PhD student position in deep learning for enzyme structure & catalysis

Introduction

UNIL is a leading international teaching and research institution, with over 5,000 employees and 17,000 students split between its Dorigny campus, CHUV and Epalinges. As an employer, UNIL encourages excellence, individual recognition and responsibility.

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Presentation

We’re looking for a PhD student to develop deep learning methods for modelling biomolecular
interactions in the context of catalysis. Protein–ligand cofolding models aim to jointly predict protein
structures and the binding poses of small molecules. Enzyme catalysis presents a different challenge:
molecular interactions need to be understood in the context of the chemical reaction being catalysed
and the dynamics of the changes involved.
The project will investigate how protein–ligand cofolding approaches can be extended to better model
enzymes and their reactions, with a particular interest in methods that generalise across enzyme
families and chemical transformations.
The project will combine deep learning, protein bioinformatics, and large-scale analysis of protein
sequences, structures and biochemical data. There will be scope to explore model development and
evaluation, representation learning, and applications to catalytic function and molecular design.
For an overview of our research interests, see pickybinders.org.

Job information

Start date in position: Earliest November 2026, by arrangement
Contract length : 1 year, renewable, maximum 5 years 
Activity rate : 100% 
Workplace : University of Lausanne, Dorigny campus 

Your qualifications

We are looking for
● A Master's degree in computer science, computational biology, bioinformatics, machine learning,
chemistry, biochemistry, or a related field
● Good programming skills, preferably in Python
● An interest in machine learning and proteins
● Curiosity about the relationship between molecular sequence, structure and biochemical function
● Motivation to develop and pursue research ideas independently, and to learn new subjects and
techniques.
Experience with deep learning, structural biology, cheminformatics, or protein bioinformatics is useful
but not required. We do not expect applicants to already have expertise across all of these areas.

What the position offers you

We offer a nice working place in a multicultural, diverse and dynamic academic environment. Opportunities for professional training, a lot of activities and other benefits to discover.

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Contact for further information

Prof. Janani Durairaj, e-mail: E-Mail schreiben 

Your application

Deadline : ongoing

Please, send your full application as a single PDF document comprising:
● a CV
● a short cover letter describing your research interests, relevant experience, and why you are
interested in the project
● the names of two referees
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.
We encourage applications from candidates from backgrounds underrepresented in computational
science

Only applications through this website will be taken into account.
We thank you for your understanding.

Additional information

UNIL is committed to:
•    equality, diversity and inclusion within its community;
•    ensuring an open and respectful environment that is conducive to personal development;
•    offering working conditions that facilitate work-life balance;
•    supporting early career researchers.

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