PhD position on targeted RNA therapeutics

13.02.2025, Wissenschaftliches Personal

To strengthen our team, we are offering a PhD position on targeted RNA therapeutics. The position is available as soon as possible.

About the Project
Lung diseases, both acute (e.g., idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis) and chronic (e.g., chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), impose a significant global health burden. These conditions are characterized by inflammation, tissue remodeling, and progressive airflow limitations. Macrophages, key players in the innate immune system, drive disease pathology. Current treatments primarily manage symptoms but fail to halt progression, highlighting the urgent need for advanced therapies. Nucleic acid therapeutics offer a promising approach to targeting "undruggable" genes with faster and more cost-effective development than traditional drugs. However, challenges such as degradation, delivery, and immunogenicity remain.
To overcome these hurdles, our research focuses on developing chemically modified nucleic acid-based therapies that specifically target pulmonary macrophages and are delivered via local inhalation. This novel strategy holds high translational potential for both acute and chronic lung diseases. Our group has extensive expertise in cell targeting across various disease models¹⁻³ and RNA research³⁻⁶. To further advance targeted RNA therapies, we seek a motivated PhD student to join our team.

About the institute
The Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology (IPT) is part of the TUM School of Medicine and Health at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), one of the leading universities in the European Union. IPT is a key member of the Cluster for Nucleic Acid Therapeutics Munich (CNATM), one of the seven winners of the Clusters4Future initiative funded by the German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF). This research consortium brings together leading groups from LMU and TUM, researchers from the universities of Regensburg and Würzburg, the Helmholtz Center Munich, and 14 industrial partners from the Munich area.
Additionally, our group is actively involved in the Research Training Group "Targets in Toxicology", a structured Ph.D. program that unites 13 research partners in Munich, including LMU Munich, Helmholtz Zentrum München, TUM, and the Bundeswehr Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology. The program is dedicated to advancing the understanding of toxic lung injury and developing precision toxicology approaches for both acute and chronic lung diseases. Our research specifically focuses on the targeted delivery of RNA oligonucleotides to alveolar macrophages in lung fibrosis, contributing to the development of innovative RNA-based therapies.
Through these collaborations, we strive to translate cutting-edge research into clinical applications, driving forward novel therapeutic strategies for lung diseases.

Our offer
The position is available as soon as possible. We offer thorough training in:
- Performing a wide spectrum of molecular, cell biology-related and computational methodologies and techniques, such as primary cell isolation, functional assays to test drug candidates, RNA-detection methods, flow cytometry, generation and analysis of RNA-Seq data etc.
- Bioinformatic investigation of genetic/transcriptomic signatures and molecular pathways leading to lung injury and repair.
- Performing chemical modifications of nucleic acid-based therapies and subsequent purification and characterization.
- Molecular, cell biological, physiological, histological examinations of pulmonary emphysema or fibrosis, with advanced imaging techniques and analyses.
- Examinations in pre-clinical disease models with state-of-the-art pre-clinical research in lung disease in vivo.
- Writing and presenting your scientific work.
- Within the framework of the graduate school, you will be able to attend to workshops (e.g. analysis of Next Gen sequencing data) and perform experiments in collaborating labs in both academia and industry.

In addition, you will
- Work closely with the project-leading principal investigator.
- Join a highly motivated and international team with a high Postdocs to students’ ratio.
- Operate state-of-the-art technologies and instruments, such as the Chromium (10x Genomics) for single cell sequencing, high content imaging system or a cell sorter.
- Join the TUM Graduate School and benefit from educational programs.
- Receive a 3-year contract with the possibility to prolong, payment according to TV-L (E13 / 65%).

Your qualifications
- You are a highly motivated student that takes great interest in research, is curious and excited to learn and optimize new methods and experimental approaches.
- Practical experience in molecular biology, cell culture and, ideally, RNA methodologies.
- You have a high degree of responsibility, are independent and enjoy working in a team.
- Excellent command of English (written and oral).
- M.Sc. or Diploma in Biochemistry, Biology, Molecular Biotechnology or any related discipline.

Your application
TUM has been pursuing the strategic goal of substantially increasing the diversity of its staff. As an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer, TUM explicitly encourages nominations of and applications from women as well as from all others who would bring additional diversity dimensions to the university’s research and teaching strategies. Preference will be given to disabled candidates with essentially the same qualifications.
Notes on data protection:
As part of your application for a position at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), you submit personal data. Please note our privacy policy in accordance with Art. 13 General Data Protection Regulation (DSGVO) http://go.tum.de/554159 for the collection and processing of personal data in the context of your application. By submitting your application, you confirm that you have read the data protection notices of TUM.

Please send your complete application documents (cover letter, C.V., recommendations/references, certificates) as a single pdf file via email to the following address:

Technische Universität München
Institut für Pharmakologie und Toxikologie
Dr. Aman Ishaqat
Prof. Dr. Dr. Stefan Engelhardt
Biedersteiner Straße 29, 80802 München
Tel. +49 89 4140 3260
office.pharma.med@tum.de


1. Ziegler, K. A. et al. Local sympathetic denervation attenuates myocardial inflammation and improves cardiac function after myocardial infarction in mice. Cardiovasc. Res. 114, 291–299 (2018).
2. Ziegler, K. A. et al. Immune-mediated denervation of the pineal gland underlies sleep disturbance in cardiac disease. Science 381, 285–290 (2023).
3. Beck, C., et al. Trimannose-coupled antimiR-21 for macrophage-targeted inhalation treatment of acute inflammatory lung damage. Nat. Commun. 14, 4564 (2023).
4. Thum, T. et al. MicroRNA-21 contributes to myocardial disease by stimulating MAP kinase signalling in fibro-blasts. Nature 456, 980–984 (2008).
5. Ganesan, J. et al. MiR-378 Controls Cardiac Hypertrophy by Combined Repression of Mitogen-Activated Pro-tein Kinase Pathway Factors. Circulation 127, 2097–2106 (2013).
6. Ramanujam, D., Sassi, Y., Laggerbauer, B. & Engelhardt, S. Viral vector-based targeting of miR-21 in cardiac non-myocyte cells reduces pathologic remodeling of the heart. Mol. Ther. 1–10 (2016) doi:10.1038/mt.2016.166.

Kontakt: office.pharma.med@tum.de