University Assistant (post doc)

The Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences invites applications for a postdoc position. The candidate should have an excellent track record in physics to conduct current research in single particle tracking.

Active participation in research, teaching and administration. This involves

- Developing and strengthening the independent research profile

- Involvement in research projects / research studies

- International publications and presentations

- Responsibility for project applications and the acquisition of third-party funding

- Preparing / writing a (publication-ready) habilitation thesis

- Independent teaching of courses as defined by the collective agreement

- Supervision of students

- Participation in evaluation measures and quality assurance

- Involvement in the department administration as well as in teaching and research administration

The surface of every living cell is covered with a dense matrix of glycans. Its particular composition and structure codes important messages in cell-cell communication, influencing development, differentiation, and immunological processes. The matrix is formed by highly complex, branched biopolymers whose compositions vary from cell to cell, even between genetically identical cells. This gives rise to population noise in cell-cell communication. A second level of noise stems from glycans present on the same cell that disturb the decoding of the message by glycans binding receptors through competitive binding. Glycan-based communication is characterized by a high redundancy of both glycans and their receptors. Thus, noise and redundancy emerge as key properties of glycan-based cell-cell communication, but their extent and function are poorly understood.

The candidate is expected to be a motivated team player who fits into a multinational and multidisciplinary research environment. Confidence in spoken and written English is a requirement. A background in information science or coding theory with a focus on the application to questions in biology is a prerequisite. The candidate should be interested in the biology of carbohydrates and willing to learn about basic cell biology. The applicant should also have good project- and time management skills and keep a very good documentation of the work. Active participation in research, teaching and administration. This involves

- Developing and strengthening the independent research profile

- Involvement in research projects / research studies

- International publications and presentations

- Responsibility for project applications and the acquisition of third-party funding

- Preparing / writing a (publication-ready) habilitation thesis

- Independent teaching of courses as defined by the collective agreement

- Supervision of students

- Participation in evaluation measures and quality assurance

- Involvement in the department administration as well as in teaching and research administration

The surface of every living cell is covered with a dense matrix of glycans. Its particular composition and structure codes important messages in cell-cell communication, influencing development, differentiation, and immunological processes. The matrix is formed by highly complex, branched biopolymers whose compositions vary from cell to cell, even between genetically identical cells. This gives rise to population noise in cell-cell communication. A second level of noise stems from glycans present on the same cell that disturb the decoding of the message by glycans binding receptors through competitive binding. Glycan-based communication is characterized by a high redundancy of both glycans and their receptors. Thus, noise and redundancy emerge as key properties of glycan-based cell-cell communication, but their extent and function are poorly understood.

The candidate is expected to be a motivated team player who fits into a multinational and multidisciplinary research environment. Confidence in spoken and written English is a requirement. A background in information science or coding theory with a focus on the application to questions in biology is a prerequisite. The candidate should be interested in the biology of carbohydrates and willing to learn about basic cell biology. The applicant should also have good project- and time management skills and keep a very good documentation of the work.