We are looking for a highly motivated and dynamic postdoc to join the Barrier Immunology group headed by Professor William Agace at the LEO Foundation Skin Immunology Research Center (SIC), Department of Immunology and Microbiology, for a 2-year position to commence on 1st of February 2026.

As a postdoc, you will combine cutting-edge techniques and animal models with experimental wet lab and in silico tools to deepen our understanding of host and intestinal immune responses during homeostasis and inflammation. You will contribute to enhancing the future research directives of the group, with potential translational merit for clinical studies into inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Information on the department can be found at: https://isim.ku.dk and https://sic.ku.dk



Our research

The Barrier Immunology group strives to generate and provide fundamental insights into the molecular and cellular networks involved in the regulation of intestinal immune responses in health and disease. As a postdoc, you will join a diverse team of international researchers within the established ‘Center for Intestinal Immune Regulation (CIIR)’ funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation Challenge Program. CIIR is comprised of four collaborating teams: the Agace lab (University of Copenhagen); the McCoy lab (University of Calgary, (Canada)); the Bendtsen unit (Hvidovre Hospital); and the Rønn Olsen lab (Technical University of Denmark). Combined, these teams represent world-class expertise in mucosal immunology, gastroenterology, host-microbiota interactions, bioinformatics, and state-of-the-art animal models, and are aiming to identify intestinal host-immune microbiota and metabolite interactions important in intestinal homeostasis and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) but also extending our research beyond the gut. You will be part of a diverse and cross-disciplinary group of researchers at the international forefront of mucosal barrier immunology with the goal of integrating our research into a holistic and translational context.



Your job

We are seeking a highly skilled and ambitious candidate with a passion for basic mucosal immunology, general enthusiasm for translational research to join our dynamic and highly collaborative academic environment. The candidate should be highly engaged and discovery driven to steer our current research activities surrounding host-immune-microbiota interactions and contribute to deciphering the molecular and cellular mechanisms important in intestinal homeostasis and disease. The project is multi-disciplinary extending beyond the gut environment and will involve close collaborations with participating bioinformaticians, as well as researchers analyzing human intestinal immune compartments in health and in IBD.

Your tasks as a postdoc include:

• Identifying host-microbiota interactions and intermediaries important for the maintenance of intestinal homeostasis and immune-mediated pathology in the setting of chronic inflammation.
• Utilizing state-of-the-art transgenic mouse and infection/inflammation models and designing novel in vivo techniques to modulate intestinal host-microbiota interactions for the assessment of downstream consequences on intestinal immune homeostasis and disease.
• Generating and analyzing complex high-dimensional data, including but not limited to flow cytometry, cell sorting for single cell analyses, histology, MS, and 16S rDNA.
• Performing in vitro mode-of-action studies to support/complement in vivo findings.
• Maintaining mouse colonies, including standard husbandry and genotyping.
• Supervising and teaching undergraduate and postgraduate students.
• Designing, writing, and amending study protocols.
• Being responsible for the acquisition of external funding for future research activities.
• Actively initiating and maintaining interdisciplinary collaborations.
• Presenting and disseminating research activities to peers at scientific congresses and the broader public.

Profile
We are looking for a highly motivated, ambitious and enthusiastic scientist with the following experiences and expertise:

Essential experience and skills:

• You have a PhD in immunology or a related life science field
• Certificate of animal handling course e.g., FELASA A, B, (C) or similar
• You have a deep understanding of immune processes within barrier tissues specifically the intestine and specifically in B cell biology, including technical expertise for studying B cell responses both in vitro and in vivo.
• You have expertise in human and mouse microbiota analysis including flow cytometry and FACS sorting of both human and murine microbial samples and technical experience for studying IgA-microbiota interactions in vivo and in vitro
• You have experience in 16S rDNA gene sequencing and downstream bioinformatics analysis
• You are highly experienced in designing and performing in vivo animal experiments and murine intestinal infection models, including a deep knowledge and technical knowhow surrounding transgenic mouse models and surgical procedures
• You are highly experienced in isolating mouse tissues including the intestine for downstream analyses including the generation of single cells, as well as tissue preparation for imaging techniques.
• You are highly experienced in designing and independently performing multiparameter flow cytometry based immunotyping experiments, including flow-based cell sorting
• You are highly experienced with aseptic cell/tissue culture work, molecular-biology and immunohistochemistry techniques
• You have experience with data visualization and analysis software including R, GraphPad Prism, Imaris, and Illustrator
• You have experience in scientific writing including primary articles and funding proposals
• You are highly self-motivated and self-governed, but you can also thrive as part of a team
• Excellent organizational, communication, planning and record-keeping skills
• Excellent English skills, written and spoken

Desirable experience and skills:

• You have experience with immunofluorescent imaging
• Experience with spectral flow-cytometry applications and panel design
• Strong interest in the development and coordination of novel experimental methods to study the intestinal immune system and microbial interactions in healthy and disease gut
• You have a strong interest in teaching and experience in supervising undergraduates and postgraduate students

Place of employment

The place of employment is at the Department of Immunology and Microbiology (ISIM), LEO Foundation Skin Immunology Research Center (SIC), Panum Institute, University of Copenhagen. We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in dynamic and international research environment. Our research facilities include modern laboratories and state-of-the-art core facilities to fulfill the experimental project aims. You will be part of a highly collaborative scientific network; therefore, our research infrastructure comprises collaborating partners that are desired to be used and expanded on.



Terms of employment
The average weekly working hours are 37 hours per week.

The position is a fixed-term position limited to a period of 2 years. The starting date is 1st February 2026, or after agreement.

Salary, pension and other conditions of employment are set in accordance with the Agreement between the Ministry of Taxation and AC (Danish Confederation of Professional Associations) or other relevant organization. Currently, the monthly salary starts at 35,000 DKK/approx. 4,700 EUR (October 2021 level). Depending on qualifications, a supplement may be negotiated. The employer will pay an additional 17.1 % to your pension fund.



Foreign and Danish applicants may be eligible for tax reductions, if they hold a PhD degree and have not lived in Denmark the last 10 years.



The position is covered by the Job Structure for Academic Staff at Universities 2020.



Questions
For further information please contact Professor William Agace (williamagace@sund.ku.dk) www.sund.ku.dk

Foreign applicants may find this link useful: www.ism.ku.dk (International Staff Mobility).



Application procedure
Your online application must be submitted in English by clicking ‘Apply now’ below. Furthermore, your application must include the following documents/attachments – all in PDF format:

1. Motivated letter of application (max. one page).
2. CV incl. education, work/research experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position.
3. A certified/signed copy of a) PhD certificate and b) Master of Science certificate. If the PhD is not completed, a written statement from the supervisor will do.
4. List of publications.

Deadline for applications: 19 October 2025, 23.59pm CET

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.



The further process
After the expiry of the deadline for applications, the authorized recruitment manager selects applicants for assessment on the advice of the hiring committee. All applicants are then immediately notified whether their application has been passed for assessment by an unbiased assessor. Once the assessment work has been completed each applicant has the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that relates to the applicant him/herself.

You can read about the recruitment process at http://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/



The applicant will be assessed according to the Ministerial Order no. 242 of 13 March 2012 on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Universities.



Interviews are expected to be held in week 45-46

The University of Copenhagen wish to reflect the diversity of society and encourage all qualified candidates to apply regardless of personal background.