PhD position (all gendres) in AI-integrated Neuroimmunology - Munich

The newly established Systems Neuroimmunology Laboratory at LMU Munich (www.m-kaufmann.com) is seeking a motivated and creative PhD candidate passionate about combining immunologic methods and advanced computational approaches, including artificial intelligence (AI).

The position is funded by the CRC1713. Please note the unique administrative setup:

• Place of Work: The research will be conducted in Munich at the Biomedical Center Munich (BMC) at the Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU).
• Employment Contract: The employment is formally based at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) with a permanent secondment to LMU Munich.

The group is located within the Institute of Clinical Neuroimmunology (https://www.neuroimmunology-munich.de/). The professorship of Systems Neuroimmunology is part of the Cluster of Excellence SyNergy (https://synergy-munich.de).

This position is part of the Collaborative Research Centre CRC1713 (Maternal Immune Activation: Causes and Consequences). Pregnancy represents a unique natural model of immune tolerance, effectively inducing temporary remission in autoimmune conditions like multiple sclerosis. Our goal is to "learn pregnancy’s code" to understand these natural protective mechanisms and translate them into novel therapeutic strategies for neuroimmunologic diseases.

The PhD Project involves:

• Planning and performing innovative large-scale experiments bridging human patient samples, pregnancy cohorts, and cutting-edge AI-driven analyses
• Decoding the molecular mechanisms of pregnancy-mediated immune suppression using high-dimensional multi-omics data
• Validation of computational findings through functional laboratory experiments
• Developing and optimizing protocols involving omics methods, immune cell assays, and flow cytometry
• Close collaboration with biologists, clinicians, and data scientists within a highly interdisciplinary environment

This position is temporary for 3 years in accordance with the WissZeitVG and to be filled with 65 % of the regular weekly working hours.

• Completed Master’s degree in Biology, Biotechnology, Bioinformatics, Immunology, or a related field
• Strong interest in computational science and AI (prior formal training is not required, but a willingness to learn is essential)
• Experience with immunological methods (flow cytometry, qPCR, functional assays, CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing) is beneficial
• Familiarity with omics and sequencing technologies (e.g., scRNA-seq, spatial transcriptomics, TCR-/BCR-sequencing, ChIP-seq) is advantageous
• Excellent teamwork, communication skills, and creativity
• International candidates are strongly encouraged to apply

Interested applicants should submit their application, including a CV, motivation letter, and the contact information of two references.

• Attractive compensation according to TVöD/VKA
• Secure employment with meaningful work and respectful collaboration
• Comprehensive onboarding and open knowledge exchange within the team
• Extensive training and further education programs at our UKE Academy for Education and Careers
• Opportunities to contribute to our “UKE INside” personnel policy through cross-professional and cross-hierarchical projects
• Sustainable travel: subsidies for the Deutschlandticket as a job ticket

We live diversity and value variety

We offer a work environment that provides equal opportunities regardless of age, gender, sexual identity, disability, ethnic and social origin, or religion. This is confirmed by our accession to the Charter of Diversity. We explicitly aim to increase the proportion of women in management positions, especially among scientific personnel in research and teaching. Women with equal qualifications will be given priority. The same applies in the case of under-representation of one gender in the advertised area. Persons with severe disabilities with equal aptitude, competence, and professional performance will be given priority.

> Learn more about "Diversity at UKE" here.