A Research Council of Norway (NFR)-funded 3-year PhD position in ageing and Alzheimer's disease is available at the Faculty of Medicine, The University of Oslo, Norway.
Project title: “Defective mitophagy in Alzheimer Tau pathology: Mechanistic studies and AI-based drug development (‘AM-AI')"
Host: Associate Prof. Evando F. Fang
More about the positionProject description:
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia affecting over 50 million individuals worldwide and there is no cure. Ageing is the primary driver of AD, thus strategies to slow down ageing may delay the onset of AD. Our recent work highlights defective mitophagy as a high risk factor of AD (Nature Neuroscience 2019, PMID: 30742114; Cell Metabolism 2019, PMID: 29514072). However, the molecular mechanisms on why mitophagy is reduced in AD is not fully understood. We are also interested to develop novel mitophagy inducers as drug candidates against AD; to achive a likely high success rate, we will combine novel artificial intelligence techniques with classical cross- species wet lab methods to screen drug candidates in an efficient and effective way (Nature Biomedical Engineering; PMID: 34992270).
The 3-year full time PhD programme is devoted to carrying out a project on the mechanism of altered mitophagy/autophagy in AD initiation and progression. Novel strategies (genetically and pharmacologically) that turning up mitophagy will be developed and their funcitons in treating AD animal and cell models will be explored. Novel laboratory models including C. elegans, mice, and human cell culture, and postmortem human brain tissues will be used for AD studies (Nature Neuroscience 2019, PMID: 30742114). The candidate will be having a unique opportunity to work in the leading autophagy/mitophagy and AD laboratory, the Evandro Fang Laboratory at the University of Oslo (https: // evandrofanglab.com/, https: // www. med.uio.no/klinmed/english/people/aca/evandrof/ )
within the set fellowship period. The main purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD degree.
Your working environmentYou will be working in the Evandro F. Fang laboratory which consists over 12 trainees from over 8 countries. The Fang laboratory works on the molecular mechanisms of human ageing and the age-predisposed Alzheimer's disease. More of the Fang laboratory at (https: // evandrofanglab.com/ https: // www. med.uio.no/klinmed/english/people/aca/evandrof/). The department and institution provide state-of-the-art equipment to enable the performance of broad scientific studies in the highest quality. External supervision in this project comes from partners at the Michela Deleidi Laboratory with training on neuron-microglia co-culture and Seahorse measurements.
Your main tasks and responsibilities in this project are:
We seek a highly motivated scientist who has training experience in C. elegans and can perform sophisticated laboratory experiments as detailed below. The research project should result in a PhD thesis.
To be eligible for this position, the applicant must satisfy all the following requirements :
The skills and competences listed below will also be valued:
You will be appointed as fulltime PhD for 3 years at The University of Oslo.
We offer
More information can be found here: https:// www. uio.no/english/for- employees/employment/
How to applyThe application must include:
The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system, please follow the link “apply for this job”.
Foreign applicants are advised to attach an explanation of their University's grading system. Please note that all documents should be in English (or a Scandinavian language).
When evaluating the application, emphasis will be given to the applicant's academic and personal prerequisites to carry out the project.
Formal regulationsPlease see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Research Fellowships at the University of Oslo.
No one can be appointed for more than one PhD Research Fellowship period at the University of Oslo.
The candidate must take part in the University of Oslo's approved PhD-program and is expected to complete the project within the set fellowship period. The main purpose of the fellowship is research training leading to the successful completion of a PhD-degree. The applicant must, in collaboration with her/his supervisor have worked out a complete project description to be attached to the application for admission to the doctoral program. More information here: Application and admission - PhD - Faculty of Medicine (uio.no)
Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Research Fellowships at the University of Oslo here
According to the Norwegian Freedom of Information Act (Offentleglova) information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure.
The appointment may be shortened/given a more limited scope within the framework of the applicable guidelines on account of any previous employment in academic positions.
The University of Oslo has an agreement for all employees, aiming to secure rights to research results etc.
Inclusion and diversity are a strength. The University of Oslo has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. Furthermore, we want employees with diverse professional expertise, life experience and perspectives.
If there are qualified applicants with disabilities, employment gaps or immigrant background, we will invite at least one applicant from each of these categories to an interview.
Contact informationFor any informal enquiries regarding the position, please contact:
For questions regarding the application process, please contact
The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system, please follow the link: “Apply for this job”.
About the University of OsloThe University of Oslo is Norway's oldest and highest ranked educational and research institution, with 28 000 students and 7000 employees. With its broad range of academic disciplines and internationally recognised research communities, UiO is an important contributor to society.
The Institute of Clinical Medicine (Klinmed) is one of three institutes under the Faculty. Klinmed is responsible for the Faculty's educational and research activities at Oslo University Hospital and Akershus University Hospital. With about 800 employees spread over approximately 425 man-labour years, Klinmed is the university's largest institute. Our activities follow the clinical activity at the hospitals and are spread across a number of geographical areas.
Deadline9th June 2023
EmployerUniversity of Oslo
MunicipalityLørenskog
ScopeFulltime (1 positions) Fulltime (%)
DurationTemporary
Place of serviceAkershus universitetssykehus