Inphinit Incoming 2025 la Caixa Foundation Fellowship Programme

**JOB DESCRIPTION**:
The ”la Caixa” Foundation, which firmly believes that scientific progress, research, mobility and professional qualification are key to the development of society, is launching a fellowships programme for young researchers of any nationality to carry out a doctorate in the fields of health and life sciences, technology, physics, engineering and mathematics in Spain or Portugal at accredited institutions with the Severo Ochoa or María de Maeztu distinction of excellence, any centre of the Carlos III Health Institute, and units considered to be excellent by the Foundation for Science and Technology in Portugal.

Furthermore, these fellowships are intended to provide researchers with additional training skills that will expand their possibilities for development in their professional careers, not only in the academia, but also in industry and entrepreneurship.

The ”la Caixa” Foundation is offering **30 fellowships**to take up official doctoral studies at accredited host organisations with the Severo Ochoa or María de Maeztu distinction of excellence, any centre of the Carlos III Health Institute, and units considered to be excellent by the Foundation for Science and Technology in Portugal.

Fellows should start at the host institutions between **September and November 2025.** Nevertheless, in duly justified cases, the ”la Caixa” Foundation may allow this to be delayed **until 31 January 2026**

See the PhD open positions at the IGTP below:

- Jordi Barretina
- Cinta Folch
- Carolina Armengol
- Irene Latorre
- Eduard Serra
- Elisabeth Castellanos
- Sergio Alonso
- Bernat Gel
- Teresa Gasull
- Mireia Jordà
- Maria Rosa Sarrias
- Katrin Bayer

**MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES**:
**PROJECT 1: Ovarian Cancer Research: from 'Omics' Data to Pre-clinical Models to Tackle Treatment Resistance Mechanisms**
**PI: Jordi Barretina**
**Group: Oncology Translational Research**

**Research Objectives**:

- ** Omics Integration**: Analyze and integrate high-dimensional transcriptomic, genomic, and proteomic data to uncover key molecular pathways and biomarkers associated with treatment resistance in ovarian cancer.
- ** Mechanisms of Resistance**: Investigate how specific mutations, gene expression profiles, and proteomic alterations contribute to resistance against conventional chemotherapies and targeted therapies.
- ** Preclinical Model Development**: Develop and optimize 3D ovarian cancer cultures and patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) to better mimic the tumor microenvironment and treatment responses in vivo.
- ** Therapeutic Testing**: Utilize the preclinical models to assess the efficacy of novel therapeutic agents or combination therapies designed to overcome treatment resistance.

**Key Responsibilities**:

- Conduct experiments to ultimately produce and analyze multi-omics data (RNA-seq, whole genome sequencing, proteomics) from patient samples and preclinical models.
- Develop and validate advanced in vitro 3D cancer models and patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models to evaluate therapeutic responses.
- Collaborate with experimental and computational biologists to interpret data and generate new hypotheses for clinical translation.
- Present findings at lab meetings, seminars, and scientific conferences, and publish results in high-impact journals.

**PROJECT 2**:
**PI:Cinta Folch**
**Group**:Centre for Epidemiological Studies on HIV/AIDS and STI of Catalonia (CEEISCAT)**

The main project of the network for the coming years will be the LAMIS-2025 (Latin American MSM Internet Survey), an online survey on the psychosocial and sexual health of MSM, with the aim of generating data to improve public health responses for this population. The 2025 survey aims to achieve participation comparable to 2018, with approximately 65,000 responses, covering topics such as PrEP, DoxyPEP, violence, mental health and migration.

**The functions include**:

- Methodological support in the management and coordination of community research projects.
- Data analysis, drafting of reports, scientific articles and community return materials.

We are looking for a profile with training in public health or social sciences, with the ability to work with databases and reports, with an interest in working directly with communities affected by HIV, STIs and viral hepatitis, promoting their leadership and involvement in research. Commitment to human rights, sexual diversity and the creation of evidence to design effective and inclusive responses will be valued.

**PROJECT 3**:
**PI: Carolina Armengol**
**Group: Childhood Liver Oncology (c-LOG)**

The Childhood Liver Oncology Group (CLOG) is a young, dynamic, and motivated team committed to advancing our understanding of childhood liver cancer. Our focus is on hepatoblastoma, a rare pediatric tumor whose incidence is increasing globally, underscoring the need for further research to improve diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes.

Hepatoblastoma presents unique challenges due to its low mut