[BBC] PHD POSITION GENOMICS IN HEALTH

[Gokhan Ertaylan]

We are looking for a highly motivated candidate for the Ph.D. position in
GENOMICS IN HEALTH (https://vito.be/en/jobs/phd-position-genomics-health )
as advertised below. Please feel free to forward it to interested parties.
The position is part of a strong collaboration with VITO and the University
of Hasselt, where the candidate will have the opportunity to experience
working in both Institutions.

*Deadline: 21/08/2020 *(The position will be open until a
matching candidate is being selected regardless of the deadline)

Gökhan Ertaylan, PhD

Principal Investigator - Health

VITO NV | Boeretang 200 | 2400 Mol

Phone tel:+3214335270

Vision on technology for a better world

DESCRIPTION
Our established healthcare system is no longer sustainable due to the aging
population demographics and the transformation of many fatal disorders into
chronic diseases. Preventive healthcare is rising to the challenge of
providing early diagnosis and assistance to the risk group populations,
effectively allowing individuals to live healthy instead of living with
chronic diseases. In this research project, we evaluate the dynamics,
surrogacy and strengths of several omic technologies to serve as a basis
for risk profiles for chronic diseases. For this purpose, within the “I am
Frontier” cohort, we are following 30 healthy participants on a monthly
basis, which we use to generate different omics data sets including(but not
limited to) genomics (Whole Genome Sequencing), epigenetics(Methylation),
clinical biomarkers, microbiome, proteomics, and metabolomics. Moreover, we
collect information about physiological parameters (heart-rate, sleep
patterns …) and lifestyle (activity, food intake, stress, ...) via
questionnaires and wearables. This data, used in combination with open
science data from a range of diseases, allow us to profile individual risks
for the onset of a disease..
The aim of this bioinformatics research project is to put the genomic
information layer central to investigate and develop new approaches for
utilizing genome data interactions between molecular intermediates, like,
e.g., genome–metabolome, genome-proteome and genome-epigenome, that are
relevant for the clinical outcome.
The data of the “I am Frontier” cohort can be augmented by publicly
available information from different repositories like the Cancer Genome
Atlas, 1000 genomes project, etc. Hence affinity to creating genomics and
other omics processing pipelines and workflows is crucial for the success
of this project.
An interesting secondary research objective is to evaluate the surrogacy
and redundancy in the genomic data when contrasted to other molecular
layers. This could be of importance when considering issues related to GDPR.
We are looking for a highly motivated and scientifically excellent
candidate in the genomics/bioinformatics background with a problem-solving
attitude to work in an international, collegial environment. Strong
communication skills complemented with innovative analytical thinking are
important assets. This project is a strategical collaboration with VITO and
the University of Hasselt and the candidate will be a member of both
institutions.


Collaboration with University of Hasselt

Registration deadline: 21/08/2020
QUALIFICATION
You will work in a multidisciplinary environment under the supervision of
senior scientists with experience in Bioinformatics, Computational Biology
and Data Science, and under the guidance of your university promotor from
the University of Hasselt.

   - Applicants should hold an MSc degree in bioinformatics, biological
   disciplines (e.g. biomedical sciences, medicine, bioengineering science or
   equivalent) or computer science. Master students that obtain such a degree
   later this academic year can also apply.
   - Candidates with a biomedical background are expected to demonstrate
   basic programming experience (e.g. R, Linux bash, Python).
   -  Candidates with a computational background should demonstrate basic
   biology knowledge.
   - Developing genomic and cross-omics workflows for processing the “I am
   Frontier” cohort data and auxiliary data resources.
   - A strong interest and motivation in genomics data analysis are
   required.
   - Candidates should be team players and have strong analytical
   problem-solving skills (creative, critical, and open-minded).
   - Good oral and written communication skills in English.

Application Procedure:


We look forward to receiving a motivation letter (max. 1 page), short CV
(max. 3 pages), a transcript from the MSc degree and three names of
referees.
OFFER
We offer:

   - a 4-year PhD-research project (candidates will be encouraged to apply
   for FWO grants in 2021).
   - a competitive enumeration during the PhD period
   - participation in an exciting project on personalized and preventive
   health care.
   - a career development opportunity with access to data derived from
   cutting edge technologies and analysis platforms
   - to become a member of a dynamic and multi-disciplinary research team.
   - to embed in a research context with different top-research teams with
   a broad range of expertise.
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