PhD Student (m/w/d)

Universitätsklinikum Düsseldorf (UKD) is the largest hospital in the state capital and one of the most important medical centres in North Rhine-Westphalia. The 9,300 employees of UKD and its subsidiaries ensure that more than 45,000 patients are treated as inpatients and 270,000 as outpatients every year. UKD stands for international excellence in patient care, research and teaching, and for innovative and safe diagnostics, therapy and prevention. Patients benefit from the intensive interdisciplinary cooperation of 60 clinics and institutes. The particular strength of the university hospital lies in the close interlinking of clinical care and research for the safe application of new methods. At UKD, the medicine of tomorrow is created. Every day.

The Institute of Pathology at Universitätsklinikum Düsseldorf (Director: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Irene Esposito), in a joint project with the Institute of Pharmaceutical Biology and Biotechnology (Prof. Dr. Nicole Teusch), is offering, at the earliest possible date, a

PhD position (m/f/d)

in the field of 3D Tumour Biology for Personalized Drug Discovery.

Part-time, 65% of the weekly working hours.

The appointment is initially limited to a period of 2 years, with the option of extension. This is a qualification position within the meaning of the German Act on Fixed-Term Employment Contracts in Academia (WissZeitVG, § 2 para. 1).

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains one of the deadliest cancers, largely because its dense stromal and immune microenvironment drives therapy resistance that conventional cell-line models and 3D organoids fail to capture. In this joint project, we are looking for a PhD candidate to characterise an ex vivo PDAC tissue model that preserves native tissue architecture together with the stromal and immune compartments, and to develop it into a working platform for drug testing and screening. The successful candidate will be jointly supervised by both groups and fully embedded in each - a rare opportunity to combine pathology, tumour biology and pharmacology within one project.

Establishment and characterisation of ex vivo PDAC tissue cultures (murine and human)

Histopathology and digital image analysis (QuPath)

Generation of transcriptomic data and independent downstream bioinformatic analysis

Analysis of (cell-type-specific) drug responses

Validation of the findings in patient-derived tumour tissue

Master's degree in biology, biomedicine, biochemistry, or a related life-science discipline

Research experience in cell and/or tissue culture and in standard molecular biology methods

Interest in transcriptomic data and the willingness to grow into its bioinformatic analysis

A plus, not a must: prior experience with histology, primary tissue culture or RNA-seq analysis, or work with animal-derived material (FELASA certification an advantage)

Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work efficiently both independently and in a team

Excellent English communication skills (written and spoken)

A fully funded, three-year position at the interface of pathology, tumour biology and pharmacology

25.025 weekly working hours

Access to the infrastructure and expertise of two established institutes

State-of-the-art facilities and current methods

International, engaged teams with structured doctoral supervision, including regular project meetings

Support for conference attendance and method training

Structured graduate programmes, e.g. through the Düsseldorf School of Oncology (DSO)

All benefits customary in the public sector, e.g. a company supplementary pension

Affordable catering options

Staff accommodation

Day-care facilities for children