PhD candidate focusing on EV mediated cardiac therapy

The PhD student position is part of EV-PROTECT, which is a TKI-UMCU-funded program, and in collaboration with PacingCure and the PLN heart foundation. Our objective in this project is to develop a state-of-the-art full-scale gene therapy platform in which we will shield gene therapy from being recognized in circulation and improve their therapeutic efficacy. Subsequently, we will assess the efficacy of this gene therapy in preclinical animal heart failure models, employing an innovative myocardial delivery strategy.

Together with qualified technicians as well as other PhD students on the program, you will work on the preclinical testing of the gene therapy approaches using different ex vivo perfusion and heart failure models. You will write a PhD thesis (based on scientific publications) and follow courses at the Graduate school of Life Sciences.

• You have a master degree (or equivalent university degree) in medicine, biomedical sciences, or a related discipline.
• A certification in laboratory animal science (Article 9/FELASA A+B) is a prerequisite.
• Excellent communication and organizational skills are essential, as is the ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• You have a meticulous working method.
• You are proactive, responsible, and flexible.
• You enjoy tackling complex research questions, engaging in practical laboratory work, and closely collaborating with fellow team members.

If you are interested in this position, please respond to this vacancy with a motivation letter and your CV (including past experience, list of followed courses and publication record if applicable, and at least two references). For more information feel free to contact Dr. Saskia de Jager by e-mail.

The maximum salary for this position (36 - 36 hours) is € 3.677,00 gross per month based on full-time employment.

In addition, we offer an annual benefit of 8.3%, holiday allowance, travel expenses and career opportunities. The terms of employment are in accordance with the Cao University Medical Centers (UMC).

The EV-PROTECT program was recently funded with the aim to establish an extracellular vesicle (EV)-adenoassociated (AAV) based gene therapy for the treatment of heart failure. Our goal is to enhance the inherent tropism of AAV vectors for cardiac tissue and utilize an innovative ex vivo myocardial delivery strategy to achieve gene therapy with highly specific and efficient uptake within the myocardium.

The EV-PROTECT study team is a interdisciplinary team of scientists and clinicians. You will become an embedded member of our EV-PROTECT- team within the Circulatory Health Research Center, consisting of Prof. dr. Joost Sluijter (Cellular and Translational Cardiology), Dr. Saskia de Jager (ImmunoCardiology), Prof. Dr. Ray Schiffelers (Nanomedicine), Dr. Zhiyong Lei (RNA based nanomedicine) and Dr. Niels van der Kaaij (Cardiothoracic surgery).