FPU for PhD Immunology

Organisation/Company CaixaResearch Institute Research Field Biological sciences » Biology Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Application Deadline 20 Nov 2026
- 23:59 (Europe/Madrid) Country Spain Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 40 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No Offer Description The CaixaResearch Institute is a newly established immunology research centre with the mission of becoming a global leader in immunological research. It focuses on studying immune system processes and their interaction with the most prevalent diseases, including neurological, oncological, and infectious conditions, as well as on analysing the influence of environmental factors. The institute is devoted to understanding the role of the immune system in health and disease, analysing the environmental factors that influence these processes, and developing advanced technologies to observe and decode them in greater detail. The institute is part of the rich ecosystem of biomedical research centres supported by the \"la Caixa\" Foundation, which includes ISGlobal, the Barcelona Beta Brain Research Centre (BBRC), VHIO, IRSICaixa, and the Sant Joan de Déu Foundation—all based in Barcelona as well as The Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine (GIMM) in Lisbon. FPU aims to support early-stage researchers in developing their scientific careers and completing a PhD. FPU fellows will carry out an original doctoral research project for 4 years, gaining advanced knowledge, skills and experience to contribute to scientific progress. Candidates are encouraged to review the list of CaixaResearch Institute labs currently accepting FPU fellows (see below) to identify research areas that align with their interests and find an appropriate CaixaResearch Institute supervisor. The CaixaResearch Institute labs currently accepting FPU Fellowship candidates are the following: We are looking for a PhD candidate interested in understanding how somatic mutations arising in hematopoietic stem cells shape immune cell development and function during ageing. The PhD candidate will investigate the cellular and molecular mechanisms linking clonal haematopoiesis with altered innate immune responses, combining human experimental models with genome editing, advanced flow cytometry and single-cell and epigenomic approaches. The project will explore how clonal evolution and inflammatory environments interact to influence immune function and resilience.
* Keywords: Clonal haematopoiesis, somatic mutations, hematopoietic stem cells, innate immunity, inflammation, immune ageing, clonal evolution, single-cell transcriptomics, epigenetics
* Preferred expertise: Immunology, haematology, stem cell biology. Experience with cell culture, flow cytometry, genome editing and/or bioinformatics is desirable. Candidates interested in combining experimental and computational approaches are particularly encouraged to apply. We are looking for a motivated PhD candidate to join our lab under the FPU program, working on the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying immune aging (immunosenescence). The project combines animal models with longitudinal human samplesto study how aging reshapes innate and adaptive immune cell populations and function, using state-of-the-art approaches including spectral flow cytometry, scRNA seq and functional assays. A key goal is to understand how age-related immune remodelling contributes to chronic low-grade inflammation (\"inflammaging\"), and susceptibility to disease.
* Preferred expertise: Background in immunology, aging biology, or cellular biology, experience with spectral flow cytometryorcell cultureis a strong plus, Comfortable working with animal models, enthusiastic, with strong teamwork skills We are seeking a PhD candidate to investigate maternal immunity during pregnancy and lactation, and its impact on tumour progression. The project combines state-of-the-art single-cell transcriptomics, spectral flow cytometry, and functional assays to decipher immune remodelling and neuroimmunological crosstalk.
* Preferred expertise: background in immunology or neuroimmunology. Experience with in vivo mouse models,single-cell techniquesand spectral flow cytometry is desired. Gemma Moncunill Lab We are seeking a PhD candidate interested in the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the durability of antibody responses tomalaria vaccines in African children. The PhD candidate will investigate the innate–Tfh–B-cell axis using longitudinal paediatric samples and state-of-the-art single-cell transcriptomic, TCR-sequencing, flow cytometry and functional approaches. The project will also determine how malaria exposure disrupts these immune pathways and contributes to vaccine-induced antibody waning.
* Preferred expertise: background in immunology, infectio