Doktorander/Utbildningsplatser

Doktorander/Utbildningsplatser
med placering vid Sahlgrenska akademin

Sista ansökningsdag: 2010-04-20

Sahlgrenska akademin utlyser doktorandplatser med placering vid institutionen för biomedicin, institutionen för kliniska vetenskaper, institutionen för medicin och institutionen för neurovetenskap och fysiologi.

Doktorandplatserna avser två års utbildningsbidrag och två års doktorandanställning, alternativt fyra års doktorandanställning, och beräknas leda fram till doktorsexamen.

För mer information och ansökningsblankett se:
http://www.sahlgrenska.gu.se/doktorandportalen/Doktor_Fran_start_till_mal/doktorandplatser

Recombinant mucins with tailored glycosylation as bacterial toxin inhibitors Application deadline: 2010-04-20

Description of the research project
Toxin A of Clostridium difficile, and Shiga and Shiga-like toxins of Shigella dysenteriae and enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), respectively, cause life-threatening diseases in infected patients.Today, the treatment for toxin-mediated effects is merely symptomatic.The initial step in toxin pathogenesis depends on their attachment to cell surface carbohydrates.Here, we propose to engineer cell lines producing recombinant mucin-type fusion proteins carrying the functional carbohydrate receptors of Cl.difficile toxin A and Shiga/Shiga-like toxins.Such mucin-type fusion proteins with its high-density expression of O-linked glycans capped with carbohydrate determinants with known bacterial toxin-binding activity are expected to inhibit bacterial toxin activity systemically or locally, for example in the gastrointestinal tract.Using a mucin-type fusion protein as scaffold is expected to increase binding affinity several thousand folds via the multivalent presentation of the bioactive carbohydrate.The key to success of this project will be to define and recreate - in a suitable host cell - the enzymatic pathways involved in the biosynthesis of the carbohydrate toxin receptors.
Desired background
Appropriate background could be a degree in biochemistry, molecular biology or biotechnology with previous experience in the glycobiology field, e.g.in the field of glycan biosynthesis or protein-carbohydrate interactions.Knowledge of different protein expression systems including the use of viral vectors, such as lentiviral vectors, is desirable.