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„Research for a life without cancer“ is our mission at the German Cancer Research Center. We investigate how cancer develops, identify cancer risk factors and look for new cancer prevention strategies. We develop new methods with which tumors can be diagnosed more precisely and cancer patients can be treated more successfully. Every contribution counts – whether in research, administration or infrastructure. This is what makes our daily work so meaningful and exciting.

Together with university partners at seven renowned partner sites, we have established the German Cancer Consortium (DKTK).

The DKTK partner site Munich is offering for as soon as possible a

PhD Student Position in the DKTK Joint Funding Project "BACTORG: Organoid co-cultures of the Cancer Microbiome"

Reference number: 2025-0103

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• Full-time
• Institute of Translational Cancer Research and Experimental Cancer Therapy, TUM

The Department of Translational Cancer Research and the Institute of Experimental Cancer Therapy at the DKTK partner site Munich is seeking one PhD student to join the DKTK-funded Joint Funding Project „BACTORG: Elucidating Bacterial Impacts on Colorectal Cancer Phenotypes and Therapies using patient-derived Organoids" as soon as possible.

We are deploying advanced organoid co-culture systems and in vivo models in combination with cell state and mutation reporters and single cell technologies with spatial readouts to study the impact of intestinal microbes and their metabolites on colon cancer initiation, progression and therapy response. Our lab has generated a comprehensive resource of cancer specimens and primary organoid cell cultures, which have been characterized at the genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic level to elucidate the molecular makeup and phenotypes of these tumors. The advertised project focuses on a comprehensive analysis of the mechanisms by which bacterial species and their metabolites impact on mutation accumulation, signaling, and therapy response of colon cancer subtypes. For this, we will make use of sophisticated co-culture models including bacteria and bacterial culture supernatants, coupled to a variety of functional and phenotypic assays. Findings from these studies will be validated in vivo and incorporated into an integrated analysis framework relating the experimental data back to clinical datasets.

We are an enthusiastic and international team and offer intensive training and mentoring.

Your Tasks

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to:

• Gain important insights into clinically relevant aspects of cancer development and therapy
• Perform state-of-the-art in vitro organoid and in vivo experiments with single cell readouts
• Learn and apply a wide spectrum of genetic, molecular and cell biology, biochemical as well as micobial and bioinformatics techniques to study translational aspects of colon cancer (e.g. Cre/loxP and Flp/FRT based dual- and triple recombinase systems, orthotopic organoid transplantations, CRISPR/Cas9, quantitative proteomics/phosphoproteomics, multiple transcriptomics and genomics approaches, single cell sequencing and imaging, histocytometry)
• Use advanced bioinformatics platforms for the analysis of single cell RNA-sequencing datasets and integrate these datasets with existing molecular (WES, WGBS, lcWGS), phenotypic (e.g. histology), drug screening and clinical information
• Interact within a diverse and multidisciplinary environment of biologists, clinicians, computational scientists and mathematicians within the TranslaTUM.

Your Profile

We are looking for exceptional self-motivated bright individuals with a Diploma or Master’s degree in bioinformatics, biochemistry, biology, molecular/translational medicine or related subjects. Previous exposure to and experience with basic biochemical and molecular biology techniques, proteomics or bioinformatics as well interests in molecular aspects of cancer research is essential. Due to the interdisciplinary framework and close collaboration between wet-lab and computational scientists, good communicative skills in English are essential. German language skills are not required.

Interested candidates should send one pdf file with a CV, cover letter, certificates, and letters of recommendation. Contact:
Prof. Dr. Dieter Saur
Phone: +49 89 4140 9130

The position is limited to 3 years with the possibility of prolongation.

Are you interested?

Then become part of the DKFZ and join us in contributing to a life without cancer!


We are convinced that an innovative research and working environment thrives on the diversity of its employees. Therefore, we welcome applications from talented people, regardless of gender, cultural background, nationality, ethnicity, sexual identity, physical ability, religion and age. People with severe disabilities are given preference if they have the same aptitude.

Notice: We are subject to the regulations of the Infection Protection Act (IfSG). Therefore, all our employees must provide proof of immunity against measles.