Internships
General information on internships
UPDATE ON THE 2021 Systems Biology lab INTERNSHIPS (Bachelor and Master) – January 2021
To comply with VU Corona regulations, the Systems Biology group established a maximum number of experimental internship students that can be safely hosted in the lab.
For the period from February 2021 to July 2021 all experimental positions are filled. However, theoretical internships are still available.
Summer experimental and theoretical internship positions are available.
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Students can do various types of projects in our lab. We supervise bachelor and master internship projects but you can also find supervisors for your literature thesis. Practical internships can be in the wet lab (here termed experimental) , can be computational (here termed theoretical) or can consist of a combination of those two. All of them qualify as ‘research internships’ in virtually all of the study programs.
Below is a list of projects that we thought of. If you are interested in one, just contact the person that is associated to that project. But there are options beyond this list. Check the Team and the Projects pages and click on the different team members to see their lines of research. If you are interested in a specific topic that we work on, but do not see an internship within that project listed below, just contact the team member and check for the possibilities. This is especially relevant if you are looking for a literature thesis project – these are usually tailor-made based on your interests.
If you have general questions about internships in our department see the contact information at the end of the page
Currently available
| Project title | Type of research | Supervisor(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Accessory functions in the pangenome of the human vaginal commensal Lactobacillus crispatus 2. Bacterial strain engraftment in the gorilla gut microbiome after fecal transplantation | Two Internships Bioinformatics (Master) | Dr Douwe Molenaar Prof Remco Kort (r.kort@vu.nl) |
| 1. The accessory genome in bacteria can be considered the cradle for adaptive evolution. For this internship a set of whole genome sequences of L. crispatus will be analyzed and accessory functions in the pangenome will be evaluated with a particular emphasis on functions that are important for sustained colonization in the host. Techniques: differential analysis of a large set of sequenced genomes. Duration: 6 months Further reading: van der Veer C, Hertzberger RY, Bruisten SM, Tytgat HLP, Swanenburg J, de Kat Angelino-Bart A, Schuren F, Molenaar D, Reid G, de Vries H, Kort R. (2019) Comparative genomics of human Lactobacillus crispatus isolates reveals genes for glycosylation and glycogen degradation: implications for in vivo dominance of the vaginal microbiota. Microbiome 7:49. Hertzberger R, May A, Kramer G, van Vondelen I, Molenaar D, Kort R (2022) Genetic elements orchestrating Lactobacillus crispatus glycogen metabolism in the vagina. Int J Mol Sci. 23:5590. 2. A fecal transplantation has been carried out to cure Akili, the ARTIS silverback gorilla, by recovery of the gut microbiota after antibiotic treatment. Longitudinal 16S rRNA profiling and metagenome data have been collected in donor and recipient feces to monitor bacterial population dynamics in the gut before, during and after the fecal transplantation intervention. The data will be analyzed with particular emphasis on bacterial strain engraftment. techniques: comparative metagenome analysis (optional metabolic analysis) duration: 4-6 months Further reading: Houtkamp IM, van Zijll Langhout M, Bessem M, Pirovano W, Kort R. (2023) Multiomics characterisation of the zoo-housed gorilla gut microbiome reveals bacterial community compositions shifts, fungal cellulose-degrading, and archaeal methanogenic activity. Gut Microbiome. 4:e12 |
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| Metabolism in health and disease ALL POSITIONS FILLED FOR EARLY 2026 | Experimental or computational (combinations are possible) Bachelor/master | Jurgen Haanstra |
| The work in this topic aims to understanding control and regulation of metabolism to reveal selective drug targets in pathogens and other disease-causing cells. In addition, we also want to understand these aspects for healthy cells to make sure that interventions against the disease will not harm them. We work with the parasite Trypanosoma brucei and with liver cancer cells in the wetlab, but also do research on the parasite Schistosoma mansoni, on head- and neck cancer and blood cell precursors in the dry-lab (always in collaboration with experimental labs Techniques: Wetlab: cell culture, metabolite measurements, enzyme assays. Dry lab: kinetic modelling (COPASI, PySCes (python-based), genome-scale modelling |
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| Developing and optimizing a glycolytic sensor toolbox | Experimental (Master) | Dennis Botman d.botman@vu.nl |
| Glycolysis is a central metabolic pathway in many organisms, playing a crucial role in energy production and cellular function. It is particularly significant in rapidly proliferating cells, such as cancer cells. Therefore, there is a growing need for sensors capable of accurately measuring key intracellular metabolites and parameters involved in glycolysis, such as pH, NAD, glucose, fructose-1,6-bisphosphate (FbP), and pyruvate. Biosensors based on fluorescent proteins offer a promising approach, but existing options often suffer from limitations such as low brightness or sensitivity to pH changes. To address these challenges, you will help with developing and optimizing novel biosensors in various spectral colours for glycolytic metabolites. Once validated as robust tools, these sensors will enable us to gain deeper insights into glycolytic processes in both healthy and diseased states. | ||
For students not studying at the VU University Amsterdam
Internships are in principle open for students from other universities in the Netherlands or outside the Netherlands. We welcome for example ERASMUS students. Please note a few things:
- We ask for a minimum stay of 4 months (3 months research, one month report writing) with a starting date outside the holiday season (July, August).
- You have to be able to support your daily expenses (e.g. food, accommodation) and travelling to/from the Netherlands. Often, the international office at your own university can assist you in obtaining grants (e.g. ERASMUS grants). You may also check http://www.nuffic.nl/international-students/scholarships/grantfinder. Research costs will be covered by the internship project. We can help you with providing letters etc. for applications.
- Finding accommodation in Amsterdam often takes 3 to 6 months. Erasmus students are helped via our international office in arranging accommodation in the VU hospitium in Amsterdam. Non-Erasmus students are advised to look for accommodation well in advance, in particular if you want to start in September, October or November.
- Students from outside the EU should take into account that they may require a visa for the Netherlands, and that arranging this may also take a few months. Please check with the Dutch embassy in your country.
- Non-Erasmus students may have to register at the faculty (this is relatively easy for students from other Dutch universities), or alternatively, require a statement of hospitability, and possibly have to pay a fee.
Contact information
If you are a non-VU student and from abroad you should contact Dr. Rob van Spanning (rob.van.spanning@vu.nl) if you want to do an internship in our group, and indicate your preferred project(s), starting date, length of internship, and how you will support yourself (costs for food, accommodation), as we are unable to support you financially.
VU students and other Dutch students can contact the putative internship supervisor directly.
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