Within the context of the EU-funded Marie Skłodowska Curie Doctoral Network (DN) “MeChaNiSM” there are 15 fully funded open positions for PhD students in the field of nucleic acids chemistry and biophysics. One of those position is at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
You will get the opportunity to:
- be supervised by an expert in the field;
- take charge of an exciting research project;
- research in close collaboration with partners within the Marie Skłodowska Curie Doctoral Network: https://www.chalmers.se/en/projects/mechanism/
- participate in innovative training modules, including a series of hands-on workshops that provide technical, transferable and presentation skills, international conferences, and outreach activities.
Description of research field Nucleic acids (NAs) are central to the storage, transmission, and regulation of genetic information. DNA carries the genetic information for all cellular life, while RNA plays many diverse roles. These include not only the traditional roles of messenger-, transfer- and ribosomal-RNA, but also many regulatory functions such as gene silencing in RNA interference, precision nuclease targeting in CRISPR/Cas, and in providing the blueprint for mounting mRNA vaccine immune responses to combat SARS-CoV-2. Significantly, the genetic material of many viruses, including influenza, HIV and SARS-CoV-2, consist of RNA folded into complex 3D structures. Single-molecule techniques have revolutionized the understanding of complex NA structures and their interactions with therapeutic oligonucleotides, small molecules, and proteins. However, for Europe to adapt to new therapeutic challenges1 and to increase its competitiveness, new expertise is urgently required in single-molecule analysis of NAs, a research field that intersects physical chemistry, biophysics, chemical synthesis, and molecular simulation.
MeChaNiSM will train the next generation of European scientific leaders in the development of single-molecule biophysics techniques to investigate critical, cross-disciplinary questions regarding the structure, dynamics, function, and interactions of NAs.
The following member institutions and companies are involved in this Doctoral Network:
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands Prof. Gijs Wuite, Dept. Physics
Prof. Erwin Peterman, Dept. Physics
Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden Prof. Fredrik Westerlund, Dept. Life Sciences (network coordinator)
Prof. Marcus Wilhelmsson, Dept. Chem and Chem Eng
University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands Dr. Jocelyne Vreede, Van ‘t Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences - Computational Chemistry
University of Augsburg, Germany Prof. Jan Lipfert, Dept. Physics
Dublin City University, Ireland Prof. Andrew Kellett, School of Chemical Sciences
University of Barcelona, Spain Prof. Felix Ritort, Dept. Cond. Mat. Phys
KU Leuven, Belgium Prof. Enrico Carlon, Dept. Soft Matter and Biophysics
University of Cologne, Germany Prof. Stephanie Kath-Schorr, Dept. Chemistry
Benefits: The Horizon Europe DN Mechanical Characterization of Nucleic acids using Single Molecule techniques (MECHANISM) involves 8 partners and supports up to 15 PhD students. Marie Curie Fellows enjoy the benefits of full social security, competitive monthly living, mobility and family allowance. See
here.
The program provides an excellent opportunity for students to participate in network-wide training in both scientific and transferable skills at different locations throughout Europe with leading scientists in the field, including secondments to our industrial and academic partners.