2 PhD fellowships in the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Innovative Training

at  KU SCIENCE BIO

Department of Biology, Faculty of Science at University of Copenhagen is offering two PhD fellowships in the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Innovative Training Network: Cilia-AI (European Training Programme for Deconvolution of Multi-scale Cilia Function in Health and Disease by Integrating Machine Learning- AI Approaches). The two PhD fellows shall investigate the role of primary cilia in congenital heart disease comorbidities, including neurodevelopmental defects, and the functional interactions between primary cilia, extracellular vesicles, and endo-lysosomal pathways, respectively, with start 1. September 2025.

PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS:

Project 1 (DC3): Primary cilia in congenital heart disease comorbidities. Genetic variants that impair cilia formation and function cause ciliopathies with pleiotropic, overlapping phenotypes including congenital heart (CHD) and neurodevelopmental (NDD) defects. Most patients with CHD survive into adulthood due to significant treatment improvements, although CHD adults have increased mortality and often present with severe comorbidities, including NDD. The association between CHD and NDD is not well understood, but unpublished data from large CHD patient cohorts suggest that a significant part of NDD comorbidity is caused by perturbation of cilia-related genes involved in development of both heart and brain. DC3 will leverage these findings by identifying the gene networks and ciliary functions perturbed by candidate genes involved in both heart and brain development using advanced imaging techniques, spatial resolved transcriptomics and cilia proteomics by proximity labelling in (stem) cell lines and transgenic zebrafish subjected to CRISPR/Cas9-medited gene knock-out. DC3 will pave the way for early diagnosis, support and care for CHD patients with NDD co-morbidities, and provide an opportunity for identification of novel mechanisms involved in development and maturation of both human heart and brain. Supervisor: Prof. Søren Tvorup Christensen, stchristensen@bio.ku.dk
Project 2 (DC4): Dissecting the functional interactions between primary cilia, extracellular vesicles, and endo-lysosomal pathways. DC4 will use cell-based and automatic imaging approaches to investigate, on the one hand, how mutations in specific ciliopathy disease genes affect the subcellular distribution of relevant EV biogenesis/endo-lysosomal regulators (e.g. ALIX, STAM-HRS, TSG101) and, conversely, how depletion of these regulators affects ciliary membrane composition and EV release. Focus will be on kidney epithelial cells and the known ciliary EV cargos such as polycystin-1 and polycystin-2. In addition, to determine the composition of cilia-derived EVs, DC4 will use proximity-labelling approaches to biotinylate specific ciliary EV cargos in cultured kidney epithelial cells, isolate EVs from the culture medium, and use streptavidin pull-down and mass spectrometry to determine the protein content of cilia-derived EVs. Supervisor: Prof. Lotte Bang Pedersen, lbpedersen@bio.ku.dk .

WHO ARE WE LOOKING FOR?

We are looking for highly motivated researchers with an excellent academic background in Cell Biology, Molecular Biology, Developmental Biology or related disciplines.
The applicants must not have resided in Denmark for more than 12 months in the last 3 years, and not have carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Denmark. For refugees under the Geneva Convention (1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol), the refugee procedure (i.e. before refugee status is conferred) will not be counted as ‘period of residence/activity in Denmark’.
Marie Curie Training Networks offer a unique opportunity to get cutting-edge training in a multidisciplinary environment with a focus on academic and personal development of the PhD fellows. The supervisors in the Cilia-AI network each provide specific competences and as part of the network you develop your skills and carry out research both independently and as part of a network of 14 PhD fellows. The consortium ensures exchange of ideas through network-wide training events, summer schools and intersectoral secondments. As a PhD fellow in the Cilia-AI network, you need to have good social skills, be innovative and goal-oriented and be willing to conduct the planned secondments.

FORMAL REQUIREMENTS

To be eligible for the regular PhD programme, you must have completed a degree programme, equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (180 ECTS/3 FTE BSc + 120 ECTS/2 FTE MSc) related to the subject area of the project, e.g. [cell biology, molecular biology, developmental biology]. For information of eligibility of completed programmes, see General assessments for specific countries and Assessment database .
Knowledge of mammalian cell culturing, molecular biology and biochemistry techniques, fluorescence microscopy is considered great advantages. Excellent command of spoken and written English is required. As criteria for the assessment of your qualifications, emphasis will also be laid on previous publications (if any) and relevant work experience.

JOB DESCRIPTION

The position is available for a 3-year period. Your key tasks as a PhD student at SCIENCE and the Cilia-AI network are:

• To manage and carry through your research project
• Complete PhD courses both within and outside the Cilia-AI network corresponding to approx. 30 ECTS / ½ FTE
• Write scientific articles and your PhD thesis
• Participate in international congresses and Cilia-AI network meetings
• Stay at the research institutions abroad for the secondments
• Disseminate your research

• To manage and carry through your research project
• Complete PhD courses both within and outside the Cilia-AI network corresponding to approx. 30 ECTS / ½ FTE
• Write scientific articles and your PhD thesis
• Participate in international congresses and Cilia-AI network meetings
• Stay at the research institutions abroad for the secondments
• Disseminate your researc