"PhD Candidate From soils to guts: plant quality and microbiome as mediator of human health"

Job Summary

As a PhD candidate at LUMC, you will research how chemical and microbial properties of plants influence human gut health. This is part of the NWO KIC project "Steering soil microbiomes for better crop quality: The holy grail to improve human health," linking agricultural practices, soil and plant microbiomes, and human health. You will focus on human intervention studies with healthy volunteers and patients with chronic bowel diseases, examining how cultivation methods affect the human gut microbiome and gut health biomarkers.

Responsibilities

• Conduct human intervention studies with healthy volunteers and patients with chronic bowel diseases.
• Use advanced microbial analyses and clinical assessments to answer research questions.
• Analyze the effects of different cultivation methods on the human gut microbiome and gut health markers.
• Collaborate intensively with Maastricht University (NUTRIM) and other consortium partners.

Qualifications and Requirements

• A master's degree in biomedical sciences, (medical) biology, health sciences, nutrition, physiology, or a similar field.
• Experience with human studies and/or clinical research and statistical analysis techniques (preferred).
• Affinity with data analysis and bioinformatics, preferably with R (training offered if needed).
• Excellent administrative skills.
• Excellent proficiency in both Dutch and English, spoken and written.
• A curious, accurate, and persistent research attitude, enthusiasm for unraveling complex connections between nutrition, microbiome, and health, and ability to collaborate effectively in a multidisciplinary consortium.

What the Employer Offers

A temporary contract for the duration of the project with a salary between €3,108 and €3,939 gross per month based on a full-time position (scale Pro, CAO UMC). Benefits include an end-of-year bonus (8.3%), holiday pay, bicycle scheme, sports budget, home working allowance, excellent travel expense scheme, and enrollment in the ABP pension fund where 70% of the premium is paid by LUMC. The work environment emphasizes talent development, connecting leadership, and a safe, inclusive setting with opportunities for internal training and education.