and predict resilience.
Nasonia has recently been established as the first insect model with a validated epigenetic clock, a molecular tool that links DNA methylation patterns to biological ageing. This makes it uniquely suited for testing how global warming alters the pace of ageing and whether these changes can persist across generations.
The project will examine how temperature extremes, a key stressor under climate change, alter the rate of the epigenetic clock across the lifespan of Nasonia. By combining lifespan assays with high-throughput behavioural tracking and longitudinal methylation profiling, the study will generate one of the first comprehensive datasets on how environmental conditions modulate epigenetic ageing in an invertebrate. A second focus will be on maternal effects: exposing mothers to brief periods of thermal stress and measuring whether these exposures accelerate or decelerate the epigenetic clock in their offspring. This approach will test whether environmental stress leaves a transgenerational epigenetic imprint, with important implications for species persistence in changing climates.
For a motivated PhD student, this project offers the chance to work at the interface of molecular biology, ecology, and climate science. You will gain cutting-edge skills in genomics, bioinformatics, and experimental design, while contributing to urgent questions about how global warming shapes the biology of ageing. The findings will not only advance our understanding of environmental epigenetics but also deliver tools for assessing biodiversity resilience in a warming world.
Figure 1: Bar chart showing global average temperature change.
This project is not suitable for CASE funding
Each host has a slightly different application process.
Find out how to apply for this studentship.
All applications must include the CENTA application form.
Choose your application route
The methods of the study combine experimental ecology with molecular and bioinformatic approaches to investigate the effects of climate stress on epigenetic ageing in Nasonia vitripennis. The PhD candidate will conduct controlled lifespan experiments under different temperature regimes, using high-throughput behavioural tracking (Ethoscopes) to monitor activity patterns and survival. At multiple time points across the lifespan, individuals will be sampled using Oxford Nanopore technology to measure DNA methylation dynamics at single-base resolution. A maternal exposure experiment will assess whether brief thermal stress in mothers influences the epigenetic ageing of their offspring. Bioinformatic pipelines will be used to identify clock CpGs, quantify changes in methylation over time, and model the effects of environmental stress on the rate of biological ageing. Together, these methods will generate one of the first comprehensive datasets on how climate change alters the pace and plasticity of the epigenetic clock in insects.
DRs will be awarded CENTA Training Credits (CTCs) for participation in CENTA-provided and ‘free choice’ external training. One CTC can be earned per 3 hours training, and DRs must accrue 100 CTCs across the three and a half years of their PhD.
The student will receive comprehensive training across experimental and computational approaches. This will include Nasonia husbandry, experimental design, and behavioural tracking using high-throughput systems. Molecular training will cover DNA and RNA extraction, library preparation, and next-generation sequencing techniques, with a focus on Oxford Nanopore technologies for methylation analysis. Bioinformatics training will be provided in R and Python, enabling the student to process sequencing data, identify differentially methylated regions, and construct epigenetic clocks. Additional training will be available in statistical modelling, data visualisation, and reproducible research workflows, ensuring the student develops both broad technical skills and strong quantitative expertise.
This project is jointly supervised by Professor Mallon and Dr Marshall, whose complementary expertise ensures strong interdisciplinary support. Mallon is an international leader in insect epigenetics and ageing, with a particular focus on Nasonia vitripennis and the development of epigenetic clocks. Marshall is a leading expert in environmental epigenetics and next-generation sequencing, with extensive experience in applying genomic approaches to ecological questions. Their collaboration provides the student with access to a unique combination of molecular, ecological, and computational expertise, reinforced through joint weekly lab meetings and established co-supervision practices.
Foley, E. E. B., Thomas, C. L., Kyriacou, C. P. and Mallon, E. B. (2025) ‘Larval diapause slows adult epigenetic aging in an insect model, Nasonia vitripennis’, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 122(31), e2513020122. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2513020122.
Podcast about the above paper: https://www.newstalk.com/podcasts/futureproof-with-jonathan-mccrea/extra-is-slowing-down-ageing-possible
Choi, E.Y. & Ailshire J.A., (2025) Ambient outdoor heat and accelerated epigenetic aging among older adults in the US. Sci.Adv.11,eadr0616.DOI:10.1126/sciadv.adr0616
Drangowska-Way A. (2025) https://www.lifespan.io/news/heat-may-speed-up-epigenetic-aging-in-older-adults/ (Accessed: 11 September 2025).
Please contact Eamonn Mallon, University of Leicester, School of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Division of Genetics and Genome Biology, [email protected] for further details. https://le.ac.uk/people/eamonn-mallon
To apply to this project:
Applications must be submitted by 23:59 GMT on Wednesday 7th January 2026.