The Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS) is a national research infrastructure hosted by Umeå University (UmU) and the Umeå Centre for Microbial Research (UCMR) and closely affiliated with the University Hospital of Umeå. UCMR is an interdisciplinary research centre established by a consortium of scientists representing medical and molecular microbiology, molecular and structural biology, chemistry and physics, and is devoted to top quality research and novel applications in the fields of microbial pathogenesis and infection biology research. The aim of MIMS is to strengthen Swedish research and enhance the dynamics in the field of molecular medicine, partly by promoting the career opportunities for young scientists.

The UCMR/MIMS research environment has a strong international reputation in the field of infection biology and includes research groups working on a broad range of topics. After international recruitment several new research groups have been established at MIMS.  MIMS has initiated a program denoted MIMS Clinical Research Fellows (CRF) for young clinicians which have completed their PhD exam, i.e., candidates should have completed their PhD degree during the last 10 years. The purpose of the MIMS CRF program is to strengthen clinical research and more closely incorporate preclinical and clinical research within the scope of the Molecular Infection Medicine research and the MIMS Clinical Research Fellows initiative has now also been expanded and announced nation-wide and to this end MIMS is assisted by a national advisory panel which include clinical scientists from different Swedish universities.

Several core facilities and technical platforms are connected to, and their activities are also partly financed by, MIMS/UCMR. Several facilities/platforms are connected to departments at KBC (the Chemical Biological Centre) or to the Department of Molecular Biology. Some of these core facilities also involve the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) and Umeå Plant Science Centre (UPSC) which are also important co-funders of the research infrastructures. The core facilities and technical platforms play a major role also for training/teaching and courses are often offered at different levels. Short introductory courses provide basic understanding of the technique with its advantages and limitations; more advanced courses will give detailed knowledge, and advanced “hands-on” courses are offered for those who will make the analysis themselves. Some of the core facilities are also part of national research infrastructures and linked to SciLifeLab.

Key research infrastructures for training of PhD students and postdocs within the area of infections and antibiotics include:

Chemical Biology
Chemical Biology Consortium Sweden (cbcs.se)

Metabolomics
http://www.swedishmetabolomicscentre.se

Umeå Core facility Electron Microscopy (UCEM)
Umeå Centre for Electron Microscopy (UCEM) (umu.se)

The Biochemical Imaging Centre (BICU)
Biochemical Imaging Centre Umeå (BICU) (umu.se)

NMR Core facility
NMR Core facility (umu.se)

Multi-purpose Adaptive X-ray Scattering Platform (MAXS)
Multi-purpose Adaptive X-ray Scattering platform (MAXS) (umu.se)

Links to doctoral courses at UmU:
Medical Faculty: Doctoral studies at the Faculty of Medicine (umu.se)
Faculty of Science and Technology: Doctoral studies (umu.se).

Also non-UmU applicants are considered if there are vacancies. Please contact the course organizer to learn more.