PhD position in Developmental Neuroscience Karolinska Institutet in Sweden

PhD position in Developmental Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden

This doctoral position is hosted by Eric Herlenius’ research group at the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health and the Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet. Michael Hagemann-Jensen will serve as assistant supervisor. The project sits at the intersection of developmental neuroscience, molecular biology, bioinformatics, and cardiorespiratory physiology, with a special focus on how brainstem neural networks develop and how inflammation and birth-related transitions influence respiratory control.

The research uses complementary patient, animal, and in vitro models, including rodent systems and organoid cultures, to study perinatal development and regulation of vital cardiorespiratory neural circuits. A major part of the work involves advanced transcriptomic and spatial genomics approaches, such as single-cell RNA sequencing, Smart-seq3xpress, spatial transcriptomics platforms (Xenium, MERSCOPE, TRISCO), and 3D RNA imaging. The project also includes computational integration and analysis of multimodal datasets, making it especially suitable for applicants with strong bioinformatics and programming skills.

The successful candidate will formulate hypotheses, plan and perform experiments, analyse complex single-cell and spatial transcriptomics data, and contribute to scientific manuscripts and presentations. The environment is highly collaborative and interdisciplinary, with close interaction with doctoral students, postdocs, and researchers across the Herlenius and Hagemann-Jensen groups. The position is therefore attractive for candidates interested in computational biology, neurodevelopment, gene regulation, and translational biomedical research.

Karolinska Institutet offers a creative, international, and well-resourced research setting. As a doctoral student, you will be enrolled in research education with an individual study plan, access to a broad course offering, and the opportunity to work in one of the world’s leading medical universities. The position is a salaried PhD employment, full-time for up to four years.

Eligibility requires a second-cycle degree or equivalent academic qualifications, plus certified English skills equivalent to English B/English 6. Preferred experience includes transcriptomics or multi-omics analysis, differential expression analysis, cell type annotation, trajectory analysis, gene regulatory inference, Linux/Unix, large-scale sequencing data, organoid work, microscopy, and prior research experience.

Applications are submitted via the Varbi recruitment system. The application should include a cover letter, CV, any thesis work and publications, supporting documents for eligibility, and any other material demonstrating relevant skills and experience. The deadline is 2026-09-09.