PhD Fellow in mechanisms of peripheral nerve aging

The position

A exciting PhD position is available for the project titled “The Puzzle of Nerve Aging: Unraveling the Trinity of Fat, Chondral Proteoglycans, and Fibroblast Growth Factors.” In this role you will be part of the Aging Initiative within the Department of Medical Biology and the Cardiovascular Research Group at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Medical Biology.

General information about the position.

The position is available for commencement from June 2026 for a period of four years. The nominal length of the PhD programme is three years. The fourth year is distributed as 25 % each year and will consist of teaching and other duties. The objective of the position is to complete research training to the level of a doctoral degree. Admission to the PhD programme is a prerequisite for employment, and the programme period starts on commencement of the position.

The workplace is at UiT in Tromsø. You must be able to start in the position within a reasonable time after receiving the offer.

The project

The PhD Fellow will participate in the research project titled “The puzzle of nerve aging: unravelling the trinity of fat, chondral proteoglycans, and fibroblast growth factors”. The project will be supervised by Associate Professor Luis Hortells. The aging initiative at Department of Medical Biology aims to study mechanisms of healthy aging related to loss of strength and the Hortells' lab is focused on cell communication in the heart and the peripheral nervous system in the context of disease and aging. Specifically, this project focus on studying molecular mechanisms of Schwann cell and neural fibroblasts degeneration with age. 

Sedentarism, also called “sitting disease”, poses a significant challenge to modern society, particularly among the elderly, increasing frailty and all-cause mortality. As individuals age, one of the main reasons for sedentarism is muscle loss (sarcopenia) and weakness, for which impaired innervation from the peripheral nervous system (PNS) is a major contributing factor. These age-associated alterations create a vicious circle that leads to a dramatic decline in personal independence and quality of life, increased chronic health issues, and a heavier burden on healthcare systems. While muscular aging has been more studied, cellular mechanisms underlying age-related deterioration of the PNS remains poorly understood, with no therapeutic interventions available. 

 

This project aims to address this gap by exploring how neural fat-originated signalling triggers cellular changes in peripheral nerves during aging, leading to neuromuscular loss of function and increased sedentarism. Thus, this work objective is to find strategies to disrupt the vicious circle of nerve function deterioration, sarcopenia, and sedentarism in the elderly, ultimately promoting healthy aging.

You will be collaborating with other researchers of the aging initiative and will be part of the “incubator stage” of this working group In addition, it will be involved in supervision of master- and bachelor students in on-going projects. Relevant techniques include in vitro work with neural cells primary lines (including cell isolation from tissue), senescence studies, transfection, confocal microscopy, antibody-based techniques, small molecules/nanoparticles based therapies, cell live imaging, transcriptomics, and using transgenic mouse models to interrogate molecular mechanism.

Contact

For further information about the position, please contact Associate professor Luis Hortells: 

• phone: +47 77644517
• email: Luis.hortells@uit.no 

Qualifications

We are seeking a creative and enthusiastic candidate who thrives on self-motivation and excels at working in a structured and organized manner. You should possess strong organizational skills and demonstrate precision in laboratory work. A solid academic track record and a genuine passion for conducting research are essential for this role. To qualify as a PhD Fellow, you must meet the eligibility requirements for the faculty’s PhD program (details provided in the section below). 

Required Qualifications:

• Educational Background: A Norwegian master’s degree (or equivalent). Priority will be given to applicants with a master’s degree in biomedical sciences or neurosciences, though candidates with degrees in other life sciences fields (e.g., medicine, biology, biotechnology, pharmacology, veterinary sciences) will also be considered. If you are nearing completion of your master’s degree, you may apply by submitting a draft version of your thesis (see application below for further details)
• Language Proficiency: Documented fluency in English and the ability to work in an international environment. Nordic applicants can demonstrate their English proficiency by attaching their high school diploma
• Research Experience: Documented experience in molecular/cellular neurobiology. Experience with neural cells primary lines (including cell isolation from tissue), senescence, transfection, confocal microscopy, antibody-based techniques, small molecules/nanoparticles-based therapies, and cell live imaging are a must.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Documented FELASA accreditation – approval for work with research animals before commencement to the position
• Experience with transcriptomics is beneficial and having basic knowledge on bioinformatic analysis 
• Experience with transgenic mice colony management, metabolism, and cell organelle function and morphology analysis are recommended. Laboratory work experience after masters degree completion will be also taken into account.

In the assessment, the emphasis is on the applicant's potential to complete a research education based on the master's thesis or equivalent, and any other scientific work. In addition, professional experience and other experience of significance for the completion of the doctoral programme will be taken into consideration.

We will also emphasize motivation and personal suitability for the position. We are looking for candidates who:

• Have good collaboration skills
• Have good communication and interaction with colleagues and students
• Wants to contribute to a good working environment

As many people as possible should have the opportunity to undertake organized research training. If you already hold a PhD or have equivalent competence, we will not appoint you to this position.

Admission to the PhD programme 

For employment in the PhD position, you must be qualified for admission to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Health Sciences and participate in organized doctoral studies within the employment period.

Admission normally requires:  

• A bachelor's degree of 180 ECTS and a master's degree of 120 ECTS, or an integrated master's degree of 300 ECTS. 
• A master's thesis with a scope corresponding to at least 30 ECTS for a master's degree of 120 ECTS. 
• A master's thesis with a scope corresponding to at least 20 ECTS for an integrated master's degree of 300 ECTS. 

 

Applicants must have a grade of C or better on the master's thesis and have a grade point average of C or better for the master's degree. A more detailed description of admission requirements can be found here.

If you are employed in the position, you will be provisionally admitted to the PhD programme. Application for final admission must be submitted no later than two months after taking up the position. 

Applicants with a foreign education will be subjected to an evaluation of whether the educational background is equal to Norwegian higher education, following national guidelines from Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills. Depending on which country the education is from, one or two additional years of university education may be required to fulfil admission requirements, e.g. a 4-year bachelor's degree and a 2-year master's degree. UiT normally accepts higher education from countries that are part of the Lisbon Recognition Convention.

Inclusion and diversity

UiT The Arctic University of Norway is working actively to promote equality, gender balance and diversity among employees and students, and to create an inclusive and safe working environment. We believe that inclusion and diversity are a strength, and we want employees with different competencies, professional experience, life experience and perspectives.

If you have a disability, a gap in your CV or immigrant background, we encourage you to tick the box for this in your application. If there are qualified applicants, we invite at least one in each group for an interview. If you get the job, we will adapt the working conditions if you need it. Apart from selecting the right candidates, we will only use the information for anonymous statistics.

We offer

• Involvement in an interesting research project 
• Good career opportunities 
• A good academic environment with dedicated colleagues  
• Flexible working hours and a state collective pay agreement  
• Pension scheme through the state pension fund 
• PhD Fellows are normally given a salary of 550 800 NOK/year with a 3% yearly increase

Norwegian health policy aims to ensure that everyone, irrespective of their personal finances and where they live, has access to good health and care services of equal standard. As an employee you will become member of the National Insurance Scheme which also include health care services.

More practical information about working and living in Norway can be found here: https://uit.no/staffmobility

Application 

Please note that the application will only be assessed based on the information submitted by the application deadline via Jobbnorge. It is therefore important that you include all necessary documents demonstrating your qualifications for the position.

Your application must include: 

• Cover letter explaining your motivation and research interests  (max 1 page)
• CV containing a complete overview of education, experience, professional work, pedagogical qualifications and references
• Official diplomas for Bachelor's and Master's degree in the original language 
• Official transcripts of grades/academic record for Bachelor's and Master's degree in the original language
• Official translation of diplomas and transcripts of records (ToR) to English or a Scandinavian language, if applicable
• Explanation of the grading system for foreign education (Diploma Supplement if available)
• Documentation of English proficiency
• References with contact information
• Master’s thesis, and any other academic works

Qualification with a master’s degree is required before commencement in the position. If you are near completion of your master’s degree, you may still apply and submit a draft version of the thesis and a statement from your supervisor or institution indicating when the degree will be obtained. You must still submit your transcript of grades for the master’s degree with your application.

All documentation to be considered must be in a Scandinavian language or English. If English proficiency is not documented in the application, it must be documented before starting in the position. 

Assessment 

The applicants will be assessed by an expert committee. The committee's mandate is to undertake an assessment of the applicants' qualifications based on the written material presented by the applicants, and the detailed description draw up for the position. A copy of the assessment report will be sent to all applicants. 

The applicants who are assessed as best qualified will be called to an interview. The interview should among other things, aim to clarify the applicant’s motivation and personal suitability for the position. 

General information 

The appointment is made in accordance with State regulations and guidelines at UiT. At our website, you will find more information for applicants. 

Remuneration for the position of PhD Fellow is in accordance with the State salary scale code 1017. A compulsory contribution of 2 % to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund will be deducted. You will become a member of the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund, which gives you many benefits in addition to a lifelong pension: You may be entitled to financial support if you become ill or disabled, your family may be entitled to financial support when you die, you become insured against occupational injury or occupational disease, and you can get good terms on a mortgage. Read more about your employee benefits at: spk.no.

A shorter period of appointment may be decided when the PhD Fellow has already completed parts of their research training programme or when the appointment is based on a previous qualifying position PhD Fellow, research assistant, or the like in such a way that the total time used for research training amounts to three years.  

We process personal data given in an application or CV in accordance with the Personal Data Act (Offentleglova). According to the Personal Data Act information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure. You will receive advance notification in the event of such publication, if you have requested non-disclosure.