PhD Position in Organ-on-Chip Platforms to model Inflammatory Arthritis

Updated: over 1 year ago
Location: Ireland,
Job Type: FullTime
Deadline: 15 Aug 2022

Organ-on-Chip Platforms to model Inflammatory Arthritis

The position will be based within the Hoey and Kelly Labs at the Trinity Centre for Biomedical Engineering , Trinity College Dublin and will be part of the Materials for Health platform within the Advanced Materials and Bioengineering Research Centre (AMBER) centre.

Summary of project:

Arthritis is a leading cause of disability affecting up to 15% of the Irish population. 2% suffer from inflammatory arthritis (IA) such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA). The cost of treating patients with IA in Ireland is ~€20,000/patient/year.

Drug development is a long, flawed process that can take 15 years and cost €2.3Billion per drug. 90% of drugs fail in clinical studies while 10% of drugs fail even after regulatory approval. A key determinant in this failed process is the lack of adequate lab-based models to test drug efficacy. Current human cell culture models are rudimentary and pre-clinical animal models don not accurately replicate the human response. Inflammatory Arthirits is debilitating disease and current therapeutics are severely limited. Therefore, the proposed project aims to develop microphysiological models of human bone, cartilage, and synovium which can be combined to form a Joint-on-Chip that can be used to better understand joint physiology and importantly pathophysiology. These models would represent innovative lab-based platforms for IA drug development and screening.

This project will combine expertise within the applicant’s team, along with collaborators in the School of Medicine , to develop new materials and cell culture platforms which will facilitate the recapitulation of human joint physiology in a dish. 

The PhD student will be supported by a stipend of €18,000 + EU fees for 4 years.

How to apply:

CVs with the names and addresses of three referees should be e-mailed to:

Prof. David Hoey; E-mail: [email protected]

Positions will remain opened until filled but preferred start date is September 1 2022. Only short-listed applications will be acknowledged.



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