Doctoral Candidate position HORIZON-MSCA-Doctoral Ne...

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Doctoral Candidate position HORIZON-MSCA-Doctoral Network LipidBRIGHT

KU Leuven is an autonomous university. It was founded in 1425. It was born of and has grown within the Catholic tradition.

Are you fascinated by how lipids contribute to human disease? Step into the world of lipid research with the European doctoral network LipidBRIGHT to uncover how lipid signalling and metabolism drive disease—and innovate future therapies.

Lipids are of vital importance through interaction in cell membranes, as energy source and in cellular signalling and function. As such, they also play decisive roles in cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, cancer and chronic inflammatory disease. These diseases affect 33%, 60%, 10% and 33% of Europeans, and are responsible for > 60% of global deaths. The European Doctoral Network LipidBRIGHT combines scientists, clinicians, companies and stakeholder organisations with expertise in these disease fields. By integrating expertise in lipids from the clinical, biomedical, technological and data science field across disease borders and by transferring complementary knowledge and technology, LipidBRIGHT aims to speed up innovations towards improved disease prevention, diagnosis, prognosis and therapy.

• Excellent scientific training on interdisciplinary level, covering liquid biochemistry and pathophysiology as well as clinical application.
• Excellent complementary skills in personal and career development as well as business training required to extend beyond scientific research.
• Exposure to both academic and non-academic environments, required to build bridges between researchers and entrepreneurs and support the future translation of research findings in innovative products and services.

LipidBRIGHT builds on available patient cohorts, advanced technologies and established cooperations and strives to synergistically improve structural training on European level. LipidBRIGHT will nurture the development of young, broadly-trained scientists able to successfully bridge clinical with basic research as well as academia and industry, which is a cornerstone in effectively combatting complex diseases as cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, cancer and chronic inflammatory disease.

Contributing partners in LipidBRIGHT: Universiteit Maastricht (NL), Catholic University KU Leuven (BE), University Hasselt (BE), University Hospital Jena (DE), INSERM (FR), University Utrecht (NL), SciCross (SE), RD –Néphrologie SAS (FR), University of Bern (CH).

For more information:

One PhD position is available at the Department of Oncology, Laboratory of Lipid Metabolism and Cancer, at KU Leuven. The project has a duration of 36 months. Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Johannes Swinnen.

Title: Development of lipid biomarkers for anti-lipogenic cancer therapy in patients.
The doctoral candidate will focus on developing lipid-based biomarkers to improve anti-lipogenic cancer therapies. Cancer progression and treatment response are strongly influenced by lipid metabolism, but patient stratification remains challenging due to tumor heterogeneity and the lack of reliable markers. The research will involve advanced analysis of blood tumor samples from prostate cancer patients enrolled in clinical trials combining lipogenesis inhibitors and dietary interventions. Using cutting-edge lipidomics technologies the project aims to identify predictive lipid signatures, link them to biological and clinical outcomes, and integrate AI-driven analysis to create cost-effective prognostic tools validated in independent cohorts.

Profile

According to the EU rules for the EU-Doctoral Network projects, the recruited researchers must comply with the following conditions:

Offer

The DC will receive a 36-month scholarship to cover her/his living costs. The gross amount of the doctoral scholarship is based on a living allowance that takes into account the cost of living in the country of the recruiting institution. The gross amount of the doctoral scholarship (tax-free) will be approximately 3,055.61 per month if the candidate is single with no dependent family members. It will be higher if the candidate has a registered partner without income and/or dependent child(ren); it will be lower if the candidate has a registered partner with income.

The cost of all training activities, including all expenses related to travel and accommodation to attend annual meetings and other network organized events will be paid by the network through the Horizon Europe MSCA-DN grant. DCs will have access to a dedicated workspace and to research facilities. Bench/consumables costs to execute the research project will be covered by the institutions.

Interested?

How to apply?

Interested candidates can apply by submitting the following documents:

• Motivation letter in English indicating their interest in the project and how this fits with their research ambitions.
• Research statement describing the applicant’s research experience (e.g. master’s thesis project, any other relevant research experience) in relation to the selected project.
• Detailed curriculum vitae in European format, including personal information (gender, age), studies, list of publications, participation in research projects, extracurricular training, mobility, other qualifications or relevant skills.
• Certified copies of Academic Degree/s in the original language along with a certified translation into English, and/or Diploma Supplement.
• Certified copies of official Academic Transcripts relating to all academic courses taken to earn every degree (bachelor/master or equivalent), translated into English, and correspondent grade point average.
• Copy of passport (or, for EU citizens, equivalent ID document)
• Contact details of at least two references (no recommendation letters to be included)

All applications will have to be written in English and will be checked for eligibility. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Applications must be submitted by email to before 27th February 2026 at 17:00 Central European time .

All data provided by the applicants are processed according to GDPR regulations and will be used solely for the purpose of the selection of the doctoral candidates.

Selection process: LipidBRIGHT will adopt the Charter for Researchers and Code of Conduct promoting an inclusive, merit-based, transparent and unbiased recruitment and attractive working and employment conditions.
A two-step procedure for applicants’ selection will be followed:

After an eligibility check, an initial selection will be made based on the submitted documents and the following selection criteria:

• Motivation to join the network
• Acquired research skills and research experience
• Fit between the education / research experience and the research project
• Communication skills and English proficiency
• Team work attitude
• Career ambitions and potential for excellence
• Potential impact of the offered training on the DC\'s career

2. Afterwards, promising candidates will be contacted by email after the deadline for application has been closed. It is the intention that the selected DC starts in September 2026.

KU Leuven strives for an inclusive, respectful and socially safe environment. We embrace diversity among individuals and groups as an asset. Open dialogue and differences in perspective are essential for an ambitious research and educational environment. In our commitment to equal opportunity, we recognize the consequences of historical inequalities. We do not accept any form of discrimination based on, but not limited to, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, age, ethnic or national background, skin colour, religious and philosophical diversity, neurodivergence, employment disability, health, or socioeconomic status. For questions about accessibility or support offered, we are happy to assist you at this email address.

Job details

Title

Doctoral Candidate position HORIZON-MSCA-Doctoral Network LipidBRIGHT

:59 (Europe/Brussels) :59 (CET)

Closing on: (Europe/Brussels)

Closing on: (Europe/Brussels)

Closing on: (Europe/Brussels)

Closing on: (Europe/Brussels)

Closing on: (Europe/Brussels)

KU Leuven is an autonomous university. It was founded in 1425. It was born of and has grown within the Catholic tradition.