PhD Student (100%) in the field of "nanomedicine for pregnancy"

Empa, Switzerland

Updated: about 2 years ago
Deadline: The position may have been removed or expired!

Empa - the place where innovation starts

Empa is the research institute for materials science and technology of the ETH Domain and conducts cutting-edge research for the benefit of industry and the well-being of society.


In the Laboratory for Particles-Biology Interactions at  Empa in St. Gallen, we aim to develop healthcare solutions of the future, grounded in the in-depth understanding of materials-biology interactions across scale. The Laboratory has strong partnerships with academic institutions, industry sector, and hospitals within Switzerland and around the world.


We are looking for a highly motivated and enthusiastic


PhD Student (100%) in the field of "nanomedicine for pregnancy"

to join our dynamic and interdisciplinary team. Would you like to contribute to the development of novel responsive nanomedicines to alleviate diseases in pregnancy? Prenatal inflammation is closely associated with numerous pregnancy disorders but current standard therapies are often ineffective and/or complicated by substantial safety concerns. We offer a PhD project within the frame of a Sino-Swiss Science and Technology Collaboration (Empa- Zhejiang University China) funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation. The objective of the project is to develop novel nanoparticle-based therapies for safe and effective treatment of gestational inflammation. The performance and safety of the nanomedicines will be investigated in advanced biological models (e.g. human placental tissue explants and ex vivo perfusion, microphysiological in vitro model of the maternal-placental-embryonic axis) and will include transcriptomics profiling.


We are looking for a highly motivated team player capable of independent, efficient handling of scientific projects in an interdisciplinary environment. The candidate should have a Master degree in biology, biomedical engineering, life science or a related field. You should have a sound biological background and cell culture experience and ideally already gained first experience in nanosafety assessment and/or transcriptomics profiling. Furthermore, excellent writing and communication skills (English) are of great importance.


We offer a interdisciplinary and supportive research environment with state-of-the-art laboratory equipment.In this project, you can obtain a broad set of skills including human primary tissue isolation and culture, microphsyiologic co-culture organoid models, bioinformatics, nanoparticle characterization and different analytical methods.You will have the opportunity for close collaborations with experts from different fields (incl. engineers, chemists, clinicians) and for several short-term national and international research visits (ETH Zurich, Zhejiang University).The position is located at Empa St.Gallen and is available from March 2022 or after negotiation for 4 years.

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