PhD or Post-Doc in Bacteriophage Engineering

About VIB About the Center/Lab

VIB is a research institute spread over six university campuses in Flanders that aims to strengthen the excellence of Flemish life sciences research and to turn the results into new economic growth.

Within VIB the VIBVUB Center for Structural Biology is located on the Brussels campus of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and hosts 10 PIs with varying expertise but all studying the structurefunction relationships of proteins and macromolecular complexes. They further apply this expertise in projects and industrial collaborations aimed at valorisation. For this the expertise on structural biology and protein chemistry is combined with cellular and in vivo work.

The Loris lab has 25 years of expertise in molecular microbiology via the study of bacterial toxinantitoxin systems and has recently shifted its interest to include engineering bacteriophages in the context of developing improved strategies for phage therapy.

Job description

The increasing problems with bacterial resistance against antibiotics has led to a renewed interest in bacteriophage therapy. A major limitation for phage therapy however is the typically very narrow host ranges of phages that are isolated from nature. This means that novel phages need to be found in nature for essentially every clinical case that one aims to treat in this manner. The project in which you will be involved deals with engineering of bacteriophages to enlarge their host range by allowing infection and killing in a nonnatural host. the work will involve applying cloning and molecular biology techniques as well as evaluation of phage efficacy in various hosts complemented with in vitro interaction studies.

In addition to the work directly related to the research the successful candidate will also be expected to contribute to the departments emanation of science in society and to the training of master students. For PhD students this is an obligatory part of their doctoral training program. The position is immediately available.

Profile

Essential

• A master/PhD thesis in a relevant domain of molecular biology/microbiology
• For a prospective PhD student: Master in Bioengineering sciences (Molecular) biology Microbiology Biotechnology Biochemistry or related with at least the mention of distinction/cum laude.
• For a prospective postdoc: experience in cloning techniques and microbiology is essential.
• You are fluent in English both spoken and written.

Desirable but not required

• A master/PhD thesis directly related to bacteriophage engineering
• Some knowledge of/familiarity with techniques to study macromolecular interactions or structures
• Preference will be given to candidates that have recently (2024) graduated or are currently finishing their master/PhD studies.
• In case of equal candidates preference will be given to candidates that do not need to go through an extensive visa application procedure
• Knowledge of the Dutch language will provide you with an advantage

Key personal characteristics

• You are highly communicative
• You enjoy collaborating with colleagues and function well in a team
• At the same time you can take initiative and work independent

We offer

• A four year PhD or postdoc contract
• A working climate where trust (international) collaboration and commitment are essential
• Access to stateofthe art tools and infrastructure
• A stimulating and supportive international research environment

The successful candidate will be selected by the PI. A first selection will be made based on the provided documents and potentially suitable candidates will be interviewed. The position will remain open until a suitable candidate has been found.

How to apply

Applications are expected online via jobsoid.

Your application file should consist of

• A recent cv. The cv should contain a list of scientific publications if any (published and under review)
• A motivation letter. Please also provide the contact details (at least name email address and function) for at least two referees (which should include your master/PhD thesis advisor).
• A copy of your master/PhD diploma (unless it has not yet been obtained)
• Transcripts of your bachelor and master studies. This should (for a PhD candidate) include a list of all classes followed and the marks that were obtained together with an explanation of the scoring system used by your university. In your letter also provide a link to the university web site describing the master studies you followed.
• A 1 page summary of your master/PhD thesis
• Only if available an English language certificate (will also be assessed during the interview)

For further questions contact