The following part-time (65% = 25.025 hours/week) position is to be filled as of October 1, 2026, in the Department of Epileptology of the University Hospital Bonn:

PhD Position (m/f/d)

The position is limited to 3 years.

The PhD position is focusing on pathomechanisms in autoantibody-associated neurological syndromes and autoimmune encephalitis and and supported by a grant from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). I will focus on the question whether (1) intracellular autoantibodies contribute causally to encephalitis, rather than acting as mere passive biomarkers and how (2) patient-derived Abs from autoantibody-positive encephalitis patients with different neurological presentations affect neuronal function using cultured neurons to assess cellular uptake, enzyme activity, neurotransmitter release and changes in neuronal plasticity.

This research is based on a wide array of methods including in vitro (e. g. Pitsch et al., 2020, PMID: 32196746) and mouse models (viral vector gene transfer/transgenic, EEG/video recordings) approaches, cell biological, molecular, biochemical, histological as well as imaging techniques (e. g. Pitsch et al., 2021, PMID: 33368582). A better understanding of the molecular and functional consequences of intracellular autoantibodies will have direct implications for better therapies aimed at interfering with autoimmune encephalitis by using pathway-specific pharmaceuticals or gene therapy.

Interested candidates should send curriculum vitae, letter of motivation indicating starting date, short description of past lab experience, copies of university degree(s) with academic records, contact information and at least two reference letters (or the referee’s contact info).

Questions concerning the projects can be addressed to PD Dr. J. Pitsch (Julika.Pitsch@ukbonn.de)