Job ID: 113729
PhD position ‘Drug repositioning in rare neurological, neurometabolic and neuromuscular disorders’
Position: Ph.D. Student
Deadline: 31 July 2023
Employment Start Date: 1 September 2023
Contract Length: 48 month
City: Nijmegen
Country: Netherlands
Institution: Radboud University Medical center
Department: Human Genetics
Description:
1. Description
A PhD student (junior researcher) to study drug repositioning in rare neurological, neurometabolic and neuromuscular disorders
We are looking for an enthusiastic researcher (MSc) interested in stem cell work and cell microscopy. The position is funded by a Horizon Europe grant to the SIMPATHIC consortium and will become available on 1 July 2023 (1.0 fulltime equivalent; 4.0 years) and will lead to a PhD thesis. The project will be carried out at the departments of Human Genetics, Medical BioSciences and Pediatrics of the Radboud University Medical Center (Radboudumc), Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
Brief project description: Drug repurposing is a key strategy in the development of therapies for rare disease patients with large unmet medical needs. Reductions in time and costs compared to traditional drug development are important assets of drug repurposing strategies. Yet, the path from discovery of repurposing candidates to patient access is still slow and arduous. The SIMPATHIC consortium aims to accelerate drug repurposing for rare neurological, neurometabolic and neuromuscular disorders. SIMPATHIC moves away from the one-disease-one-drug paradigm and proposes to let larger groups of patients across medical domains benefit from existing medicines. This goal will be achieved through parallel preclinical and clinical development of drug repurposing candidates targeting a group of rare disorders with different genetic diagnoses but overlapping clinical symptoms and shared molecular pathomechanisms. In the consortium, the PhD student at Radboudumc will employ neuronal cells derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from patients and carry out analyses of metabolic and other disease characteristics using electrophysiology and microscopy techniques. Molecular and cellular readouts will be used to test drug candidates, which will subsequently be validated in brain-on-a-chip and brain organoid models. In SIMPATHIC, the PhD student will work closely together with a bioinformatics and a clinical PhD student at Radboudumc and a large network of university and industry partners and patient organisations.
2. Tasks and responsibilities
• The PhD student will be responsible for developing and standardising stem-cell based neuronal models and assays for drug repurposing and disease readouts
• Writes scientific publications, resulting in a PhD thesis
• Presents their research in local, national and international meetings
• Works in a team with PhD students, scientists and clinicians
• Discusses, plans and performs research in a stimulating environment
• Works in a highly international research team and is willing to travel to other institutes within Europe.
3. Profile
- • Academic degree (MSc) in molecular life sciences, medical biology, biomedical sciences or a related discipline.
- • A background in molecular and cellular neuroscience
- • Experience with cell culture of primary neurons and/or induced pluripotent stem cells
- • Basic hands-on experience in cellular imaging, eg. confocal microscopy
- • Highly motivated to work in an interdisciplinary environment at the cutting edge of science
- • Excellent communication skills and personal leadership qualities are essential
4. Apply
The position is designed and funded as a 4 year full-time PhD studentship position. The PhD will be embedded in the Radboud Institute for Medical Innovation. Please send your CV and motivation letter to Prof. Dr. Nael Nadif Kasri (nael.nadifkasri@radboudumc.nl) or apply via https://www.radboudumc.nl/en/vacancies/134201-phd-candidate-drug-repositioning-in-rare-neurological-neurometabolic-and-neuromuscular-disord