How do phages kill dormant bacteria

O2 Gebouw

Amsterdam

1 / 1

Faculty of Science

PhD

MSc

Closes on

20-07-2026

Publishing date

06-07-2026

Apply

Are you excited about exploring the biology behind phages infecting dormant bacteria? Join forces to uncover fundamental biology with great potential for clinical impact. We offer a fully funded PhD position on how phages kill dormant bacteria.

Your function

Scientific background: If you take a bus, you probably want the driver to be awake. Similarly, bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) have long been assumed to require metabolically active hosts. However, several recent studies and our own findings challenge this assumption. We have identified over a dozen phages capable of replicating in growth-arrested E. coli, suggesting that dormancy-killing is far more common than previously recognized. How do phages replicate in dormant cells? The phages we discovered are genetically diverse and differentially respond to bacterial knock-outs, pointing to multiple, evolutionarily distinct solutions to this challenge.

Project: you will integrate high-throughput phenotypic screening with state-of-the-art genetic tools to understand how phages bypass bacterial dormancy. Furthermore, you will engineer these genes into phages that lack this capability, expanding their activity towards persistent bacterial populations.

Impact: Your work will reveal fundamental new mechanisms in phage biology and has urgent clinical relevance: uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC), a leading cause of recurrent urinary tract infections, and M. tuberculosis (Mtb), which evades antibiotics by entering dormancy, both exemplify the medical challenge of treating persistent infections. By developing novel phages active against dormant UPEC and Mtb, you will provide powerful new therapeutic options for the world’s most frequent and most deadly infections

Embedding: Your PhD project is funded by an NWO-M2 grant, supervised by Yuval Mulla (VU) and co-supervised by Coen Kuijl (VUmc). You will be embedded in the molecular microbiology department of the VU and will closely collaborate with a PhD student at the medical microbiology section of the Amsterdam UMC. The start date is flexible between September 1, 2026, and December 1, 2026.

Your duties

Genome-wide mutant generation (transposon library, CRISPR-I) to find phage genes involved in dormancy-killing
High-throughput phenotypic screening (imaging-based)
Targeted verification of hits via molecular cloning
Isolation and design of dormancy-killing phages against key pathogens (UPEC, Mtb)
Contributing to publications and presentations
Teaching (supervision of interns and of groups of students in practical courses)

Your profile

a master’s degree (MSc) in biomolecular science, biomedical science, biophysics, or a closely related discipline. People currently still in their master's can apply if they expect to finish their program in time to start December 1, 2026, at latest.
Experience with wet lab research, including molecular cloning via internships, is required. Experience in transposon/CRISPR- I libraries; microbiology, or specifically phages, is a plus but not required.
Basic programming experience are required, including setting up bioinformatic pipelines via, e.g., Bash and basic data analysis via, e.g., Python. More extensive programming experience including image analysis is a plus but not required.
Strong motivation to work in an interdisciplinary research environment.
Excellent command of English, both written and spoken.

Good grades for courses and especially for internships, as evidenced by an uploaded university-certified overview, are a strong plus.

What do we offer?

A challenging position in a socially engaged organisation. At VU Amsterdam, you contribute to education, research and service for a better world. And that is valuable. So in return for your efforts, we offer you:

a salary of € 3.059,00 (PhD) and maximum € 3.881,00 (PhD) gross per month in the fourth year, for a full-time employment
an employment contract of initially 1 year. If there is sufficient perspective, this will be extended to a total of 4 years. Your dissertation at the end of the fourth year forms the end of your employment contract.

We also offer you attractive fringe benefits and arrangements. Some examples:

A full-time 38-hour working week comes with a holiday leave entitlement of 232 hours per year. If you choose to work 40 hours, you have 96 extra holiday leave hours on an annual basis. For part-timers, this is calculated pro rata.
8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
discount on (and occasionally exclusive access to) theater performances and courses at the Griffioen Cultural Center
space for personal development
a wide range of sports facilities which staff may use at a modest charge

About us

About the team

The Molecular Microbiology section concentrates on the microbial cell envelope, protein secretion systems, novel antibiotics and phage biology (https://a-life-vu.nl/molecular-microbiology/). Our section is located together and working closely with the Medical Microbiology and Infection Prevention unit of the AUMC focusing on infection models. Combined, the two groups have ~35 members.

In this project you will work closely together with one more PhD student and be part of a larger group working on mycobacterial secretion systems.

Faculty of Science
Working at the Faculty of Science means collaborating with students, lecturers, and researchers who are focused on their field yet have a broad view of the world. We are proud of a positive and inclusive workplace culture within the faculty, where we work together with great energy and a pragmatic attitude to tackle social challenges. At the Faculty of Science, scientists and students work on fundamental and complex societal issues for a sustainable, healthy, and just future.

From forest fires to big data, from obesity to malnutrition, from helium to the universe and from genetics to medicine: our education and research cover the full breadth of science, from molecules to mankind. Our academic education and research are highly experimental, technical and interdisciplinary in nature. That is why we collaborate extensively with leading scientific institutes and industry. The faculty has more than 8,000 students studying in one of the 39 programms and employs more than 1,400 staff across 10 scientific departments, making us one of the largest science faculties in the Netherlands.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam stands for values-driven education and research. We are open-minded experts with the ability to think freely - a broader mind. Maintaining an entrepreneurial perspective and concentrating on diversity, significance and humanity, we work on sustainable solutions with social impact. By joining forces, across the boundaries of disciplines, we work towards a better world for people and planet. Together we create a safe and respectful working and study climate, and an inspiring environment for education and research. Learn more about our codes of conduct

We are located on one physical campus, in the heart of Amsterdam's Zuidas business district, with excellent location and accessibility. Over 6,150 staff work at the VU and over 31,000 students attend academic education.

Diversity
Diversity is the driving force of VU Amsterdam. VU wants to be accessible and receptive to diversity in disciplines, cultures, ideas, nationalities, beliefs, preferences and worldviews. We believe that trust, respect, interest and differences lead to new insights and innovation, to sharpness and clarity, to excellence and a broader understanding.

We stand for an inclusive community and believe that diversity and internationalisation contribute to the quality of education, research and our services.

Therefore, we are always searching for people whose backgrounds and experience contribute to the diversity of the VU community.

Interested

Are you interested in this position? Please apply before the 20th of July by submitting your curriculum vitae (CV, pdf), an official transcript of grades (PDF), and motivation letter (pdf). For questions about the position, you can contact the principal investigator Yuval Mulla by e-mail ([email protected]).

Applications received by e-mail will not be considered.

Acquisition in response to this advertisement is not appreciated.