The department of Advanced Organ bioengineering and Therapeutics AOT of the Faculty of Science and Technology (TNW), has an opening of a 4-year PhD position on the “Development of a BioArtificial Kidney device consisting of living membranes for improved kidney replacement therapy, BAKtothe future.

Patients with end stage kidney disease (ESKD) need kidney replacement therapy (KRT) to survive, but current solutions (dialysis, kidney transplantation) are insufficient. The majority of ESKD patients is dependent on dialysis which places a heavy burden on their life. Removal of uremic toxins is inadequate, as all current dialysis therapies only mimic the filtration by kidney glomeruli, and do not replace any functionality of kidney tubules. BAKtotheFuture aims to develop a Bioartificial Kidney (BAK) that mimics tubular functionalities as an indispensable addition to current dialysis techniques.
Our earlier studies have shown the proof of concept of a small scale BAK system consisting of living membranes of kidney proximal tubular cells cultured on polymeric hollow fibres. The current project aims to optimise the living membranes by using combined computational and experimental approaches and develop an upscaled BAK for in vivo validation in a rat model of kidney failure.

This PhD project will be focused on novel strategies for achieving upscaling of the BAK. For achieving this, new types of artificial membranes would be developed, cell cultures protocols on these membranes would be optimised and uremic solutes removal from blood, by the new device, should be performed.

The project will be performed in collaboration with researchers from Utrecht University (Prof. R. Masereeuw), Maastricht University (Dr. Carlier) and UMC Utrecht (Dr. K. Gerritsen).

We are looking for a candidate with a MSc degree in biomedical engineering, biomedical sciences, cell biology or related fields.

The ideal candidate should have:

• An enthusiastic and highly motivated research attitude.
• Knowledge or experience in biomaterials – cell interactions and membrane technology, which are preferred.
• The ability to work independently and possess excellent theoretical, experimental, and writing skills.
• Excellent English writing and presentation skills.
• Experience mentoring BSc and MSc students and collaborating effectively with multidisciplinary team members. It is therefore essential to demonstrate a willingness to look beyond disciplinary boundaries.

• Fulltime position for 4 years
• The university offers a dynamic ecosystem with enthusiastic colleagues in a stimulating scientific environment.
• The starting salary, depending on your experience, ranges between € 2.770,- and € 3.539 ,-
• A holiday allowance of 8% of the gross annual salary and a year-end bonus of 8.3%.
• The number of holiday hours for full-time employment is 232 hours per calendar year.

AOT consists of 3 research chairs: (1) Biomaterials and regenerative medicine, (2) (Bio)artificial organs, (3) Engineered therapeutics. Its mission is:

1. To provide innovative technological solutions to patients suffering from chronic and malignant diseases to gain a longer, better, and healthier life.
2. To provide excellent education to a new generation of professionals with interdisciplinary knowledge able to meet the needs for the next century related to patient treatment.

This mission is achieved through the application of state-of-the-art technologies at the interface of chemistry, biomaterials and membrane science, additive manufacturing, biofabrication, tissue engineering and nanomedicine. AOT combines unique expertise spanning the fields of (bio)artificial organs, targeted therapeutics and biomaterials and regenerative medicine. Our activities are embedded in challenging and interactive training programs for bachelor and master students and graduate and post-graduate students. We strive to implement innovative technologies from the benchtop to the clinic, and to valorize our findings via initiating new spin-off companies.