PhD and Postdoctoral Positions in Intestinal Mucosal Immunology, Mucus and Goblet Cell Biology Karolinska Institutet in Sweden

Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden is recruiting for two research positions in the Elisabeth Nyström lab: a PhD student and a Postdoctoral researcher in intestinal mucosal immunology, mucus biology, and goblet cell biology.

The research focuses on how intestinal mucosal barriers are maintained and what happens when they fail, with an emphasis on mucus-producing goblet cells, epithelial barrier function, and host–microbe interactions in health and disease. The PhD project will investigate goblet cell and mucus dynamics during infection using in vivo models and live tissue analysis. The postdoctoral project will validate and apply a genetic targeting strategy to functionally characterize specific goblet cell subtypes in vivo.

The lab uses interdisciplinary approaches including molecular biology, genetics, omics, single-cell RNA sequencing, proteomics, mass spectrometry, advanced imaging, and ex vivo live intestinal tissue analysis. The group works in a collaborative environment at Karolinska Institutet and Center for Molecular Medicine, with close interaction with the groups of Eduardo Villablanca, Camilla Engblom, and Gustavo Monasterio Ocares.

Funding: both positions are fully funded. The PhD is a doctoral studentship with salary for up to 4 years full-time. The postdoc is a full-time temporary position.

Eligibility highlights: the PhD requires a relevant master’s degree or equivalent eligibility for doctoral education, English proficiency, documented experimental lab experience, mouse handling certification, and preferably experience with intestinal infection models, scRNA-seq, bioinformatics, proteomics, or imaging. The postdoc requires a PhD or equivalent, strong experience with complex mouse strains and genetically modified models, familiarity with intestinal physiology, and preferably experience with imaging, FACS, omics, and bioinformatics.

Application: apply through the Varbi recruitment system using the position-specific links. The PhD deadline is 2026-05-22 and the postdoctoral deadline is 2026-05-29.