As PhD student in the Department of Chemical Immunology in the lab of Huib Ovaa, you will be part of a group investigating the mechanisms and functional consequences of post-translational protein modification by SUMO and Ubiquitin. As part of a recently awarded Marie Curie ITN project, aimed to train the best scientists in Europe, you will study the roles of sumoylation and ubiquitylation in cancer and infection. By targeting SUMO and ubiquitin signal transduction hope to develop novel therapies. This project will be carried out in close collaboration with the lab of Alfred Vertegaal and other members of the European ITN network.

Our group is interested in the mechanisms and functional consequences of post-translational protein modification by SUMO and ubiquitin. We integrate chemical synthesis and high throughput screening with biochemistry, cell biology and proteomics approaches and we have access to state-of-the art facilities to obtain novel insights in SUMO and ubiquitin signal transduction in cancer and infection. We have previously described chemical techniques to synthesize sumo and ubiquitin reagents and in this project it is the goal to develop reagents and to find drug leads using high throughput screening and hit to lead optimization and validation of tool compounds in model systems.

You have obtained an MSc degree in organic synthesis and a good understanding of protein biochemistry, molecular biology and cell biology. You are highly motivated, enthusiastic and creative as well as skilled and result-driven. Excellent written and oral communication skills are a must as this project is multidisciplinary requiring to work with others on various topics.

Fixed-term contract: maximum of 4 years.

You are employed on the basis of a 36-hour week. Appointment will lead to a PhD thesis and is for a maximum duration of four years. Your salary depends on your qualifications and experience, with a maximum of  € 2,266 gross per month in the first year, progressing to € 2,903 gross per month in the fourth year based on a full-time position (scale for PhD students, Collective Labor Agreement for University Hospitals).

The terms of employment offered by the LUMC are highly favorable. For example, you will receive 8% holiday remuneration, a year-end bonus, and a pension arrangement with the National Civil Pension Fund. Also, as employee of one of the University Hospitals in the Netherlands, you can benefit from our collective health insurance policy.

Moreover, the LUMC offers excellent facilities in the area of education, child-care center, and career advice.

LUMC

At the Leiden University Medical Centre (LUMC), we are continually seeking to improve the quality of healthcare. The LUMC aims for excellence in patient care, research, teaching, training and continuing education.

http://www.lumc.nl/

Department of Chemical Immunology

The project

Our group is interested in the mechanisms and functional consequences of post-translational protein modification by SUMO and ubiquitin. We integrate chemical synthesis and high throughput screening with biochemistry, cell biology and proteomics approaches and we have access to state-of-the art facilities to obtain novel insights in SUMO and ubiquitin signal transduction in cancer and infection. We have previously

described chemical techniques to synthesize sumo and ubiquitin reagents and in this project it is the goal to develop reagents and to find drug leads using high throughput screening and hit to lead optimization and validation of tool compounds in model systems.

The department

Within the new Department of Chemical Immunology, a young team investigates functional regulation of proteins by post-translational modifications with sumo and ubiquitin. This allows us to better understand disease-linked de-regulation of cellular processes, so we can develop novel leads for therapy. The department of Chemical Immunology closely interacts with the department of Cell Biology. Local collaborators include Alfred Vertegaal, Jacques Neefjes and Peter Ten Dijke.