PhD Candidate in Defining the Proximal Proteome of Mutant Chromatin Proteins Associated With Chromatinopathies – Nijmegen, Netherlands

As a member of the Department of Molecular Biology, you will enter our four-year PhD programme at Radboud University and participate in the ChromRare consortium. This consortium will focus on ‘Chromatinopathies’ (CPs), which are syndromes caused by mutations in chromatin-associated proteins. In the context of this network, we are looking for a PhD candidate who is eager to join our team to apply an ‘off-the-shelf’ proximity biotinylation enzyme called ProteinA-TurboID that was recently developed in our lab (Santos-Barriopedro et al., Nature Commun. 2021, Nature Protocols 2022). This recombinant proximity biotinylation enzyme can be targeted to baits of interest in primary cells using bait-specific antibodies, which are available for all the mutant enzymes studied in this network. This approach thus represents an ideal system to probe the proximal proteome for various mutated chromatin proteins in CPs, making use of primary patient cells or patient derived iPSC models without the need for genetic manipulation of the target cells. Identified candidate proximal proteins will be functionally verified using ChIP-seq and a technology recently developed in our lab called BANC-seq (Neikes et al., Nature Biotechnolgoy 2023). Furthermore, functional follow-up studies will be pursued such as CRISPR-based functional studies, including degron lines and RNA-seq, which we have ample experience with (Grand et al., Nature 2021). This work may provide new leads towards novel therapies for CPs.

Profile

• You should have a Master’s degree in molecular or cellular biology, biomedical sciences, molecular life sciences or a related field.
• You have experience in one or more of the following areas: molecular biology and cell biology techniques, cell purification, interpretation of mass-spectrometry data, next-generation sequencing data, single-cell approaches, or gene regulation.
• You have experience in computational analysis.
• You have strong analytical skills and a problem-solving and result-oriented attitude.
• You are a highly communicative and team science-minded professional.

We are

The Department of Molecular Biology is part of the Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sciences (RIMLS-Sience), which is one of the six research Institutes of the Faculty of Science at Radboud University. The overarching aim of RIMLS-Science is to decipher molecular mechanisms of disease. Research areas of RIMLS-Science include epigenetics, stem-cell and developmental biology, and computational biology. The central research theme is regulation of gene expression during development and in health and disease. Important tools used at the institute include next generation sequencing, mass spectrometry, single-cell multi-omics analysis and computational analysis and method development. To perform state-of-the-art research, RIMLS-Science operates its own wet lab and computational facilities. This fundamental and applied research in medical biology and molecular life sciences has clear links to biochemical research performed at the Institute for Molecules and Materials and other institutes of the Faculty of Science as well as to more clinically oriented research programmes at departments within the Radboud university medical center. RIMLS-Science actively contributes to teaching activities in the Biology study programme at Radboud University. RIMLS-Science currently consists of about 50 researchers (including 30 PhD candidates and postdocs) and provides a vivid and international working environment. The institute actively participates in many European and worldwide collaborations.

Radboud University

We are keen to meet critical thinkers who want to look closer at what really matters. People who, from their expertise, wish to contribute to a healthy, free world with equal opportunities for all. This ambition unites more than 24,000 students and 5,600 employees at Radboud University and requires even more talent, collaboration and lifelong learning. You have a part to play!

We offer

• It concerns an employment for 1.0 FTE.
• The gross starting salary amounts to €2,541 per month based on a 38-hour working week, and will increase to €3,247 in the fourth year (salary scale P).
• You will receive 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus.
• You will be employed for an initial period of 18 months, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2.5 years (4 year contract).
• You will be able to use our Dual Career and Family Care Services. Our Dual Career and Family Care Officer can assist you with family-related support, help your partner or spouse prepare for the local labour market, provide customized support in their search for employment and help your family settle in Nijmegen.
• Working for us means getting extra days off. In case of full-time employment, you can choose between 30 or 41 days of annual leave instead of the legally allotted 20.

Additional employment conditions

Work and science require good employment practices. This is reflected in Radboud University’s primary and secondary employment conditions. You can make arrangements for the best possible work-life balance with flexible working hours, various leave arrangements and working from home. You are also able to compose part of your employment conditions yourself, for example, exchange income for extra leave days and receive a reimbursement for your sports subscription. And of course, we offer a good pension plan. You are given plenty of room and responsibility to develop your talents and realise your ambitions. Therefore, we provide various training and development schemes.

Would you like more information?

For questions about the position, please contact Michiel Vermeulen, Professor Molecular Biology at michiel.vermeulen@science.ru.nl.

Practical information and applying

You can apply until 10 September 2023, exclusively using the button below. Kindly address your application to Michiel Vermeulen. Please fill in the application form and attach the following documents:

• A letter of motivation.
• Your CV.

The first round of interviews will take place on Friday 15 September 2023. You would preferably begin employment as soon as possible.

We can imagine you’re curious about our application procedure. It offers a rough outline of what you can expect during the application process, how we handle your personal data and how we deal with internal and external candidates.

Apply now

Application deadline 10 September 2023