PhD in Cardiometabolic Variant-to-Function

at  Kbenhavns Universitet

UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN

The University of Copenhagen is seeking a highly motivated and talented PhD fellow to commence February 1, 2025, or after agreement in the Loos Group at the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research (CBMR), University of Copenhagen.
The PhD fellowship is part of the CBMR International PhD & Postdoc Program.

ABOUT US

The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research (CBMR) is an academic research center that pioneer’s groundbreaking research towards better cardiometabolic health. Through collaborative interdisciplinary research from single-cell genomics to whole-body systems, CBMR aims to transform the basic understanding of cardiometabolic health and accelerate its translation into prevention and treatment strategies. The Center’s uniquely multi- and interdisciplinary approach combines research in genetics, physiology and pharmacology, to better understand the complex interplay of the many factors that drive cardiometabolic disease.
You can learn more in the Executive Summary of CBMR’s Strategy 2024–2028.
CBMR was established in 2010 at the Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences and has been located in the Maersk Tower at PANUM since 2017. The around 260 employees create an international, highly collaborative research environment across disciplines.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified hundreds of genetic variants for body mass index (BMI). However, it has led to limited biological insights into the regulation of body size and composition. One reason may be that the BMI is a crude index for adiposity as it does not distinguish between lean and fat mass, which may be a barrier when pointing towards relevant pathways. Recently, our group and collaborators have identified hundreds of genetic loci associated with body fat percentage and fat-free mass index. In this PhD project, we strive to gain insights into the regulation of body composition, in particular fat and lean mass, from these genetic loci. This project will identify clusters of the genetic variants using multiple clustering approaches and phenotypes and further characterize the molecular signatures of each cluster to learn more about their shared and distinct biology.
The project will also identify candidate causal genes using multiple gene prioritization approaches and identify which tissues and cell types each of these genes may act in. Finally, the project will investigate the role of some of these candidate causal genes in human adipocytes, myotubes, and hypothalamic neurons using omics techniques, high-content imaging, metabolic assays to identify mechanisms regulating body composition. Collectively, this project has the potential to pinpoint biological pathways that regulate fat and lean mass and provide novel attractive drug targets for preserving muscle mass during weight loss.
Principal supervisor: Professor Ruth Loos (ruth.loos@sund.ku.dk).
Start: February 1, 2025
Duration: 1 year as a Research assistant followed by 3 years as a PhD fellow contingent on a positive evaluation of the 1st year.

Please refer the Job description for details