Do you enjoy working with cell culture, and are you experienced with Organs-on-Chips models? Do you want to work on a project that focuses on studying the development and therapy of COVID-19 post-ARDS pulmonary fibrosis? Then this might be the perfect position for you!

Development of severe COVID-19 is associated with significant lung damage, where scar tissue formation (fibrosis) in lung tissue develops in a subset of patients. This occurs mostly in patients with a severe course of disease, who usually have to be ventilated at the intensive care. In addition to the virus infection, mechanical ventilation is potentially also a risk factor for fibrosis development, and this is where you come in! We aim to understand the long-term consequences of severe viral infections on lung tissue and the possible role of mechanical ventilation. Based on this new insight, the course of the disease can be better predicted and a (better) treatment can be developed.

The overall goal of this project is to develop a 'fibrosis lung-chip' culture model in which we simulate normal and mechanical ventilation-like breathing stresses, to understand how fibrosis develops. This model consists of human cells, providing an effective starting point for a better understanding of fibrosis, and treatment.

You will focus on the identification of key players in post-ARDS fibrosis development using Precision Cut Lung Slices and translate this to a representative model of this process in our Organ-on-Chip platform.

The PulmoScience lab of the Department of Pulmonology works with a variety of advanced cell cultures models including commercial Lung-Chips, which will form the foundation for development of these models.

·         You are a passionate postdoc with affinity for respiratory research;

·         You hold a PhD, and you have experience with isolation of human primary cells from tissue;

·         Furthermore, it is appreciated if you are familiar with organs-on-chips technology, and that you work structured and highly organized;

·         Lastly, you are an enthusiastic team player who is dedicated, and always curious.

Fixed-term contract: duration project.

You will be employed on the basis of 36 hours per week. Appointment is for one year, with an extension of two years. Your salary is based on your education and experience and is a maximum of  € 5,088  gross per month for a full time position (scale 10 in the Collective Labour Agreement for University Hospitals).

LUMC

At the Leiden University Medical Center, we continuously work on improving patient care. We invest in groundbreaking, international research and work with the latest equipment. Together with our team of doctors, medical specialists, teachers, academic researchers and supporting staff, we aim for the best quality in health care, education and international research. And we need you to realize our goals!

Department of Pulmonology

Within the LUMC, the Department of Pulmonology is a clinical department that primarily focuses on thoracic oncology and regenerative medicine. It’s scientific research strives for international impact through integration of human clinical research with basic scientific research using advanced cell culture models. The PulmoScience Lab consists of a team of ten to fifteen people, including students, PhD-students and postdocs headed by Prof. Dr. Pieter S. Hiemstra.