PhD Position in Amino Acid Transporters at SDU in Odense

One PhD position in pharmacy is available in the group of Professor Carsten Uhd Nielsen at the Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Southern Denmark. Starting date of the position will be 1 April 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Project background
Amino acid transporters have been implicated as possible drug targets in a number of diseases such as notably cancer. The inherent substrate overlap between amino acid transporters makes it difficult to find selective inhibitors that can be used to investigate the role of amino acid transporters and to develop inhibitors as drugs. To solve this problem, this project will investigate if allosteric inhibitors can be designed towards a number of transporters sharing the same protein structure folds (the LeuT-fold). The chosen transporters are LAT1, SNAT2 and PAT1 as these have all been implicated in cancer. The project will do this via computational modeling and design using AlphaFold3.0 and available protein structures and ligand information, through make-on-demand compound libraries, and in vitro based cell systems. The aim is to find specific and selective inhibitors that will change how cancer cells grow and that can eventually be developed into a novel type of drugs.

Research group
The Drug Transporters in ADME group works with drug transporters from the SLC and ABC superfamilies mainly in cell cultures and preclinical animals to understand their role in drug targeting and in overall ADME. The group is international, cross-disciplinary and gender-balanced. The successful candidate will receive excellent training, mentoring and career development support.

Qualifications
Specific Requirements

• MSc in Pharmacy;
• Experience with amino acid transporters;
• Experience with pharmaceutical application of drug transporters;
• Strong motivation and interest in working at the interface between pharmacy and chemistry;
• Excellent skills in written and spoken English and Danish.

The PhD position will be as 5+3.
For further information please contact Professor Carsten Uhd Nielsen, e-mail: [email protected] Website: https://www.sdu.dk/da/forskning/farmaci-sektionen/forskere/researcherswithinsection/carsten-uhd-nielsen

The Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy is one of four departments at the Faculty of Science, SDU and is located in Odense. At the department we contribute to solving some of society’s greatest challenges within energy, environment, health, and sustainability. We succeed because we build bridges between disciplines and transcend traditional boundaries. Our interdisciplinary mindset is not only a fundamental condition, but also our strength. And it is a strength that ensures our research and education are recognized both nationally and internationally.

Our vision is to create and apply knowledge across the natural sciences. We are unique in housing research within physics, chemistry, and pharmacy under one department, which provides excellent opportunities to explore the intersections between these disciplines.

Read more about our vision here: https://www.sdu.dk/en/om-sdu/institutter-centre/fysik_kemi_og_farmaci/ominstituttet

The Ph.D. candidate will be part of the Pharmacy section: https://www.sdu.dk/da/forskning/farmaci-sektionen/forskere

Further information for international applicants about entering and working in Denmark.

For further information about the PhD program at the department, read here: https://sdunet.dk/en/enheder/institutter/fkf/phd-information

Application, salary etc.
Appointment as a PhD Research Fellow can be in different types of programmes

• The 5+3 programme: Appointment as a PhD Research Fellow is for three years. Students who have completed their MSc. Employment stops automatically at the end of the period.

Further information about the PhD programme at the Faculty of Science can be found at the homepage of the University.
The University wishes our staff to reflect the diversity of society and thus welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of personal background.

Application must be in English and made in the form of a Declaration of Interest including the following:

• A letter stating your specific interest, motivation, and qualifications for the project in question (max. two pages) .
• Detailed CV, including personal contact information and date entries
• Copies of diplomas, Bachelor as well as Master’s degree, including transcript of notes/grades.
• The names and complete contact details (phone numbers and e-mail) of at least two referees with details who can vouch for your skills.

Shortlisting may be used in the assessment process. Incomplete applications and applications received after the deadline will neither be considered nor evaluated. This also applies to reference letters.

Applications will be assessed by an expert assessor/committee. Applicants will be informed of their assessment by the university.

Applications should be sent electronically via the link "Apply now". The faculty expects applicants to read the information "How to apply for a position at SDU" before applying. Please note that the application documents should be in pdf-format and attached as three documents: motivation letter, CV and the remaining documents.

We recommend that as an international applicant you take the time to visit Work in Denmark where you will find information and facts about moving to, working and living in Denmark, as well as the International Staff Office at SDU.

Location
Odense M, Denmark

Apply Before
2026-02-06T22:59:00+00:00