Master Thesis in the field of engineering CARs for cancer immunotherapy

Vienna

Fulltime

Are you looking for an opportunity to apply your organizational and technical skills in translational research to improve the treatment of cancer patients?

Here is your chance to contribute to science that makes a difference!

To strengthen our research team, which is working on the development and research of innovative approaches for the treatment of childhood cancer, we are looking for a master student (m/f/d).

In our (, which is an interdisciplinary collaboration project between Dr. Manfred Lehner at St. Anna Kinderkrebsforschung and Dr. Michael Traxlmayr at BOKU University (Institute of Biochemistry), we want to develop CAR T cells for safe and specific tumor eradication.

CAR T cell immunotherapy is one of the hottest topics in cancer therapy and has shown groundbreaking success in therapy of previously incurable forms of leukemia. However, novel molecular tools for improving this type of immunotherapy are urgently needed for translating this success to other tumors.

The close integration of expertise in immunotherapy and protein engineering within our CD lab is the perfect basis to develop technologies for novel molecular switches, CARs with AND-gate function and improved antigen-binding domains. We have meanwhile developed several platform technologies, i.e., lipocalin-based switches (Zajc CU et al., PNAS 2020), avidity-based AND-gated CARs (Salzer B et al., Nat Comm 2020), human single-domain binders, and filed several patent applications.

In the planned project, you will work with a PhD student to engineer a molecular switch using yeast display and characterize it biochemically.

Your responsibilities

• Learn to take on a research project. You will contribute from the start, including planning of experiments and data acquisition. You will provide thorough and creative thinking that makes these project a success
• Learn how to navigate the literature and community resources to keep abreast of the latest developments and to identify information to integrate in your own work

Your profile

What you bring for this position:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant subject (e.g. biology, biochemistry, biomedical engineering, immunology)
• Relevant technical skills (biochemical analyses, protein expression & nucleic acid isolation)
• Experience (e.g. internships) in a relevant area is a plus
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English (German not required)
• Self-motivated, enthusiastic and eager to learn
• Good team player, committed, and creative
• Scientific mindset & problem solving attitude

Our offer

Does this sound interesting? This is our offer to you:

• A 12 month contract for a Master student position
• An exciting project in a meaningful, inspiring, and international environment
• An outstanding working atmosphere in a strong team with excellent opportunities
• A monthly allowance of € 551,10

Who we are

The St. Anna Children’s Cancer Research Institute (St. Anna CCRI), located in the center of Vienna, the most livable city in the world and one of the most important sites for biomedical research in Europe. St. Anna CCRI is a multidisciplinary and internationally networked center of excellence whose goal is to contribute to a sustainable improvement in the cure rates of childhood and adolescent cancers through innovative research and development. Due to the close cooperation between clinic and research, St. Anna CCRI offers the ideal environment for cutting-edge research at a high international level and its implementation in clinical practice. and its translation into clinical practice.

St. Anna CCRI is an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity and are committed to providing a work environment of mutual respect to everyone without regard to race, colour, religion, national origin, age, gender identity or expression, disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances.

Find more information here:

Your application

We are looking forward to your application! Applications should at least contain your Curriculum Vitae and a cover letter.

The application deadline is the 14.03.2025.