Department

Department of Molecular Biology of Cancer

Head

Pavel Vodička, MD, PhD

Website

http://www.iem.cas.cz/en/research/departments/department-of-the-molecular-biology-of-cancer/

Project title

DNA damage and repair in carcinogenesis of solid tumors

Supervisor

Pavel Vodička, MD, PhD / Soňa Vodenková, PhD

Project description

Genome instability represents one of the leading forces driving the onset and development of cancer. It arises as a consequence of the combined effect of DNA damage and errors made by the DNA repair system. In many cancers, DNA damage tolerance and DNA repair pathways are disrupted or deregulated, which increases mutagenesis and genome instability, thereby promoting cancer progression. DNA repair also appears to play a substantial role in cancer therapy response. This project will be performed in response to several unclear and unresolved issues of the role of DNA damage and DNA repair in cancer pathogenesis. The aim of the project will be searching for potential novel biomarkers and confirmation of the validity of already existing biomarkers related to DNA damage and DNA repair, which may be associated with cancer susceptibility and the patient's clinical outcome. The biological basis of different biomarkers and their associations will be also explored. Experimental work will include advanced molecular, cytogenetic, and microscopic techniques on human (cancer) samples and cancer cell lines.

Candidate profile

A successful candidate should:

• have a master's degree in molecular/cellular biology, (bio)chemistry, genetics, or medicine;
• have a strong interest in conducting basic cancer research, enthusiasm and high motivation to learn new laboratory techniques, and a commitment to hard work;
• have a good knowledge of and experience in molecular biology of cancer;
• be willing to work with human (tumor) samples and cancer cell lines;
• be able to work independently as well as in a team;
• have good communications skills and the ability to work on an international level;
• have a good working knowledge of the English language (both spoken and written).

Suggested reading

• Vodenkova S et al. Nat Protoc. 2020 Dec;15(12):3844-3878. doi: 10.1038/s41596-020-0401-x.
• Vodenkova S et al. Oncol Rep. 2020 Nov;44(5):2219-2230. doi: 10.3892/or.2020.7774.
• Vodicka P et al. Pharmacogenomics. 2019 Nov;20(17):1225-1233. doi: 10.2217/pgs-2019-0070.
• Vodicka P et al. Mutat Res Genet Toxicol Environ Mutagen. 2019 Jul;843:95-110. doi: 10.1016/j.mrgentox.2019.05.009.
• Kroupa M et al. Br J Cancer. 2019 Aug;121(4):344-350. doi: 10.1038/s41416-019-0525-3.
• Vodenkova S et al. DNA Repair (Amst). 2018 Dec;72:77-85. doi: 10.1016/j.dnarep.2018.09.006.
• Jiraskova et al. Int J Mol Sci. 2018 Dec 27;20(1). pii: E97. doi: 10.3390/ijms20010097.

Application form