Call for applications for a fully financed PhD fellowship
Autoantibodies are a hallmark of autoimmune diseases and are routinely used as diagnostic biomarkers. However, despite being associated with distinct clinical disease manifestations, they are generally considered passive indicators of disease diagnosis rather than active drivers of pathology. This project challenges this long-standing immunological paradigm by investigating whether disease-specific autoantibodies can penetrate living cells, interact with intracellular target proteins, and initiate pathogenic immune responses.
The PhD project will explore the molecular mechanisms underlying intracellular autoantibody activity. Using patient-derived autoantibodies from autoimmune connective tissue diseases, the PhD candidate will investigate how autoantibodies enter cells, bind their intracellular targets, and activate downstream signalling pathways that contribute to chronic inflammation and tissue fibrosis.
The experimental approaches in the project include antibody purification, cell culture, advanced microscopy, flow cytometry, cell sorting and RNA sequencing. The project is highly translational, correlating experimental findings to clinical signatures.
The PhD candidate will become part of an ambitious translational immunology research group with strong national and international collaborations. The project offers close supervision, access to required technologies, and opportunities for international research stays and conference participation.
By addressing a fundamental question in immunology, this project has the potential to redefine our understanding of autoimmune disease mechanisms across rheumatic, neurological, and endocrine disorders. Ultimately, the findings may pave the way for a new generation of therapies that prevent intracellular autoantibody entry or target pathogenic processes within cells.
The candidate must hold a master degree within molecular biology, molecular medicine or similar.
Previous experience with confocal microscopy, cell culture work, flow cytometry and western blotting is preferred. Previous knowledge on autoimmune connective tissue diseases is considered an advantage.
Please submit your application via this link. Application deadline is 21 August 2026 at 23:59 CET. Preferred starting date is 1 October 2026.
For information about application requirements and mandatory attachments, please see our application guide.
Please contact Associate Professor Stinne Greisen, srg@biomed.au.dk, for more information.
All interested candidates are encouraged to apply, regardless of their personal background. Salary and terms of employment are in accordance with applicable collective agreement.
