BEMÆRK: Ansøgningsfristen er overskredet
The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Stem Cell Medicine (reNEW) at Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen is looking for a PhD candidate to join the Sedzinski group starting 1st of October 2023 or upon agreement with the chosen candidate.
The Center
The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Stem Cell Medicine, reNEW has its Hub at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) as well as nodes at UCPH, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and Leiden University Medical Center. Researchers within reNEW addresses fundamental questions in stem cell and developmental biology and will pivot research findings to clinical outcomes and products.
Our research
Our group is working on two parallel research directions which share epithelia identity and function as a common denominator: i) Investigating the mechanical properties of epithelial cells during- embryonic development and, ii) COPD and asthma disease modelling of respiratory tissues.
This call is targeted towards our second line of work and specifically on exploring the mechanistic basis of Chronic Respiratory Diseases (CRDs) in bioengineered tissue models. In the past, we have developed collaborations with respiratory clinical partners of the largest hospitals in the country, alongside collaborations with specialized institutes in respiratory medicine in Copenhagen’s Capital Region. Our goal within these consortia is to materialize further our synergistic overlap with the clinic: A. Identifying and studying novel biomarkers, B. Building more representative tissues through organotypic culturing, C. Pushing the envelope in disease understanding and mechanisms’ functional identity and, D. Running mirroring studies to clinical trials by applying high-throughput screening of therapeutic compounds. All goals involve a strong Data Science component.
Job description:
This call is intended for the study of human epithelia and their behavior under disease burden and co-culturing conditions where various cellular components from patients’ samples are co-evaluated. We aspire building ever complex systems where epithelia are studied at the interphase of immune and mesenchymal cells. Key pathological aspects we are interested in, are epithelial cell destruction, the stem cell regenerative capacity under disease stress, tissue remodeling of epithelia drifting or increasingly being identified by fibrotic cell fates and how chronic inflammation drives epithelial tissue ageing. The prospective candidate alongside research stuff and the PhD students in the lab will be actively collaborating to: i) develop model protocols and study quantitatively the capacity of the 3D organoids to reflect the patient’s endotypic identity, ii) They will perform loss-of-function, overexpression or transient silencing experiments by the use of genome editing tools, iii) They will screen for efficacious compounds and combinations on the tissues grown, iv) They will perform integrative, multimodal, genomic experiments on the organoids developed, v) They will design novel (and microfluidics) co-culturing systems where they will test for key inflammatory or pro-resolving proteins and compounds, vi) They will study the effects of inflammation on epithelia and, vii) They will work on identifying the functional role and signaling pathways implicated on key pathological features of the disease.
Profile
The position is aimed at graduates with a translational medicine or disease modelling background; or a core interest in the above aspects coming from a basic research background. You will be part of the translational medicine team within our group, which is defined by a highly collaborative spirit. We are particularly interested in candidates who are willing to incorporate integrative research methods, learn new techniques and bridge disciplines, with a focus on human pathophysiology and disease mechanistic understanding. Our long-term goal is to translate our findings to human stem cell-based products and therapies. Previous work on: 1) Inflammation of respiratory epithelia in both cellular or molecular level, OR 2) Respiratory biology/pathophysiology/medicine, AND 3) Bioinformatics analysis of human respiratory tissues at a single-cell resolution will be highly valued.
Job description
Your key tasks as a PhD student at SUND are:
- Carrying through an independent research project under supervision.
- Completing PhD courses or other equivalent education corresponding to approximately 30 ECTS points.
- Participating in active research environments including a stay at another research team.
- Obtaining experience with teaching or other types of dissemination related to your PhD project
- Teaching and disseminating your knowledge.
- Writing a PhD thesis on the grounds of your project
Masters in Bioinformatics, Systems Biology, Bioengineering, Disease Modelling and Molecular Pathology, or related sciences Please note that your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (two years).
- Real-world experience with transcriptomics, spatial transcriptomics or epigenetics data sets at a single-cell resolution (required).
- Full-time wet-lab experience in the last 3 years will be viewed as advantageous.
- Hands-on experience with respiratory organotypic cultures (favorable).
- A FELASA accreditation will be considered.
- A core interest in translational studies and disease modelling is a prerequisite.
- Excellent English communication skills, both written and oral.
- A solution-oriented, organizational and can-do mindset is required.
- The ability to work in a highly collaborative environment both independently and as part of the team is essential.
- Stimulating, challenging and multifaceted research environment in a city which is known to belong on the top of the list worldwide for its high quality of life.
- A combination of active scientific service platforms to interact and to develop ideas together and expand available methodology
- Full technical support by our institute’s specialists in our core facilities and the broader network of facilities at the University of Copenhagen
- Possibility for continued education and training
- Attractive employment conditions
- Participation in international conferences
- Formation of international collaborations within the respiratory medicine field
- Centrally located workplace
The average weekly working hours are 37 hours per week.
The position is a fixed-term position limited to a period of 3 years. The start date is 1 October 2023 or after agreement.
The employment is conditioned upon the applicant’s successful enrolment as a PhD student at the Graduate School at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific project formulated by the applicant.
The PhD study must be completed in accordance with The Ministerial Order on the PhD programme (2013) and the Faculty’s rules on achieving the degree.
Salary, pension and terms of employment are in accordance with the agreement between the Ministry of Taxation and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. Depending on seniority, the monthly salary starts at approximately 27,800 DKK/Roughly 3,700 EUR (October 2021 level) plus pension.
The position is covered by the “Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at the Universities” of June 28, 2013.
We encourage all - regardless of their personal background and status - to apply.
The application procedure:
Your online application may be submitted in English via the ‘Apply now’ link below. Furthermore, your application must include the following documents/attachments – all in PDF format:
- Cover letter expressing the motivation and previous research experience of the applicant (max 5000 characters with spaces). It should cover the candidate’s long-term research vision and which overlap you see in your profile with our research interests to be part of our team.
- Curriculum vitae, incl. education, experience, previous employments, language skills and other relevant skills.
- Certified copy of original Master of Science diploma and transcript of records in the original language, including an authorized English translation if issued in other language than English or Danish. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor is accepted. As a prerequisite for a PhD fellowship employment, your master’s degree must be equivalent to a Danish master’s degree. We encourage you to read more in the assessment database: https://ufm.dk/en/education/recognition-and-transparency/find-assessments/assessment-database. Please note that we might ask you to obtain an assessment of your education performed by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science
- List of publications
For further information contact Associate Professor Jakub Sedzinski, jakub.sedzinski@sund.ku.dk
General information about PhD studies at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences is available at the Graduate School’s website: https://healthsciences.ku.dk/phd/guidelines/
Foreign applicants may find the following links useful: www.ism.ku.dk (International Staff Mobility) and www.workingconditions.ku.dk.
How to apply
Your online application must be submitted in English, by clicking on “Apply online” below.
The closing date for applications is 21 June 2023.
The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the diversity of society and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of personal background.
Only applications received in time and consisting of the above listed documents will be considered.
Applications and/or any material received after deadline will not be taken into consideration.
Assessment procedure
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the hiring committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an unbiased assessor.
The assessor makes a non-prioritized assessment of the academic qualifications and experience with respect to the above-mentioned area of research, techniques, skills and other requirements listed in the advertisement.
Once the assessment work has been completed each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that relates to the applicant him/herself.
You find information about the recruitment process at: http://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/
The applicants will be assessed according to the Ministerial Order no. 242 of 13 March 2012 on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities.
Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the oldest university in Denmark. It is among the largest universities in Scandinavia and is one of the highest ranking in Europe. The University´s eight faculties include Health Sciences, Humanities, Law, Life Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Science, Social Sciences and Theology. www.ku.dk
INFORMATIONER OM STILLINGEN:
- Arbejdspladsen ligger i:
Ballerup Kommune
-Virksomheden tilbyder:
-Arbejdsgiver:
KU - SUND - PANUM KBH N, Blegdamsvej 3B, 2200 København N
-Ansøgning:
Ansøgningsfrist: 21-06-2023; - ansøgningsfristen er overskredet
Ved skriftlig henvendelse: https://candidate.hr-manager.net/ApplicationInit.aspx?cid=1307&ProjectId=159443&DepartmentId=19228&MediaId=4632&SkipAdvertisement=true
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