1 -2 PhD Student in Data-Driven Cell Biology Focusing on Live-Cell Imaging

The Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences is an interdisciplinary environment where 10 research areas work to contribute to better medicines and a healthier world. With laboratories in the heart of Uppsala Biomedical Center and Sweden's only Faculty of Pharmacy, we are a vital engine in the development of education and research in the pharmaceutical sciences. More information about the department and its activities is available at www.uu.se/farmbio.

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The advertised doctoral position is linked to the research group Pharmaceutical Bioinformatics.

We are offering a PhD student position exploring live-cell imaging and its analysis. The student will form a part of a new NEST initiative funded by the Wallenberg National Program for Data-Driven Life Science (DDLS) and the Wallenberg AI, Autonomous Systems and Software Program (WASP). The project, Time-Resolved Imaging and Multi-Channel Evaluation of Cellular Dynamics (TIMED), is a 5-year collaboration between researchers at Uppsala University, Chalmers University of Technology, and Karolinska Institute.

In the TIMED project, we will pioneer new approaches to study cancer and its dynamics by integrating artificial intelligence and temporal data analysis. By studying dynamic biological processes, namely cell behaviour and response to perturbations over time, we will not only gain insights into this critical yet overlooked dimension of cell response, but also generate a significant amount of novel data for the public domain, enabling us to systematically characterise fundamental cellular processes at an unprecedented scale. To bridge the gap between theoretical method development and practical utility, we will evaluate the new data-driven methods developed in this proposal on the task of identifying novel treatments effective against ovarian cancer.

Duties
We are looking for a PhD candidate with a solid background in wet lab experiments but also with experience and appetite for computational analysis. The duties include cell culture, compound management, morphological profiling, e.g., Cell Painting, and automated microscopy with live-cell imaging; and also data management and analysis in collaboration with other members of the research group and the TIMED project consortium.

The Pharmaceutical Bioinformatics research group is an interdisciplinary group of researchers, engaging in data-driven cell biology with the objective to accelerate drug discovery by combining AI and automated laboratories. Link to the research group website: https://pharmb.io/

As a PhD student, your primary focus will be on your doctoral studies. Up to 20% of the position may include departmental duties such as teaching or administrative tasks. The standard duration of the doctoral program is four years full-time, extendable to five years with departmental service.

Requirements
To meet the entry requirements for doctoral studies, you must

• - hold a Master’s (second-cycle) degree or similar with adequate experience in cell biology and microscopy.
• - have completed at least 240 credits in higher education, with at least 60 credits at Master’s level including an independent project worth at least 15 credits, or
• - have acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in some other way.

Great emphasis is placed on personal suitability, motivation, and a genuine interest in research within the field. The applicant should have a good ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing in English.

Additional qualifications
Experience from live-cell imaging, image analysis, and multivariate data analysis is meriting.

Rules governing PhD students are set out in the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5, §§ 1-7 and in Uppsala University's rules and guidelines.

About the employment
The employment is a temporary position according to the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5 § 7. Scope of employment 100 %. Starting date as agreed. Placement: Uppsala

For further information about the position, please contact: Professor Ola Spjuth, e-mail ola.spjuth@uu.se

For further information around the position, please contact: Administrative manager Marina Rönngren, e-post marina.ronngren@uu.se

Please submit your application by august 15, 2025, UFV-PA 2025/2173

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