The Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology in Warsaw will open a call for the next edition of the international PhD studies in early May - representative of the institute told PAP.

As a result, a year from now, young researchers from Poland and Europe will be able to participate in interdisciplinary work of 22 research teams involved in the studies of the biological causes of cancer, inflammation, metabolic disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. The studies, organized under the name of International Doctoral Programme in Biological Bases of Human Diseases, will be funded by the grant Bio4Med (Biology for Medicine). The grant of over 2.3 million euros has been awarded to the Nencki Institute under the European Union Marie Sklodowska-Curie COFUND Horizon 2020 financial perspective.

"Marie Curie grants are extremely hard to get. Of all the Polish scientific institutions, this year only us and the National Science Centre succeeded in this matter. Our application has been assessed by the European Commission as a model one. Such a high evaluation appears to be one of the consequences of the fact that in 2013 the European Commission has awarded the Institute, as the first research unit in Poland, the prestigious HR Excellence in Research badge" - emphasised Prof. Adam Szewczyk, Director of the Nencki Institute.

Candidates for doctoral studies at the Nencki Institute must be in the first four years of their research careers (up to 4 years after obtaining a master\'s degree), and have resided or carried out their main activity in Poland for no more than 12 months in the past 3 years. The studies will enable young researchers to carry out scientific projects in leading research teams of the Nencki Institute. These teams have established long lasting collaborations with partners from leading scientific institutions of the European Union, Switzerland, Japan, Canada, USA and Ukraine.

"We intend to help young researchers in the development of their scientific careers. The best way to achieve that is to improve their skills in the field of molecular biology, biochemistry, cell biology, physiology, behavioral studies and bioinformatics. At the same time we want to strengthen cooperation with our foreign partners. Our long-term goal is to increase the competitiveness of Polish science in Europe and the worldwide" - explained Prof. Agnieszka Dobrzyń, Nencki Institute professor and Bio4Med Project Coordinator.

The research topics of the PhD program include the search for the molecular mechanisms affecting the brain glioma immune responses, identifying disorders of the cell cycle to enable early detection of Alzheimer\'s disease, study of the effects of specific proteins on the regulation of alcohol addiction-related behaviour and the factors contributing to abnormal DNA damage repair pathways during the progression of diabetes.

In the course of their PhD studies at the Nencki Institute, young researchers will have access to cutting-edge research equipment, including the only magnetic resonance imaging scanner in Poland dedicated for research purpose, and a well-equipped light and electron microscopy units.

The previous edition of the international PhD studies at the Nencki Institute, funded by the Foundation for Polish Science under the MPD programme, was carried out in 2010-2014 and ended in December 2014. Most of the 17 PhD students have already received their doctoral degrees and continue their scientific careers in research centres in Poland and abroad.

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland

zan/ mki/ mrt/

tr. RL