PhD position: Dissecting the genetics of life-threatening infection in children

(ref. BAP-2022-782)

Laatst aangepast :

4/11/2022

KU Leuven is one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in Belgium, but nevertheless the most innovative one. In the Laboratory for Inborn Errors of Immunity, in an international environment, you will work on unraveling the pathophysiology of ADA2 deficiency, in collaboration with two other PhD students, however with a dedicated program to obtain your PhD degree.
The lab is embedded in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation and has a broad network of collaborations.

Project

You will discover how to decipher and to validate novel gene defects leading to life-threatening infection and/or autoinflammation in children. In this way, you will be learning how to « read » exomes and genomes and validate the putative causative variants using all standard and advanced molecular techniques including flow cytometry, transcriptomics, immunoblot, luciferase assays, imagestream, transfection, transduction and more. 

Profile

• Applicants should hold a master in Biomedical Sciences / Biochemistry / Bioengineering or equivalent.
• Basic knowledge of « R » and « Python » and biostatistical concepts is an advantage.
• Experience in « omics » data handling is a plus.
• Experience or proof-of-interest in immunology / molecular biology will be appreciated.
• Applicants must show high level of motivation, strong English communication skills, and strong initiative proposal.
• They will work both independently and collaboratively with two other PhD students, and will need excellent organizational abilities and a real talent for interpersonal interactions.

Offer

We offer:

A four-year PhD position (1 year followed by evaluation) in our international team with excellent guidance as well as support to submit a PhD fellowship application if applicable.

Interested candidates should submit an application file with the following items:

• Motivation letter describing your research interests and how you could benefit the project – please include the wet lab skills you master
• Detailed CV (maximum 3 pages) with list of publications, if applicable
• A short summary of past research, if applicable

• Contact information and letters of support of two references
• An abstract / paper you have written, detailing your contribution, if possible

Interested?

for further questions, please contact prof. dr. Isabelle Meyts, mail:. isabelle.meyts@uzleuven.be

KU Leuven seeks to foster an environment where all talents can flourish, regardless of gender, age, cultural background, nationality or impairments. If you have any questions relating to accessibility or support, please contact us at diversiteit.HR@kuleuven.be.