PhD student - Hubrecht Institute - Utrecht

We are looking for a PhD student in the group of Dr. Francesca Mattiroli at the Hubrecht Institute in Utrecht. The successful candidate will work in a collaborative project between the Mattiroli lab and the lab of Prof. Jeroen Bakkers, aimed at studying how small chromatin-binding proteins affect gene expression, epigenome organization and cell cycle progression.

These proteins have been identified to have a key role in heart regeneration in Zebrafish, and the candidate will reveal the molecular mechanisms underlying this function. The successful candidate will use human RPE-1 cells to determine the mechanism of action of these proteins, and may later in the project use cardiomyocytes to validate such mechanisms in heart-relevant systems.

The PhD student will use molecular and cell biology, genomics and proteomics approaches.

Candidate profile

• An enthusiastic and collaborative work attitude
• Good communication and organizational skills
• Scientific curiosity, critical thinking and independence
• An MSc degree
• Previous training in cell biology and genomics is an advantage

About the Hubrecht Institute

The Hubrecht Institute is a research institute focused on molecular and developmental biology. Because of the dynamic character of the research, the institute has around 20 research groups that do fundamental, multidisciplinary research on healthy and diseased cells, tissues and organisms. The Hubrecht Institute is a research institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), situated on Utrecht Science Park. Since 2008, the institute is affiliated with UMC Utrecht, advancing the translation of research to the clinic. The Hubrecht Institute has a partnership with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL).

Terms of employment

The KNAW offers its staff an excellent package of secondary benefits. A package that meets the different needs of employees depending on their stage of life, lifestyle or career ambitions. For example, by working an extra two hours a week, it is possible to increase the number of days off from 29 to 41 days a year (with full-time employment).

Applying for a Certificate of Good Conduct can be part of the employment procedure.