PhD position focusing on pathogen lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases as inhibitor targets

Overview

The Biological Chemistry section at the Department of Chemistry invites applicants for an externally funded PhD fellowship focusing on developing inhibitors for lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases, particularly from plant pathogens. The project is part of a larger collaborative research project financed by the Independent Research Fund Denmark, involving both Danish and international partners. Start date is (expected to be) 1 August 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

The project

The PhD student will focus on lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs), copper carbohydrate active enzymes gaining attention for their potential in biofuel production and for their prominence in pathogens, especially plant pathogens. The PhD project will run in two tracks: 1) structure-based inhibitor design of LPMOs, including crystallographic fragment screening and other ligand-complex studies (initially on model LPMOs), inhibition studies and computational inhi...