PhD: CRISPR Vaccine Adjuvant Research at SSI

A 3-year PhD position is now open.

About us
The Department of Infectious Disease Immunology pioneers the development of novel vaccines for the prevention of e.g. Influenza, Tuberculosis, Chlamydia and other infections with a mucosal entry. Read more about the department here.

The department houses a goal orientated and enthusiastic international research team consisting of immunologists, molecular biologists, formulation scientists and protein chemists and is in the absolute forefront of the international efforts to develop vaccines to these important pathogens. The department is equipped with "state of the art" animal and laboratory facilities.

The new Blood2Gut project aims to develop a new vaccine technology that leverages a gastrointestinal mucosal immune response after parenteral immunization. The project is headed by Research Professor Gregers Jungersen and is anchored in our section for gastrointestinal vaccine research. In the project, we collaborate closely with Professor Sine Reker Hadrup and Kristoffer Haurum Johansen at DTU Healthtech to leverage their expertise in CRISPR/Cas9-based pooled screens, as well as Professor Mads Hartvig Clausen who brings expertise in organic chemical synthesis of drug compounds.

The position
The PhD will work with DTU Healthtech to map the gene circuitry that licenses expression of the intestinal homing receptors CCR9 and α4β7 on T cells, knowledge essential for our Blood2Gut adjuvant platform.

You will:

• Design and execute genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 knockout screens in human dendritic cells and primary T cells stimulated with all-trans retinoic acid and microbial pattern mimics.
• Use next-generation sequencing and pooled CRISPR-screening analysis to identify genes indispensable for chemokine and integrin up-regulation and validate hits via arrayed CRISPR editing and/or pharmacological blockade.
• Integrate datasets with published datasets to identify druggable pathways with the purpose of guiding medicinal chemists in iterative small-molecule optimisation.
• Develop high-throughput flow-cytometry assays quantifying homing-receptor expression and downstream signalling.

Candidate profile
The ideal candidate for the position will feature the following profile:

• Dynamic, independent and goal-orientated with a solid grounding in cellular immunology, molecular biology and cell-based pooled screening platforms.
• Proven hands-on experience with CRISPR screening, next-generation sequencing workflows, flow cytometry and primary human immune-cell culture.
• Competence in bioinformatic pipelines (bash/R/Python) for CRISPR screen analysis and network integration.
• Comfortable working in a multifaceted project with several academic collaborators.

Terms of employment
The employment will be in accordance with the terms of the collective agreement between the Ministry of Finance and the Danish Federation of Professional Associations (AC-overenskomsten) and the Danish Ministry of Finance circular concerning the job structure for scientific staff working with research at sector research institutions (Stillingsstruktur for videnskabeligt personale med forskningsopgaver ved sektorforskningsinstitutioner).

Contact
For further details and informal enquiries please contact Head of Section Gregers Jungersen at +45 3268 8592/adamsjohnmcrossgrjukdecker@ssi.dkwaters.dkwashington.dkyoder-jones.dk.

Are you interested?
Click on “Apply” and send us your application, Curriculum Vitae and a copy of relevant diplomas.

Interviews are expected to be held in weeks 38 and 39 2025.