Sanquin Blood Supply Foundation uniquely combines medical, diagnostic, blood bank and research activities. With 2,000 committed colleagues and 345,000 blood donors, we aim to provide a better life for 300,000 patients each year.

The Division of Research and Lab Services of Sanquin is home to 250 researchers, including over 60 PhD students. Research at Sanquin is organized in four strategic themes: Anemia, Bleeding & Hemostasis, Immunity & Inflammation, and Immune Therapy. The joint mission of research at Sanquin is to invent novel methods and approaches using blood cells and blood products to prevent, diagnose, treat, or cure disease in donors and patients. Research activities cover the full spectrum of early inventions, development into novel products and services, donor studies, and clinical studies in patients.

Our research labs are equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, including flow cytometry and cell sorting, macromolecular mass spectrometry and proteomics, and imaging. Many of our scientists have academic affiliations with Dutch Universities and University Medical Centers. Sanquin is strategically located in Amsterdam, with a special tie to the AmsterdamUMC (Joint Landsteiner Laboratory).

We are now looking for one early and one mid-career group leader. These new colleagues are expected to contribute to the aims of one or more of our four strategic research themes:

1. Anemia: We aim to increase the efficiency of blood transfusion by improving donor health and behavior, suitability of transfusion products for specific patient groups, and clinical outcome of transfused erythrocytes. We investigate the production of cultured blood for various therapeutic purposes, for which we need to develop cost-effective production of erythrocytes in bioreactors. In addition, we aim to reduce the need of transfusion for chronically anemic patients and its adverse events, by finding alternative treatments.

2. Bleeding and Hemostasis: We aim to improve diagnosis and treatment of patients with congenital and/or acquired hemostatic disorders. We will extend our research on the biology of megakaryocytes, blood platelets and blood coagulation factors with the overall aim of further improving omics-guided approaches for restoring hemostasis in patients suffering from bleeding symptoms.

3. Inflammation and Immunity: We investigate immune responses to develop novel diagnostics, targeted therapies and personalized medicine, to prevent unwanted side effects from transfusion of blood cells or products. This includes structural and functional characterization of the antibodies, complement and immune cells involved in these responses, causing tissue damage, organ dysfunction and/or blood cell destruction.

4. Immune Therapy: Immune cell therapies have proven effective to fight infections and cancer. We study immune cell differentiation, function and control, with a focus on T cells, B cells, innate lymphoid cells and neutrophils. We seek to obtain fundamental understanding of immune cell differentiation to develop innovative cellular products, that are clinically implemented in the Sanquin Laboratory of Cell Therapy and by strong ties with (academic) hospitals.

We anticipate the two newly recruited scientists to contribute with their unique expertise, complementing our existing research portfolio. This includes inflammation and complement research, genetic and cellular approaches to correct and cure hematological disorders, as well as translational bioinformaticians with proven expertise to successfully integrate clinical and large “omics” based profiling data-sets in the area of transfusion medicine.

We offer an international - academically oriented - research environment with state of-the-art equipment. You will have the opportunity to apply for internal and external funding to expand your group and if successful to apply for a permanent position as group leader.

Beyond your own salary and ample bench fee, we offer a part-time technician for the junior group leader and a PhD student and part-time technician for the mid career group leader. The early career fellowship will be funded for three years and the mid career fellowship for four years.