International MSCA PhD student – Decoding the Cancer Dark Proteome

Our group recently discovered that cancer cells are prone to producing translation errors under metabolic stress (e.g., Bartok et al., Nature 2020; Pataskar et al., Nature 2022; and Nagel et al., Cancer Res 2026). We aim to advance our understanding of why stress-induced mistranslation is cancer-specific, how it is regulated, whether it contributes to cancer phenotypes such as metastasis and drug resistance, and how we can utilize this information to develop novel cancer therapies.

The project offers excellent academic training alongside unique opportunities to collaborate closely with leading laboratories in genomics, proteomics, immunology, and technology development across Europe. The successful candidate will experimentally identify, characterize, assess, and validate dark protein expression and function to influence cell states and neighboring cells, and to modulate anti-tumor immune responses. You will be expected to develop novel technologies to detect dark proteins and assess their utility in improving tumor control. In addition to contributing to a collaborative, team-driven research program, the successful candidate will have ample opportunities to pursue independent scientific ideas aligned with the broader research goals. The role requires an innovative and critical mind to define key biological questions and design robust experimental strategies to address them.

• Lead the development of in vitro model systems that will allow the detection of dark proteins and to assess their impact on cellular functions.

• Translate your findings to cancer (immuno) therapies.

• Collaborate closely with a multidisciplinary international team of pioneers in the ‘Dark Proteome’ field.