PhD student in Medical Science

We are looking for a PhD student in Medical Science.

Your work assignments

Substance use disorders (SUDs) are psychiatric disorders characterized by loss of control over drug intake, use of drug despite adverse consequences and the emergence of negative affective states during protracted abstinence. It is thought that drugs of abuse induce the shift from their recreational use to addictive use by “hijacking” homeostatic pathways in the brain reward system, leading to a motivational reprioritization for the drugs over natural rewards, including food and social interactions.

Indeed, the negative affective states associated with drug abstinence are accompanied by social withdrawal and isolation which prevent effective treatment and rehabilitation, in turn increasing the risk of relapse. The endogenous opioid system, that integrates with the mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway to confer the rewarding properties of both social rewards and drugs, is a potential molecular target by which substances of abuse might induce these effects.

Also, a single-nucleotide polymorphism in the gene OPRM1 expressing for mu-opioid receptors has been associated with changes in the responses to substances of abuse, both in humans and in animal models. Environmental factors have been reported to predict the risks of developing SUDs too. For instance, epidemiological data have shown that impoverished social environments and socioeconomic status can shape the vulnerability to develop addiction later in life. Social stressors and social subordination increase the sensitivity to the rewarding effects of drugs in animal models, also through neuroadaptations in the opioid and dopamine systems.

However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of the social environment on alcohol use, or about how alcohol dependence impairs social behavior. The doctoral candidate will investigate the effects of psychosocial factors in alcohol-related behavior and the role of the endogenous opioid system in the reinforcing properties of alcohol and alcohol withdrawal-induced negative affective states and social deficits in a rat model.

As a PhD student, you devote most of your time to doctoral studies and the research projects of which you are part. Your work may also include teaching or other departmental duties, up to a maximum of 20% of full-time.

Your qualifications

You have graduated at Master’s level in Biomedicine, Ethology, Biology or a related field, or completed courses with a minimum of 240 credits, at least 60 of which must be in advanced courses in Biomedicine, Ethology or Biology. Alternatively, you have gained essentially corresponding knowledge in another way.

Qualified candidates are expected to:

• Independently undertake the research activities
• Work collaboratively and openly as part of a team
• Act as a source of information and advice to other members of the group on scientific protocols and experimental techniques
• Take initiatives on research-related tasks
• Acquire new knowledge
• Be fluent in both written and spoken English

• Have completed Animal Science Course (LiU course 8MEA05-Laboratory Animal Sciences, 7,5 credits or equivalent course at another university).
• Have experience working with rodent models for affective disorders/addiction, particularly relevant is experience regarding stress models and operant self-administration.
• Have special knowledge in behavior analysis (using software programs such as EthoVision), and experience in tissue sampling and laboratory methods such as immunohistochemistry, genotyping, and ELISA.
• Have expertise in, and experience with configuring, programming and supporting Med Associates behavioral equipment.
• Have some experience with optical methods for recording neuronal activity

Your workplace

The group led by Professor Markus Heilig focuses on neurobiological mechanisms underlying affective disorders and alcohol- and drug addiction. The PhD student will be part of a stimulating research environment within Center for Social and Affective Neuroscience.

The Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences is one of the university’s largest departments, with operations mainly in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Our aim is to engage in medical and biomedical education and research of high international standing. At undergraduate level the department is responsible for most of the medical program, the speech and language pathology program and the biomedical program. For more information about the Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, please follow: https://liu.se/en/organisation/liu/bkv

The employment

In connection with your admission to the doctoral program, your employment as a PhD student is handled. More information about the doctoral studies at each faculty is available at Doctoral studies at Linköping University

The employment has a duration of four years’ full-time equivalent. You will initially be employed for a period of one year. The employment will subsequently be renewed for periods of maximum duration two years, depending on your progress through the study plan. The employment may be extended up to a maximum of five years, based on the amount of teaching and departmental duties you have carried out. Further extensions can be granted in special circumstances.

Starting date by agreement.

Salary and employment benefits

The salary of PhD students is determined according to a locally negotiated salary progression.

More information about employment benefits at Linköping University is available here.

Union representatives

Information about union representatives, see Help for applicants.

Application procedure

Apply for the position by clicking the “Apply” button below. Your application must reach Linköping University no later than 250410. 

Applications and documents received after the date above will not be considered.