PhD student in Cell- and Molecular Biology - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

The interactions between a cell and its extracellular mechanical environment is critical for a number of important physiological processes including development, transcription and differentiation. In many diseases such as cancer and immune disorders, this interaction is hijacked. The primary cellular organelles that mediates interactions between the cell and its mechanical environment including the extracellular matrix (ECM) are focal adhesions. These organelles physically and biochemically link the inside and the outside of the cell and regulate a vast number of cellular processes. More than 5000 proteins are known to localise to these structures and not surprisingly a vast number of them have been shown to be mis-regulated in diseases including cancer.

The goal of this project is to use a combination of quantitative biophysical approaches and mass spectrometry to decipher the changing molecular composition of focal adhesions as cells are subjected to different mechanical signals. Key regulators discovered during this process will then be further studied using gene editing techniques and high and super-resolution microscopy approaches.

By combining the different quantitative approaches, the project will decipher novel proteins and molecular targets that get misregulated in diseases like cancer here focal adhesions have a critical role in driving metastasis.

The Laboratory of Cell and Molecular Mechanobiology is looking for a PhD student in Cell- and Molecularbiology in Project Mechanoadhesome: Force sensitive changes in adhesion composition. The employment is fulltime employment under four years. Startdate January 15, 2020 or upon agreement.

Work assignments

• Basic cell and tissue culture.
• Basic engineering of magnetic device for applying forces on cells.
• Western blot analysis and adhesion complex purification.
• Mass-spectrometry (with Bio-MS)
• Bioinformatics (with Bio-MS)
• Molecular biology, siRNA and CRISPR.
• High and super resolution microscopy and live cell imaging.

Qualifications

According to qualifications for PhD studies at Faculty of Medicine.

Particular merit is experience in

• immunofluorescence microscopy
• cytoskeleton and adhesion biology
• cellular biophysics

Eligibility
Students with basic eligibility for third-cycle studies are those who- have completed a second-cycle degree- have completed courses of at least 240 credits, of which at least 60 credits are from second-cycle courses, or- have acquired largely equivalent knowledge in some other way, in Sweden or abroad.

The employment of doctoral students is regulated in the Swedish Code of Statues 1998: 80. Only those who are or have been admitted to PhD-studies may be appointed to doctoral studentships. When an appointment to a doctoral studentship is made, the ability of the student to benefit from PhD-studies shall primarily be taken into account. In addition to devoting themselves to their studies, those appointed to doctoral studentships may be required to work with educational tasks, research and administration, in accordance with specific regulations in the ordinance.

Type of employment
Limit of tenure, four years according to HF 5 kap 7§.