Regenerative medicine holds the promise to cure many of what are now chronic patients, restoring health rather than protracting decline, bettering the lives of millions and at the same time preventing lifelong, expensive care processes: cure instead of care. More specifically, at present, dialysis and transplantation are the only treatment options for end-stage kidney disease. In the Netherlands alone, 6,500 people currently depend on dialysis, approximately 1,300 of which will die this year. Regenerative medicine offers an alternative treatment in the form of a bioengineered kidney. As a first step, the partners of RegMed XB will work towards creating a functional subunit of a bioengineered kidney. This functional subunit is the nephron, of which there are approximately one million in the adult kidney. In order to inform the in vitro experiments as well as design a bioartificial kidney as an intermediate step towards a fully bioengineered kidney, this project will use computational models to simulate toxin transport and calculate the flow and geometry requirements for adequate toxin removal in various set-ups: microfluidic, organoid culture systems and bioartificial devices.

Project description:

• Computational modeling of toxin transport, computational fluid dynamics, to inform the design of in vitro kidney organoid experiments and/or bioartificial kidney devices
• Parameter optimization and sensitivity analysis
• Analysis and integration of various in vitro/in vivo data for model calibration

What we offer:

• Computational ecosystem at Maastricht University: Institute for Data Science (IDS), Department of Knowledge Engineering (DKE) and Maastricht Centre for Systems Biology (MacsBio)
• Excellent computational and experimental facilities to validate the in silico analyses and predictions in vitro/in vivo
• Interdisciplinary environment within MERLN and the RegMed XB consortium

Project embedding:

The project will be coordinated by the MERLN Institute for Technology-Inspired Regenerative Medicine (http://merln.maastrichtuniversity.nl/) at Maastricht University (UM), while closely collaborating with TU Eindhoven, Utrecht University and Leiden University as part of RegMed XB, which stands for “Regenerative Medicine Crossing Borders”. RegMed XB is a virtual institute composed of universities, health foundations, governments and private companies in the Netherlands and Belgium. The partners work together to tackle some of the greatest challenges in regenerative medicine, while building a community of researchers and companies to realize health and economic benefits. RegMed XB is best-suited for those scientists who are driven to make a difference in the lives of patients and who wish to join a growing initiative that promises to integrate entrepreneurial activities with the excellent scientific research performed within the universities. Joining RegMed XB means being part of a community working on research programs aimed to cure a chronic disease (for more information, please visit www.regmedxb.com).

Requirements and key expertise

• PhD in mathematical biology, computational mathematics, biomedical engineering, numerical optimization, computational fluid dynamics, or equivalent
• Demonstrated ability to work independently as well as in a team
• Strong scientific background and publication record
• Expertise in computational modeling, computational fluid dynamics
• Good programming skills (for example Comsol, Matlab, Python, R, VCell)· 
• Affinity with regenerative medicine
• Good oral and written English communication

Fixed-term contract: 1 year.

The position is temporary for the duration of the project (12 months). Depending on experience and qualification, the gross monthly salary is scale 10 (max. € 4.402,-), based on a full-time appointment.

The terms of employment of Maastricht University are set out in the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities (CAO). Furthermore, local UM provisions also apply. For more information look at the website www.maastrichtuniversity.nl > Support > UM employees.

Maastricht University

Maastricht University (UM) is the most international university in the Netherlands and, with more than 18,000 students and 4,400 employees, is still growing. The university stands out for its innovative education model, international character and multidisciplinary approach to research and education. Thanks to its high-quality research and study programs as well as a strong focus on social engagement, UM has quickly built up a solid reputation. Today it is considered one of the best young universities in the world.

Maastricht is the southernmost city in the Netherlands, and is the capital of the province of Limburg. Situated on the Maas river, within walking distance of Belgium and cycling distance of Germany, it claims to be the oldest city in the Netherlands (a claim it shares with Nijmegen). A great place to spend some time, it contains some magnificent buildings and culture, taking the form of plenty of old houses and buildings, lovely cathedrals and a spectacularly cobblestoned town centre. The city is also well known for its fine cuisine, excellent shops and multicultural atmosphere.

MERLN Institute

The MERLN Institute for Technology-inspired Regenerative Medicine focuses on developing novel and challenging technologies to advance the field of tissue and organ repair and regeneration through, amongst others, the development of high-throughput material platforms to screen cell-biomaterial interactions. MERLN consists of an interdisciplinary team of researchers including fields as (stem cell) biology, materials engineering, chemistry, micro/nanofabrication, additive manufacturing, etc. The scientists at MERLN have an extensive network of collaborators within research institutions in and outside the Netherlands as well as with a number of biomedical companies, including their own spin-off companies, as entrepreneurship is highly fostered.