PhD Candidate in Molecular Precision Medicine

The Department of Medical Sciences is a large clinical institution with approximately 250 employees and over 900 affiliated with Uppsala University Hospital.

The department has a broad research profile with strong research groups in various areas. More about the department's activities can be found at this link (https://www.uu.se/institution/medicinska-vetenskaper/).

We are recruiting a motivated PhD candidate to the research group of Molecular Precision Medicine at the Department of Medical Sciences at Uppsala Biomedical Center (BMC). The research group focuses on various diseases using large-scale genetic methods and builds a bridge between advanced laboratory-based and computational approaches. Current projects are described on our website: this link (https://www.uu.se/en/department/medical-sciences/research/research-groups/molecular-precision-medicine).

Through close collaboration with clinical researchers at Uppsala University Hospital, the research group has access to unique sample collections and clinical patient information. A close collaboration with the National Genomics Infrastructure (NGI) at Science for Life Laboratory (SciLifeLab) provides the research group with access to the latest sequencing technology this link (https://ngisweden.scilifelab.se/).

The project focuses on analyzing samples from children with leukemia or lymphoma, healthy controls, and in vitro cell models using various omics techniques.

The PhD candidate is expected to preprocess the generated data and perform downstream analyses, including multi-omics integration and machine learning. To achieve the overall goal of promoting precision medicine in pediatric leukemia/lymphoma, we aim to identify biomarkers that can distinguish high-risk patients from low-risk patients. This study aims to shorten chemotherapy treatment for low-risk patients while targeting the high-risk group with more specific treatment. We will also conduct drug screenings for targeted therapies, testing promising new drugs currently in early clinical trials. The PhD candidate may participate in selecting drug candidates through bioinformatics methods.

This PhD project will be carried out in close collaboration with leading research groups in pediatric hematology from the Nordic Society of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology (NOPHO) and ALLTogether (A2G) consortia. As a PhD candidate in this project, you will play a key role in integrating and analyzing multi-omics data within the consortium to deepen the understanding of pediatric leukemia and lymphoma at the molecular level and contribute to the development of new treatment strategies.

Responsibilities

• Analyze multi-omics data from patient samples and in vitro models, including genomics (WGS), transcriptomics (bulk and scRNA-seq), epigenomics (DNA methylation analyses), and proteomics (Olink Explore PEA).
• Develop and apply machine learning models to identify disease subtypes and predict treatment responses.
• Develop reproducible frameworks and/or user-friendly applications to enable high-quality research and accelerate scientific discoveries.
• Collaborate with pediatric oncologists, molecular biologists, bioinformaticians, and computational biologists, both within the research group and with our international partners.
• Write scientific articles and present project results at scientific meetings and conferences.

Qualifications

Eligible for doctoral education is someone who has:

• completed a master's degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, molecular biology, or a related field.
• completed at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 higher education credits at the advanced level including an independent project of at least 15 higher education credits, or
• acquired equivalent knowledge in some other way.

Additional requirements for this position:

• Documented experience in large-scale data analysis and programming in relevant languages, such as Python and R.
• Good ability to handle large datasets in a LINUX/UNIX environment.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
• Very good knowledge of English, both spoken and written.

Desirable/meritorious

• Experience in DNA methylation analysis.
• Experience with proteomics data (e.g., Olink PEA).
• Experience in multi-omics data integration.
• Experience in single-cell sequencing analysis.
• Competence in machine learning for biomedical applications.
• Experience in computational workflows (e.g., Snakemake, Nextflow).
• Experience in interactive web applications (e.g., Shiny).

Regulations for doctoral students can be found in the Higher Education Ordinance Chapter 5 §§ 1-7 and in the university's rules and guidelines.

About the employment

The employment is temporary, according to HF Chapter 5 § 7. The extent is full-time. Start date is February 1, 2026, or by agreement. Place of employment: Uppsala.

For inquiries about the position, please contact: Jessica Nordlund, [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]), +46704250806.

Welcome with your application by January 2, 2026, UFV-PA 2025/3795.

Uppsala University is a broad research university with a strong international position. The ultimate goal is to conduct education and research of the highest quality and relevance to make a difference in society. Our most important asset is all 7,600 employees and 53,000 students who, with curiosity and commitment, make Uppsala University one of the most exciting workplaces in the country.

Read more about our benefits and what it is like to work at Uppsala University this link (https://uu.se/om-uu/jobba-hos-oss/).

The employment may be subject to security clearance. A prerequisite for employment is that the applicant is approved during the security clearance.

We kindly decline offers of recruitment and advertising assistance.

Applications are received in Uppsala University's recruitment system.

Union representatives: Saco-S - [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]), Seko - [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]), ST (OFR/S) - [email protected] (mailto:[email protected])