PhD student (m/f/d) in Nutrition, Microbiology and Immunology

This position is advertised within the CRC 1371 and is located at the Technical University of Munich (Prof. Haller, Chair of Nutrition and Immunology; www.nutrition-immunolgy.de).

CRC 1371 (Speaker Prof. Dr. Dirk Haller, Department of Nutrition and Immunology, TUM) focuses on the digestive tract and proposes an interdisciplinary approach to characterizing the functional relevance of microbiome signatures in the context of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD).

In this PhD project (P01), we study the impact of exclusive enteral nutrition on microbiome signatures and function in pediatric Crohn’s disease. Crohn’s disease (CD) is one of the two main entities of idiopathic inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Exclusive enteral nutrition (EEN) alters microbial composition and efficiently induces remission in these patients. In this translational project between basic and clinical sciences, we use germ-free and humanized (gnotobiotic) mouse models as well as ex vivo microbiota continuous culturing (chemostat) and intestinal organoids to explore the molecular mechanisms and functional relevance of microbiome signatures for the anti-inflammatory effects of EEN interventions. We apply cutting-edge microbiota and metabolite profiling methodologies to identify protective microorganisms and molecules. The perspective of this project is to develop a microbiome-based maintenance therapy for pediatric CD patients.

Entry Requirements

Applicants should hold a Master degree in Microbiology, (Molecular) Biology, Biotechnology or Nutrition Science and have a strong interest in Microbiology and Immunology. They should be fluent in spoken and written English.