PhD student on the project “Adversity, accelerated aging and adolescent psychopathology”.

Adverse experiences in childhood have been shown to impact development. These adversities range from the commonplace (divorce) to severe adversities (sexual or physical abuse) and can affect development in myriad ways, at different points in time. Importantly, adversity can become biologically embedded, increasing the likelihood of long-term change. Many previous studies have shown that adversity can delay or accelerate physical development, e.g. social adversity is a risk factor for early menarche, but our understanding of these developmental processes is poor. The present project is embedded in the Generation R Study, a large cohort from fetal life forward with unique neuroimaging and biological data across childhood.

Three mechanisms will be studied in detail that may underlie adversity-related aging: neurodevelopment, epigenetics and sex hormones. In each of these domains the candidate (in close collaboration with other researchers) will model a biological clock, i.e. an estimator that strongly correlates with chronological age. This fascinating epidemiological modelling will allow the candidate to define whether an individual's 'biological age' lags or exceeds his or her chronological age. Epigenetic clocks will be derived from DNA methylation data sets at different ages, brain age from state-of-the-art repeated neuroimaging data, and androgens from hair samples will be used to precisely define pubertal stage in preadolescence. Information from these biological clocks will be combined to understand the long term impact of adversity and predict adolescent psychopathology.

The candidate will be required to collect data, possibly conduct some lab work to determine sex hormones, conduct analyses, present work at internal meetings, and to publish findings in international scientific journals. For those without a background in epidemiology, a Master degree in Epidemiology at the NIHES in Rotterdam is part of the training provided. The candidate works with a large team of colleagues analyzing child behavior, genetic, and brain imaging data. The project leaders are prof. dr. Henning Tiemeier and dr. Charlotte Cecil. The candidate will work within the Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry and Generation R.

The gross monthly salary amounts a maximum of € 4.615,- (scale 10), depending on your level of education and relevant experience and based on a full-time working week of 36 hours. The terms of employment are in accordance with the Collective Bargaining Agreement for University Medical Centers (CAO UMC).

The Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry/Psychology (CAPP) is the only independent department for child and adolescent psychiatry and psychology in the Netherlands that is integrated within a university medical center. Research in the Department of CAPP focuses on general population samples and clinical epidemiology.