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Centre for Genomic Regulation
| Eligibility criteria | How to apply | Selection process | CRG PhD call timeline | Fellowships Available | Workshops | Contact
Apply now to boost your scientific career at the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona. The CRG is a center of excellence with international teams representing a broad range of disciplines, with first-class core technologies to support the research projects, a wide range of seminars given by high-profile invited speakers, and courses on complementary and transferable skills integrated with the training programme.
Scroll down to learn more about 20 PhD fellowships available at the CRG
Deadline 12th January 2025
On the application form, you will be able to choose up to two research labs for which you wish to apply
Are you ready to prepare an outstanding application?
Join our online workshop to learn how to find the right lab for your PhD, prepare an outstanding application, and get expert tips to boost your chances of success!
RNA-Binding Protein | Metastasis | Persistence | Stress| Translation | Mechanisms
The ‘Protein synthesis’ group headed by Fátima Gebauer studies how RNA-binding proteins contribute to translational reprogramming and stress resistance of cancer cells.
We are looking for highly motivated researchers with background in RNA regulation. Strong interest in cancer biology, high-throughput technologies and bioinformatics is encouraged.
Collagens | TANGO1 | Skin | Scleroderma | Aging
The Intracellular Compartmentation Group, led by Vivek Malhotra, is focused on creating a synthetic dermal skin layer made from dermal fibroblasts, immune cells, and vascular cells. This engineered tissue will secrete extracellular matrix components, aiding in the investigation of skin aging and sclerosis mechanisms.
Inquisitive researchers who are determined and passionate about science
Protein Design |Enzyme Engineering | Language Models |Multimodal Agents | New-to-Nature Design | Explainability
Our lab aims to revolutionize controllable protein design by leveraging large language models, experimentally validating predictions, and refining models through feedback to enhance decision-making.
PhD1: A computer scientist, mathematician, physician or computational biologist who will focus on the implementation of interpretability techniques (eg: influential functions, feature attribution methods) for protein language models.
PhD2: A chemist, biotechnologist, or biologist with wet-lab experience in structural biology, specifically protein expression, purification, thermodynamic and functional analaysis. The candidate will focus on the design and characterization of new-to-nature binders.
Physical Properties of the Cytosol | Active Networks | Self-organization | Crowding | Phase separation | Motor Protein | Microtubule
The Surrey lab studies the design principles of biological self-organization, focusing on the cytoskeleton. Their interdisciplinary research merges synthetic biology, biophysics, biochemistry, cell biology and mathematical modelling.
Master training in biophysics, biochemistry or bioengineering; a keen interest in complex dynamical systems; talent for protein biochemistry, biochemical in vitro reconstitutions, fluorescence/electron microscopy, and/or computational modelling.
Host-microbiome | Interactions | Metagenome-Assembled Genomes | Metabolome | Host Genetic Effects | Rodent Models
The "Social and host-microbiome systems" group headed by Dr Amelie Baud aims to understand how the health of an individual can be affected not only by the individual's own genes but also by genes of social partners and the genes of the bacteria present in the individual’s microbiome.
We are looking for a candidate keen to understand the biological mechanisms involved in host-microbiome interactions, with a mixed background in biology (ideally genetics or microbiology) and bioinformatics. Experience with R and/or Python as well as next generation sequencing data is necessary.
Gene Regulation | Protein Synthesis | RNA Biology | Decay | Microtubules | In Vitro Reconstitution | Cell Division
The “Dynamics of protein synthesis & RNA decay” group headed by Markus Höpfler investigates fundamental mechanisms of cellular protein and RNA homeostasis, focusing on disease-relevant RNA decay pathways.
PhD1: Join us if you’re excited about revealing molecular mechanisms controlling RNA stability using biochemical reconstitution approaches. A strong background in structural/molecular biology, biochemistry or similar will be beneficial.
PhD2: Join us if you’re excited about investigating the crosstalk between cytoskeleton dynamics and mRNA regulation. A strong background in cell/molecular biology, gene regulation or genetics will be beneficial.
RNA Biology | Ribosome Specialization | Cancer | Nanopore Sequencing | Disease Biomarkers | RNA Modifications | Antibiotic Resistance
In our laboratory, we want to understand how gene expression is regulated with surgical precision, in a tissue-dependent, spatial and temporal dimension. Some of the key research lines of the lab include: i) dissect the role that RNA modifications play in sperm formation, maturation and intergenerational inheritance; ii) decipher how and why RNA modification dysregulation leads to human disease and antibiotic resistance ; and iii) bring direct RNA nanopore sequencing technologies towards the clinic, for early cancer diagnosis and stratification of patient samples.
Enthusiastic candidate with hybrid wet and dry lab background that is interested in doing both molecular biology work and the corresponding data analysis, to try to understand why and how specialized ribosomses exist, what are their functions, and how we can exploit this knowledge to better understand antibiotic resistance mechanisms and design early cancer screening methodologies that rely on detection of oncogenic ribosomes.
Single-Cell Sequencing & Multiomics | Cell Fate & State Engineering |Gene Regulation | Stem Cell-Derived Models | Biological Data Science | Perturbation Screening
The "Cell Fate Decoding and Engineering" group led by Dr. Hsiu-Chuan Lin utilizes stem cell-derived models, perturbation screening, and single-cell multiomics to decode gene regulations underlying cell fate and state specification and use this knowledge to precisely engineer the identity of biomedically valuable human cells.
We are seeking highly motivated researchers with a strong interest in gene regulation, cell fate transitions (e.g., in development, reprogramming, and diseases), cell engineering, and single-cell technology development. Candidates should have a background in life science, systems biology, bioengineering, or computational biology.
PhD1: Experience in stem cell models, genetic manipulation, and next-generation sequencing is required.
PhD2: Experience in biological data science and single-cell sequencing analysis is required. Experience in both wet and dry labs is a plus.
Comparative Transcriptomics | Genome Evolution | Population Genomics | Cis-Regulatory Evolution | Phylogenetics
We study the origin and evolution of cell type programs and associated genome regulation mechanisms: transcription factors, 3D chromatin architecture, histone modifications, and more. To this end, we combine single-cell genomics, chromatin profiling, and phylogenetic comparative methods in diverse animals and unicellular eukaryotes.
We are looking for candidates broadly interested in evolutionary biology, gene regulation, and comparative genomics; and with a background in genetics, functional genomics and/or computational biology.
LLymphoma | Genome Regulation and Organization | Translocations | Single-cell Multiomics | DNA Methylation
Our lab focuses on the understanding of normal B-cell differentiation and lymphoma formation from the perspective of 3D chromatin organization, DNA methylation and single-cell heterogeneity in healthy and pre-malignant lymphocyte cell populations.
We are looking for two enthusiastic candidates, with respective hands on experience in wetlab or bioinformatics for at least 1 year, to pursue a wetlab-oriented project regarding gene regulation in lymphoma formation, and a single-cell multiomics bioinformatic project to identify new B-cell subtypes and their connection to lymphoma formation.
Single cell genomics | Deep learning / Bioinformatics | Stem Cells | Gene Regulation | Ageing
The Velten lab uses single-cell and synthetic genomics, high-throughput genetic screens and artificial intelligence to study the genomic regulation of differentiation programs in hematopoietic and leukemic stem cells. Currently, important topics in the lab are clonal dynamics in blood during ageing, as well as the genomic encoding of differentiation programs.
We are looking for a motivated PhD student with a strong interest in gene regulation and stem cell biology. Both bioinformatic and wetlab profiles are welcome to apply, but ideally, you should have experience in both disciplines.
Stem Cells | Chromatin | Super Resolution Imaging | Genome Organisation
We are investigating the functional role of 3D genome organization using super resolution microscopy, genomic and modeling approaches. Our research is focused on elucidating how nuclear architecture and chromatin looping regulate cellular function in stem cells, somatic cells and cancer.
We are looking for highly motivated individuals with a degree in biology, biotechnology, biophysics or related disciplines with expertise in imaging, cellular, and molecular biology.
Aging | Epigenetics | Cellular dynamics | Clonal Haematopoiesis | Mathematical Modelling
Our interdisciplinary group uses experimental and mathematical modeling to explore aging patterns and their link to age-related diseases. Guided by both fundamental and clinical questions, we aim to understand: What cellular processes drive aging? Can we develop interpretable measures of aging to better understand its role in disease? And how can this knowledge aid in early disease detection and extending healthspan?
We are seeking for a candidate with existing expertise in mathematical and computational techniques, or a strong willingness to learn these skills, to work on developing quantitative models of stem cell dynamics related to the aging process.
Cytoskeleton | Microtubules | Cell Division | Cancer | Aneuploidy
The Vernos Group aims at understanding how the bipolar spindle segregates faithfully the chromosomes during mitosis and meiosis and the mechanisms that may be at stake in pathologies such as infertility and cancer.
We are looking for a highly motivated researcher with a background in cell and cancer biology and solid skills in quantitative cell biology and advanced optical microscopy methods.
Oocyte | Protein Homeotasis |Fertility
The main focus of our lab is to reveal the mechanisms oocytes, female germ cells that become eggs, employ to establish homeostasis during their long lifespan, and why these mechanisms eventually fail with advanced age. If you are interested in understanding how life begins, apply!
The candidate is enthusiastic about understanding the mysteries of life! Experience in cell and developmental biology is a big plus.
Aging |Biomarker | Quantitative Imaging | Statistical modelling | Machine Learning | Molecular Genetics
Our group studies the molecular origins of aging, working to understand how functional declines at the molecular level can lead to emergent aging phenotypes at the organismal-level. We ask questions like: why do some individuals live longer than other? Why do point mutations in the insulin receptor double lifespan? We are an interdisciplinary group, combining experimental methods taken from functional genetics, systems biology, and CRISPR genome editing with a variety of statistical and phenomenological modelling techniques.
We are looking for candidates interested in experimental research on aging, with a focus on biomarkers, quantitative measurement, and interdisciplinary projects working closely with bioinformaticians and engineers. We are particularly interested in students with training in experimental life sciences or engineering.
Computational Biology | Evolution | Genomics |Mutation Rates | Darwinian Selection
The Weghorn group works on computational and probabilistic approaches to modeling mutation rates and selection pressures acting on evolving genomes. We are particularly interested in cancer and human evolution.
We are looking for a candidate with a quantitative background interested in computationally studying large sequencing datasets using evolutionary models and statistical analysis.
Candidates should fulfill the following eligibility criteria at the time of the call deadline. If it becomes clear before, during, or after the evaluation phase that one or more of the eligibility criteria have not been fulfilled, the proposal will be declared ineligible and withdrawn from further examination.
Once the application is submitted, an acknowledgment of receipt will be automatically sent by e-mail to the applicant.
For any additional information, please check the FAQs.
The selection of the fellows will be based on the candidates' academic qualifications and research excellence.
We are organizing two online events to discuss what to take into consideration when looking for a PhD position and how to prepare an outstanding application. These workshops will be delivered by the Training & Academic Office (TAO).
To participate in the event registration is needed.
ONLINE WORKSHOP - Envision Your Research Future – How to choose a lab for your PhD & CRG opportunities
For any additional information, please contact the CRG Training & Academic Office at: training@crg.eu
