PhD Position

Über uns

The School VI of Medicine and Health Sciences comprises the fields of human medicine, medical physics and acoustics, neurosciences, psychology and health services research. Together with the four regional hospitals, School VI forms the University Medicine Oldenburg. Furthermore, the university cooperates closely with the University Medicine of the University of Groningen.

Our overarching aim is to improve neurodevelopmental outcomes of preterm infants suffering from postnatal brain injury such as intraventricular hemorrhage. Our objectives are: to establish a developmental profile of CNS barrier-forming organoids/assembloids and to characterize how this recapitulates aspects of human cerebroventricular development; to profile proteomics, miRNA and EV content of organoid-derived CSF and how this is affected by prevalent postnatal insults; to develop pharmacological interventions targeting astrogliosis/pro-inflammatory pathways that might impact on developmental outcomes in preterm infants with postnatal brain injury.

The project is a collaboration between the Perinatal Neurobiology Group and the Institute of Anatomy at the University of Oldenburg (Germany), and the Regenerative Medicine Laboratories at the University of Bristol. The applicant will be based at Oldenburg but will also be offered the opportunity to undertake part of this work at the University of Bristol. 

The PhD project will be conducted in an interdisciplinary collaborative research consortium of the Department of Paediatrics, School of Medicine and Health Sciences of the University of Oldenburg, Germany (Host institution) and the Stem Cells and Neurodegeneration Research Group, School of Clinical Sciences, University of Bristol, United Kingdom (Collaborating institution). The Stem Cells and Neuroregeneration Research Group offers access to laboratory and cell culture work facilities in Bristol. 

Ihre Aufgaben

The PhD student will learn and apply the following techniques:  

• Culture of human neural progenitor cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells; neural organoid and assembloid differentiation
• High-content microscopy / confocal microscopy
• RNA analysis
• microRNA seq
• Immunoblotting, ELISAs and immunofluorescence
• FACS analysis
• CSF nanomolecular particle studies (Electron microscopy)
• Bioinformatic strategies

Ihr Profil

Required qualifications:

• University degree (Diploma (Uni) or Masters) in biology, neurobiology, molecular neuroscience or comparable fields
• good skills in oral and written English and German
• Experience with experimental models of organ development including progenitor cell culture, desirable in the field of neuroscience
• Experience in confocal microscopy
• Advanced experience in molecular techniques (qRT-PCR, RNA isolation, cDNA, protein quantification)

Preferred qualifications:

• Protein labelling

Wir bieten

• Payment in accordance with collective bargaining law (special annual payment, public service pension scheme, asset-related benefits) incl. 30 days annual leave
• Support and guidance during your onboarding phase
• A family-friendly environment with flexible working hours (flexitime) and the possibility of pro-rata mobile work
• Benefits from the university's health promotion programme
• An extensive and free further education programme as well as programmes geared toward the promotion of early career researchers (https://uol.de/en/school6/early-career)

Unser Anspruch

Die Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg strebt an, den Frauenanteil im Wissenschaftsbereich zu erhöhen. Deshalb werden Frauen nachdrücklich aufgefordert, sich zu bewerben. Gemäß § 21 Abs. 3 NHG sollen Bewerberinnen bei gleichwertiger Qualifikation bevorzugt berücksichtigt werden. Schwerbehinderte Menschen werden bei gleicher Eignung bevorzugt eingestellt.

Weitere Informationen

There is the possibility of personal scientific qualification [doctorate].

You don't know Oldenburg yet? The following link will provide with you first impressions: www.moin-in-oldenburg.de.