PhD candidate ‘Mapping the Epithelial Cell Subset driving Asthma Inception’

We are looking for a highly motivated and talented candidate for a PhD in the causal mechanisms of asthma inception. Asthma is a highly prevalent respiratory disease that often starts in early childhood. However, little is known about early changes in the airways of wheezing preschool children developing asthma. We recently identified a novel airway epithelial cell type to be associated with asthma inception in wheezing infants, but the causative cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying onset of disease remain unknown. In this PhD project funded by the Netherlands Lung Foundation, you will interrogate the characteristics of this novel airway epithelial cell type and the mechanisms by which it contributes to the onset of asthma in at-risk infants. You will optimize primary epithelial cell culture protocols for this novel airway epithelial subset and perform detailed molecular and functional characterization. This will involve extensive cell culture experiments including viral challenges, co-culture with macrophages, epigenetic, transcriptomic and proteomic analyses of the cultured cells and integration of the datasets with our existing (single-cell) atlases of the airway epithelium in health and disease. A PostDoctoral fellow will also be appointed to the project to perform advanced computational analyses, and both technical and bio-informatic support will be available for the project. This PhD project is a close collaboration between the University Medical Center Groningen and the Leiden University Medical Center, and the PhD student will work for 2 years at each institute.

Eligible candidates for this PhD position should have the following qualifications:
- A(n) (almost) completed master’s degree in Biology. Biomedical Sciences, Pharmacology or related disciplines.
- Strong motivation for scientific research in an interdisciplinary and international environment.
- Excellent English presentation and writing skills.
- Track record in research projects on tissue biology and structural cells or inflammatory mucosal diseases is preferred.
- Experience in cell culture techniques is essential and experience generating and analysing transcriptomic datasets is preferred.
- Good organizational and communication skills, being a team-player.

This is a full-time vacancy (36 hours per week/1.0 FTE), ideally starting May 2025. The position will initially be on a temporary basis for one year, and will be extended with another 3 years if the candidate performs well. The last two years of this position will be performed at the LUMC (Leiden, the Netherlands). The maximum salary is €3.824,-. UMCG offers an 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus. The conditions of employment comply with the Collective Labour Agreement for Medical Centres (CAO-UMC). The UMCG offers an attractive working environment among inspired and committed scientists and a good package of primary and secondary employment conditions, such as study arrangements. The PhD candidate will participate in the training program offered by the Graduate School of Medical Sciences and the GRIAC research institute. UMCG has a preventive Hepatitis B policy. If necessary, UMCG provides a vaccination. For certain professions, a Certificate of Good Conduct (VOG) may be requested upon employment.

More information?
For further information, please contact Martijn Nawijn, Professor in molecular and cellular mechanisms of chronic inflammatory lung disease, Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, at tel. (050) 3612 153 or email m.c.nawijn@umcg.nl, or Hermelijn Smits, Professor of Host-commensal Interactions and Immune Modulation (h.h.smits@lumc.nl).

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The Department of Pathology and Medical Biology of the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) is comprised of approximately 250 employees. We aim to conduct innovative translational and applied scientific research, deliver state-of-the art education, and demonstrate clinical and scientific leadership. The department is nationally and internationally renowned in the fields of molecular diagnostics and digital pathology, and possesses high-quality infrastructure and facilities. The department participates in the Groningen Research Institute for Asthma and COPD (GRIAC), a transdisciplinary, world-leading research institute in lung research.