http://www.nature.com/naturejobs/science

PhD-student position in pancreatic beta-cell regeneration in zebrafish : Stockholm, Sweden

Research group
The position is placed in the research group of Olov Andersson at the department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Karolinska Institutet. Bridging developmental biology and drug discovery, we use the zebrafish model to elucidate organogenesis and related mechanisms of disease. We are currently focusing on pancreatic beta-cell regeneration.

Description of the studies
We are seeking a highly motivated and enthusiastic doctoral student to investigate regeneration of pancreatic beta-cells as an approach to curing diabetes. The lab uses chemical and genetic screening techniques in zebrafish larvae to identify and characterize compounds, signalling pathways and cellular mechanisms that can promote β-cell regeneration. We then validate our initial findings by changing the stage (larvae vs adult), approach (chemical vs genetic), and model organism (zebrafish vs mouse).
For examples of how the research can be conducted, see:

Andersson et al., Cell Metabolism 2012, Jun 6;15(6):885-94:

http://www.cell.com/cell-metabolism/abstract/S1550-4131(12)00188-X

Gut et al., Nature Chemical Biology 2013, 9, 97–104:

http://www.nature.com/nchembio/journal/v9/n2/full/nchembio.1136.html
The zebrafish are amenable to efficient transgenesis and high-resolution imaging. We will make use of these properties and generate transgenic zebrafish for single-cell analysis of phenotypes.

We expect you to be a very creative person with excellent communication skills in English and abilities to collaborate in a highly dynamic international research team. You have good knowledge of experimental techniques within cell and molecular biology, as well as a keen interest in interdisciplinary studies integrating pharmacology and developmental biology using zebrafish and mouse models.
At Karolinska Institutet there is a trial period (of 6-months), and pending excellent performance, one is registered at the program. We are looking for candidates that can start within a relatively short time, i.e. starting some time between in July-August.

Entry requirements

To be eligible, the applicant should hold a 4-year university degree in biomedicine, molecular biology, physiology/pharmacology, medicine, or similar. 

Selection is made of qualified applicants on the ground of their ability to benefit from doctoral education. We will apply the following assessment criteria:
- Documented subject knowledge of relevance to the area of research

- Analytical skill corroborated by an academic paper, degree thesis or corresponding

- Other documented knowledge/experience of importance for the research education
- Previous experience with cell- and molecular biology methods
- Excellent abilities in the English language, in writing and oral

Application process

The application should be emailed to olov.andersson@ki.se and contain the following documents:


- A personal letter and curriculum vitae

- A copy of a degree certificate and associated certificates

- Two letters of recommendation and/or contact details for two referees
- A copy of a degree project and pending publications 
is not needed, but appreciated….

Job details

Employer:Karolinska Institutet (KI)

Website:http://ki.se/en/cmb/olov-ande...

Location:Stockholm, Sweden

Expires:June 06, 2014

Job type:PhD Studentship

Salary:Unspecified

Qualifications:Postgraduate - Master's degree

Employment type:Contract

Job hours:Full-time