POSTDOCTORAL POSITION ON “COMBINATORIAL, HIGH-THROUGHPUT ORGANOID SCREENS FOR  PERSONALIZED MEDICINE”

(ref. BAP-2021-734)

Last modification : Wednesday, October 13, 2021

The Division of Mechatronics, Biostatistics and Sensors (MeBioS) performs  groundbreaking research on innovative sensor technologies and the associated  data analysis methods to understand and control the quality of products and  ongoing processes. The Biomimetics research group focuses on replicating  biological functions via engineered micro- and nano-systems for biomedical  applications.

Website unit

Responsibilities

Recent years have seen a surge in the development of microfluidicplatforms  for a wide diversity of applications, from diagnostics to newfundamental science  studies. Microdroplet-based platforms (a particular branchof microfluidics  capable of generating and manipulating identical, fL tonL-sized droplets at kHz  rates) has spearheaded several revolutionaryHigh-Throughput Screening (HTS)  assays, notably for applications in single cellomics. Yet, other promising HTS  applications of droplet-based microfluidics(such as drug screening) remain  largely untapped due to the impossibility ofcurrent droplet generation  strategies to handle drug libraries in acombinatorial manner.

The first phase of this project aims to develop astrategy to solve the  aforementioned limitation of droplet-based technology bydeveloping a hybrid  microfluidic-liquid handling platform with the capacity ofgenerating large  droplet libraries with distinct chemical payloads. Your taskswill involve:

• Designing, manufacturing and testing of novelmicrofluidic devices capable  of rapid and multiplexed droplet formation.

• Testing and applying amelioration strategies forstable long-term droplet  storage and prevention of payload leakage / dropletcross-talk.

• Setting up and operation of droplet screeningsystems and lab automation  devices (e.g. liquid handling systems).

In the second phase of this project you will adaptthis platform to enable the  production of/experimentation with patient-derivedorganoids, with the aim of  screening and selecting optimal combinatorialtreatments for Cystic Fibrosis (CF)  patients not eligible for registeredmodulator treatments (which currently  comprise 10% of the ofthe total population of CF patients)

Profile

Are you an energetic person, able to both think critically and creatively in  scientific terms while also being effective at overcoming technical challenges?  Are you keen on working at the crossroads of several disciplines (from  engineering to biomedicine)? Then you may be the perfect scientist to join our  team.

The ideal candidate will possess the following skillset:

•Expert knowledge of microfluidic technologies, ideally with a strong focus  on droplet-based techniques.

•Robust experience in spectroscopic techniques (specially fluorescence  strategies for multicolor imaging).

•Applied knowledge of molecular cell biology techniques.

•Experience in developing automated control systems and programming (in  either Matlab, Python or C++).

Important: to be eligible, candidates must not have been engaged in a  principal activity (work, studies, etc.) in Belgium for more than 24 months in  the last 3 years.

Offer

•We offer a full-time Postdoctoral position for 1 year. After positive  evaluation, the contract can be extended to 2 additional years (3 years in  total).

•State of the art research infrastructure.

•A challenging job in a young, dynamic environment.

•High level scientific training at a top-ranked university.

•Excellent guidance by our young, dynamic and multidisciplinary team.

•Being part of a world-class research group.

•Remuneration according to the KU Leuven salary scales  (https://www.kuleuven.be/english/research/associatienet/postdoc).

Interested?

For more information please contact Prof. dr. Xevi Casadevall i Solvas, tel.:  +32 16 37 71 03, mail: xevi.casadevall@kuleuven.be.

You can apply for this job no later than December 15, 2021 via the online  application tool

KU Leuven seeks to foster an environment where all talents can flourish,  regardless of gender, age, cultural background, nationality or impairments. If  you have any questions relating to accessibility or support, please contact us  at diversiteit.HR@kuleuven.be.

Please also have a look at our other opportunity:  https://www.kuleuven.be/personeel/jobsite/jobs/60068505?hl=en&lang=en

应聘时请将简历抄送一份到：chinayanjiusheng@126.com，邮件标题：应聘单位名称、姓名、学历、专业、博士研究生招聘网