Application Deadline: 10 November 2019
13 PhD positions for early-stage researchers (ESRs) to begin in February/March 2020, as part of the Innovative Training Network of the European Commission entitled “DNA helicases in genome maintenance: from molecular and cellular mechanisms to specific inhibitors as potential drugs” (AntiHelix; https://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/224674/factsheet/en).
The offered positions will all last three years and will allow all the recruited researchers to be enrolled in local PhD schools and to participate in an exciting multidisciplinary research programme that will enhance their career perspectives in both the academic and non-academic sector. In addition to their individual projects, all ESRs will benefit from a dedicated training programme consisting of local and network-wide training activities aimed at improving their scientific knowledge and transferable skills.
The AntiHelix consortium includes the following 9 European institutions as Beneficiaries: Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Naples, Italy; Elettra - Sincrotrone Trieste SCpA, Trieste, Italy; University of Copenhagen, Denmark; VU University of Amsterdam, Netherlands; University of Sheffield, United Kingdom; University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany; Lead Discovery Center GmbH, Dortmund, Germany; Edelris SAS, Lyon, France; Lumicks BV, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
The AntiHelix program is coordinated by Francesca M. Pisani (Istituto di Biochimica e Biologia Cellulare, Consiglio Nazionale Ricerche, Naples, Italy).
The ESR proposed projects are:
Project 1: Investigating structure-function relationships of the DDX11 DNA helicase. Supervisor: F. M. Pisani (fm.pisani@ibp.cnr.it), Consiglio Nazionale Ricerche, Napoli, Italy. Keywords: Biochemistry; Molecular Biology; Cell Biology
Project 2: Identification of novel DDX11, FANCJ and RECQ4 interaction partners by proteomic studies. Supervisor: G. Manco (g.manco@ibp.cnr.it), Consiglio Nazionale Ricerche, Napoli, Italy. Keywords: Biochemistry; Proteomics; Biophysics
Project 3: Structure and function of the RECQ4 DNA helicase. Supervisor: L. Napolitano (luisa.napolitano@elettra.eu), Elettra - Sincrotrone Trieste SCpA, Trieste, Italy. Keywords: Biochemistry; Structural Biology; Cell biology
Project 4: Structural and biochemical analysis of Fe-S DNA helicases. Supervisor: S. Onesti (silvia.onesti@elettra.eu), Elettra - Sincrotrone Trieste SCpA, Trieste, Italy. Biochemistry; Structural Biology; Biophysics
Project 5: Investigation of the functional roles of different DNA helicases in response to replication stress. Supervisor: Y. Liu (ying@sund.ku.dk), University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Keywords: Molecular biology; Cell biology; Gene editing
Project 6: Mechanistic studies of the BLM complex in mitosis. Supervisor: I. D. Hickson (iandh@sund.ku.dk), University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Keywords: Biochemistry; Molecular biology; Cell biology
Project 7: Correlated Tweezers Fluorescence Microscopy to visualize and measure the interplay
of the BLM complex with the chromatin-remodelling factor PICH on DNA. Supervisor: G. J. L. Wuite (g.j.l.wuite@vu.nl), VU University of Amsterdam, Netherlands. Keywords: Biophysics; Biochemistry; Molecular biology
Project 8: Dissecting the DNA binding and unwinding activities of the human PIF1 helicase. Supervisor: C. M. Sanders (c.m.sanders@sheffield.ac.uk), University of Sheffield, United Kingdom. Keywords: Biochemistry; Molecular biology; Cell biology
Project 9: Therapeutic validation of DNA helicases in cancer. Supervisor: I. Helfrich (iris.helfrich@uk-essen.de), University Duisburg-Essen, Germany. Keywords: Molecular Oncology; Cellular 2D/3D cancer models; Bioinformatics
Project 10: Discovery of small molecule inhibitors of human BLM and RECQ4 DNA helicases. Supervisor: B. Klebl (kathrin.klebl@lead-discovery.de), Lead Discovery Center GmbH, Dortmund, Germany. Keywords: Biochemistry; Medicinal chemistry; Drug discovery
Project 11: Discovery of small-molecule inhibitors of human PIF1 and Fe-S DNA helicases. Supervisor: J. Eickhoff (kathrin.klebl@lead-discovery.de), Lead Discovery Center GmbH, Dortmund, Germany. Keywords: Biochemistry; Medicinal chemistry; High throughput screening
Project 12: Discovery of small molecule inhibitors of human BLM, RECQ1 and PIF1 DNA helicases. Supervisor: D. Roche (didier.roche@edelris.com), Edelris SAS, Lyon, France. Keywords: Medicinal chemistry; Drug discovery; High throughput screening
Project 13: Biophysical study of DNA helicase action mechanism. Supervisor: M. de Groot (m.degroot@lumicks.com), Lumicks BV, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Keywords: Biophysics, Biochemistry; Correlative optical-tweezers fluorescence microscopy
Details here