PhD Student (gn*) Physiological Chemistry and Biochemistry

Fixed-term for 3 years | Part-time (65%) | Salary according to TV-L E13 | Institute for Physiological Chemistry and Biochemistry

We are UKM. We have a clear social mission and, with our focus on healthcare, research, and teaching, we bear a unique responsibility.

To meet our high standards every day, we are looking forward to your scientific expertise in the Institut für Physiologische Chemie und Pathobiochemie. In Prof. Seraphine Wegner’s research group, we investigate synthetic cell communication and develop light-based approaches to connect synthetic and living cells. As part of the ERC Consolidator Grant-Lighthouse , the project focuses on establishing and characterizing a non-chemical mode of cell-to-cell communication using visible light – ideally with you on board!

THE PROJECT:

This project is part of the ERC Consolidator Grant-Lighthouse. Engineering cell-to-cell communication is fundamental –yet highly challenging– for programming multicellular systems and interfacing living and biomimetic synthetic cells. The problem lies in developing specific communication that is independent of existing chemical signaling and in connecting it to cell behavior. Both the high complexity of intercellular signaling in living cells and the fairly limited capabilities of synthetic cells severely restrict possibilities to engineer communication in and between these two realms. We will develop a new nonchemical mode of cell-to-cell communication that operates with light as a signal. The idea is to develop sender cells that produce visible light as a signal that corresponding receiver cells respond to. In this light-based communication, the signal will propagate at the speed of light independent of diffusion, will cross optically transparent barriers without the need for membrane transporters, and will allow communication even between physically separated cells. We will establish light-based communication in molecularly defined synthetic cells to decipher the central rules of this new mode of communication. Detailed characterization (light generation, response, distance, dynamics, orthogonality) of light-based communication will provide the framework for later programming of multicellular behavior. Ultimately, this will pave the way for the bottom-up assembly of multicellular architectures, enabling us to control precisely and dynamically their organization in space and time as well as regulate how cells work together.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Establishment of non-chemical communication between synthetic and living cells
• Characterization of light-based communication, including signal generation, cellular response, communication distance, dynamics, and orthogonality
• Fluorescence microscopy and image analysis
• Protein- and DNA-based biochemical techniques
• Bacterial and mammalian cell culture

REQUIREMENTS:

• Master’s degree in biochemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, or a related field with an outstanding academic record
• Practical expertise in relevant biochemical, microscopy, image analysis, and cell culture methods
• Strong motivation for interdisciplinary research in the field of synthetic cells
• High degree of initiative and an independent approach to scientific work
• Team-oriented approach to interdisciplinary collaboration
• Good command of English

WE OFFER:

• Salary according to TV-L E13, extra annual payment, and company pension plan (VBL)
• 30 days of vacation per year, plus two additional days off on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve
• A wide range of training and professional development opportunities
• A respectful and appreciative work environment within a diverse team
• Support and advisory services for health and work-life balance
• Additional benefits such as sports programs, job ticket, jobrad, company events, cafeteria, and emergency childcare

For inquiries, please contact: Prof. Seraphine Wegner, [email protected]

Apply now via our career portal including a detailed CV precisely mentioning practical and theoretical skills and a motivation letter.