The Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) is seeking a highly-talented, ambitious and passionate PhD candidate to investigate the interplay between the human placenta and its environment. In particular, we aim to deploy and improve living cell models, as well as computational models, to recreate the placenta and its interaction with blood vessels, the extracellular matrix and the immune system (the fetal-maternal interface).

As the successful candidate, research that you will carry out with us will be part of wider efforts aiming at tissue-engineering the placenta for pharmacological and biological purposes, and work towards developing testing platforms for placental therapy to cure diseases of the placenta e.g. fetal growth restriction and pre-eclampsia (dangerously high blood pressure of pregnancy).



Job Description

You will generate living cell, experimental, and numerical models that mimic and simulate placental function, both mechanically, as well as biologically, and solve critical questions in placental biology and disease-modelling relevant to humans.

Your research will resort to correlating experimental models combining various technologies to study the interactions between placental trophoblast cells and organoids, vascular endothelial cells, immune cells and the extracellular matrix (ECM) in a controlled micro-environment including i) stem cell culture, human tissue and bioreactor work, ii) molecular multi- omics and imaging techniques to study cells, matrix and pathways, iii) advanced immune-engineering and microfluidics work to study cell-cell interactions.

By building on experimental protocols previously established in the group, you will develop new methodological approaches and experimental setups currently unavailable in the field. You are expected to do scientific research in the field described above, write a doctoral thesis, and publish research results in scientific journals. A small part of your doctoral position will involve teaching in courses as well as the supervision of students at the bachelor's and master's levels offered by the group. Further, your work will include frequent interactions with our other mechanobiology groups and our clinical team at Maxima Medical Center, Veldhoven. Also, an educational and professional development program will be offered to you.

Embedding

You will be embedded in a highly inspiring research environment, both socially and professionally, which facilitates access to high-end research facilities, as well as fosters interdisciplinary collaborations. You will be an integral member of the Soft Tissue Engineering and Mechanobiology (STEM) group of the Department Biomedical Engineering, and specifically operate at the interface of the teams led by prof Bas van Rijn (Perinatal Health and Technology) and prof Carlijn Bouten (Cell-Matrix Interactions for Cardiovascular Tissue Regeneration) at the Department of Biomedical Engineering at TU/e.

• A master's degree (or an equivalent university degree) in Biomedical Engineering, Biomedical Sciences, Materials Sciences, or comparable discipline.
• Extensive eperience with cell and tissue culture as well as cell-cell signaling pathway manipulation is a must. Competencies with extracellular matrix biology and cellular mechanobiology will be considered as a relevant added value.
• A research-oriented attitude.
• Ability to effectively communicate scientific ideas, foster collaborations and have a capability for independent thinking.
• Ability to work independently within a multidisciplinary team with researchers at various academic levels.
• Fluent in spoken and written English (C1 level).

You will have a meaningful job in a dynamic and ambitious university, in an interdisciplinary setting and within an international network. You will work on a beautiful, green campus within walking distance of the central train station. In addition, we will offer you:

• A full-time employment for four years, with an intermediate evaluation after one year.
• To support and mentor you during your PhD and to prepare you for the rest of your career, you will have free access to a personal development program for PhD students (PROOF program).
• A gross monthly salary and benefits in accordance with the Collective Labor Agreement for Dutch Universities, scale P (min. € 2.872,- max. € 3.670,-).
• An annual holiday allowance of 8%, plus a year-end allowance of 8.3% of the annual salary.
• High-quality training programs and other support to grow into a self-aware, autonomous scientific researcher. At TU/e we will challenge you to take charge of your own learning process.
• An excellent technical infrastructure, on-campus children's day care and sports facilities.
• A broad package of fringe benefits, including allowance for commuting and moving expenses.
• A Staff Immigration Team and a tax compensation scheme (the 30% facility) for international candidates.