MSCA-DN PhD Position: Functional micronutrient status in critically ill patients

ph3OFFER DESCRIPTION /h3 pHave you obtained a medical degree and are you interested in critical care and clinical nutrition? Are you motivated to advance diagnostic approaches for accurately estimating individual metabolic demands in critically ill patients using innovative analytical methods? We invite you to apply for an MSCA Doctoral Network PhD position within the research teams of Intensive Care and laboratory medicine at Amsterdam UMC and the Reinier Haga Medical Diagnostic Center. /p h3Research Fellowship 5 (RF5): Functional micronutrient status in critically ill patients /h3 pDuration: 48 months /p pSupervisors: /p ul liDr Angelique de Man (Amsterdam UMC) /li liDr Lennard Dekker (Reinier Haga Medical Diagnostic Center) /li liDr Maurits de Rotte (Amsterdam UMC) /li liDr Linda IJsselstijn /li /ul pDoctoral enrolment: Amsterdam UMC Doctoral School /p h3Project description /h3 pMicronutrient deficiencies are common in critically ill patients and may significantly delay recovery. However, current diagnostic methods are often insufficient, and clinical care typically relies on fixed-dose supplementation rather than personalised treatment strategies. Within the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions–funded BIO-MICRO project, this PhD position aims to enhance the diagnostic armamentarium for assessing functional micronutrient status through innovative analytical approaches. Improved diagnostics may enable the identification of patient subphenotypes that are most likely to benefit from targeted micronutrient therapy. A multicentre, prospective, observational clinical study will be conducted, including four cohorts of each 55 participants with increasing severity of expected micronutrient deficiencies: healthy volunteers, patients undergoing elective cardiac surgery, critically ill patients, and burn patients. Serial measurements of micronutrient concentrations will be performed in serum, leukocytes, and erythrocytes, alongside biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress. Using combined laboratory and clinical data, empirically derived algorithms for subphenotype identification will be developed through latent profile analysis. /p pThe BIO-MICRO project: BIO-MICRO
- Advancing micronutrient diagnostics for personalised ICU care /p h3Your main tasks and responsibilities in this project are /h3 pAs a PhD candidate, you will coordinate this multicentre observational clinical study. In Amsterdam UMC you will include patients, obtain deferred consent from their families, ensure the collection of serial blood samples, perform laboratory analyses to assess functional micronutrient status and maintain accurate and complete data entry in the electronic case report form. Furthermore, you will oversee all study-related activities across all the participating centres. During the secondments, you will contribute to the translation of research outcomes towards clinical application by working on the commercialisation of micronutrient assays in erythrocytes and leukocytes. /p h3WHAT DO WE EXPECT /h3 pWe are looking for a highly motivated and proactive researcher who is able to work both independently and collaboratively within an interdisciplinary team. You demonstrate precision, resilience, and strong communication skills. The position includes intersectoral secondments in Appingedam and Delft of 6 months each. The project should result in the successful completion of a PhD thesis. /p pTo be eligible for this position, applicants must meet the bMarie Skłodowska-Curie admission

requirements:
/b /p ul liYou must not already hold a doctoral degree. /li liYou must comply with the MSCA mobility rule: you must not have resided in or carried out your main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the Netherlands for more than 12 months during the three years immediately prior to recruitment. /li /ul h3Required qualifications and experience /h3 ul liA Master’s degree in Biochemistry, Nutrition, Molecular Biology, or equivalent /li liExcellent command of English, both written and spoken; proficiency in Dutch is an advantage /li liAdequate knowledge of statistics, including experience with data analysis /li /ul h3Desirable skills (not essential) /h3 ul liExperience with medical or scientific writing /li liLaboratory experience /li /ul h3YOUR WORKING ENVIRONMENT /h3 pYou will work in a highly stimulating and interdisciplinary research environment spanning Amsterdam UMC, Reinier Haga Medical Diagnostic Center, and Diagnotix. At the Intensive Care department of Amsterdam UMC, you will join a large and dynamic research group consisting of approximately 40 PhD candidates and 5 postdoctoral researchers, supervised by 7 principal investigators across two locations (AMC and VUmc). Your time will be divided between the Intensive Care department (approximately 70%) and the clinical chemistry laboratory (approximately 30%). /p h3WHAT

WE OFFER
/h3 pThis PhD position is funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) of the European Union's Europe 2024