Phd Position – Finding And Validating New Targets For Immunotherapy Against T Lymphoblastic Leukemia/Lymphoma

Are you looking for a position in translational research in which you can implement fundamental biomedical research principles to work towards the development of new cell therapies? The Nierkens lab is seeking an enthusiastic and highly motivated PhD candidate with a keen interest in Cell Therapy and Molecular Biology to develop new immunotherapies against progenitor T-cell malignancies.

Project

Funded by KWF Alpe d’HuZes and the Máxima foundation, this position focuses on the development of immunotherapies targeted against new markers of T-LBLL. This will be performed using LC-MS/MS based proteomics to identify surface markers on both healthy and malignant T-cell progenitors. Following this, we will engineer CAR-T cells designed to specifically recognize and eliminate tumor cells expressing these newly identified targets. Our ultimate goal is to accelerate the development of these novel CAR-T products in the lab, enabling a swift transition of promising candidates to clinical trials. To facilitate this, you will communicate with our in-house cell therapy manufacturing facility to leverage their production capacities in the future.

Background

T lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma (T-LBLL), are aggressive cancers affecting T-cell progenitors. Despite improvements in 5-year overall survival rates due to modern chemotherapy and risk stratification, ~20% of pediatric patients relapse or do not respond to therapy. For those patients, alternative therapeutic approaches are needed to offer curative treatment. Immunotherapy, particularly CAR T-cell therapy, has shown great promise to treat relapsed patients in B-cell malignancies but faces challenges when targeting T-cell malignancies. Early efforts targeting pan-T-cell markers such as CD5 and CD7 for T-LBLL are effective, but T-cell aplasia and marker-negative relapse remain significant problems.

Your profile

• A Master of Science degree or equivalent in (molecular) biology, biomedical sciences or related discipline.
• A strong interest in translational childhood cancer research.
• Proficient in cell culture techniques and familiarity with molecular biology techniques such as PCR, Western blotting, and cloning.
• Experience with flow cytometry or LC-MS based proteomics are considered advantageous.
• Proficiency in data analysis using R is emphasized in the project.
• Excellent communication, organization, and presentation abilities in Dutch and English.
• A strong motivation, attention to detail, flexibility, and strong organizational skills are critical.
• The ability to work independently as well as collaborative in multidisciplinary and multicultural research team.

Our job offer

We offer you a stimulating PhD position in an international, multidisciplinary research setting that bridges fundamental research techniques and clinical application in the field of immunology. You will be part of a unique working environment at an inspiring national pediatric oncology center in the Netherlands, which operates within a strong international network. This role provides the opportunity to engage in the entire scope of translational research on childhood cancer and actively contribute to the overarching project by generating and testing your own research hypotheses.

You will start on a temporary position for 36 hours per week for the duration of one year, which– upon satisfactory completion of the first year – will be extended to a four-year PhD trajectory. Your gross monthly salary will start in FWG 45-6 with a salary of €3.523,- gross per month for a full-time working week (36 hours). Additionally, you will receive an 8.33% holiday allowance and an 8.33% end-of-year bonus. The Princess Máxima Center operates according to the collective labor agreement ‘cao ziekenhuizen’.

The team

The mission of the Nierkens lab is to optimize outcomes of cell therapies for pediatric cancers. Therefore, we work in a multidisciplinary team of researchers, diagnostics experts, and clinicians to focus our efforts towards creating patient benefit. On one hand, this means we closely monitor patient immune responses to existing therapies to identify opportunities for improvement. On the other hand, we strive to innovate treatment by developing new therapies from the ground up. By employing advanced proteomics techniques we aim to uncover new targets, which we subsequently develop into functional cell therapies in the lab. For this project, you will collaborate with the group of Kelly Stecker at Utrecht University for the surface profiling of leukemic cells using LC-MS/MS.

The Princess Máxima Center

The Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology is a research hospital concentrating healthcare, research and education with regard to cancer in children in a single location in Utrecht. The institute aims to provide the highest level of care for all children with cancer and has the ambition to cure all children of cancer and significantly reduce unwanted side effects. The center brings together the best possible care and scientific research, creating a unique interdisciplinary institute for pediatric oncology in Europe.

How to Apply
You can apply for this position until the 30th of April, by pressing the “apply” button on this screen. Potential candidates will be invited for interviews, which will be held in May and June. The preferred starting time would be July 2025.

For more information about the vacancy, you are welcome to contact Jorik van Rijn.

Acquisitie naar aanleiding van deze vacature wordt niet op prijs gesteld.