Job Academic Medical Center (AMC) - PhD student/Junior Postdoc Experimental Immunology

Together with the Department of Experimental Immunology, the Department of Respiratory Medicine has initiated a translational project focusing on the role of interleukin-5 (IL-5) during virus-induced asthma exacerbations. IL-5 is known to be a critical mediator of eosinophilic airway inflammation in asthma patients. It has recently been shown that neutralization of IL-5 reduces the exacerbation rate in asthma patients with confirmed eosinophilic inflammation. As viruses are the main inducers of exacerbations, it is thought that IL-5 and/or eosinophils impair the host response to respiratory viruses. Within the current project, a randomized placebo-controlled trial will be performed to determine the efficacy of IL-5 neutralization during experimentally virus-induced exacerbations in allergic asthma patients. In addition, the impact of IL-5 and/or eosinophilic inflammation on the response towards the virus will be investigated in both humans and mice.

We are looking for an enthousiastic PhD student or junior post-doc with a MSc/PhD degree in biology or medical sciences. Candidates must have proven experience within the field of immunology. Good communicative skills in both Dutch and English is required. Medical students with a MSc degree in medical biology are encouraged to apply.

We offer a fulltime appointment (36 hours/week) for the duration of 3 years (junior post-doc) or 4 years (PhD student). The full time salary for a post-doc will be minimally € 2932,- gross per month depending on skills and experience. The fulltime salary for a PhD student starts at € 2086,- and will maximally be € 2673,- gross per month in the last year.

For additional information about the project, please contact dr. K.F. van der Sluijs, tel.: +31 20 5666410 and dr. R. Lutter , tel. +31 20 5668753).