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12 Doctoral Researcher Positions

Friedrich Schiller University is a traditional university with a strong research profile rooted in the heart of Germany. As a university covering all disciplines, it offers a wide range of subjects. Its research is focused on the areas Light—Life—Liberty. It is closely networked with non-research institutions, research companies and renowned cultural institutions. With around 18,000 students and more than 8,600 employees, the university plays a major role in shaping Jena’s character as a cosmopolitan and future-oriented city.

The DFG Research Training Group (RTG) 2723 Materials‐Microbes‐Microenvironments (M‐M‐M): Antimicrobial biomaterials with tailored structures and properties, at Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany, combines expertise in materials, life, medical, optical and computational sciences to develop ground-braking and highly innovative antimicrobial biomaterials for the prevention of biomaterials-associated infections (BAI). This will be approached by six interdisciplinary PhD tandem projects, each with two doctoral researchers (DRs) working on complementary materials science and medical/life science aspects of these questions in each project, with one materials scientist and one medical/life science professional working as team supervisors. Friedrich Schiller University (FSU) and Jena University Hospital (UKJ) closely cooperate within the RTG. Our full spectrum of excellent expertise in materials science and life sciences will be leveraged to address the critical issues of novel antimicrobial biomaterials in a collaborative spirit. The affiliated early career programs of the RTG, Jena School for Microbial Communication (JSMC) and Jena Graduate Academy offer ambitious, structured and interdisciplinary post-graduate training based on top-level basic and applied research. The research groups of the RTG M-M-M invite applications for

12 Doctoral Researcher Positions

to conduct research and training in the development of novel antimicrobial materials and their biological/medical compatibility and reactions.

Commencing on 1 February 2025 (fixed date), the positions are for up to 4 years. Six of the positions (materials science) are full time (100%), six of the positions (life sciences) are part time (65%). Each doctoral researcher will work in one of the following interdisciplinary tandem projects (materials science & life sciences):

  • Project A: Switchable antimicrobial materials (Prof. Dr. K. D. Jandt (FSU) & Prof. Dr. B. Löffler (UKJ))
  • Project B: Antimicrobial and bioactive nanoparticle functionalized protein coatings (Prof. Dr. K. D. Jandt (FSU) & Prof. Dr. B. Wildemann (UKJ))
  • Project C: Antimicrobial bioactive glass for treatment of traumatic or pathological bone defects (Prof. Dr. D. Brauer (FSU) & Prof. Dr. G. Matziolis (UKJ))
  • Project D: Graphene based antimicrobial biomaterials (Prof. Dr. A. Turchanin (FSU) & Prof. Dr. B. Löffler (UKJ))
  • Project E: Microbiological testing of materials (Prof. Dr. M. Pletz (UKJ) & Prof. Dr. C. Eggeling (FSU))
  • Project F: Digitized antimicrobial biomaterials semantic knowledge base (Prof. Dr. M. Sierka (FSU) & Prof. Dr. M. T. Figge (FSU/HKI))

 

Your responsibilities:

    • Actively and effectively contribute to the development of the project in research, training and organization of the RTG
    • Cooperate and support within the project and beyond
    • Produce high-quality written manuscripts for publication
    • Present your results at national and international conferences
    • Assist with training other researchers, including masters’ and undergraduate project students, as required
    • Contribute to maintaining the collaborative, friendly and welcoming environment within the RTG and its collaboration partners

Your profile:

    • An outstanding master’s degree (MSc) in materials science or physics or chemistry or chemical science or materials engineering or closely related (for materials science DRs), or microbiology or cell biology, molecular biology, biochemistry, biotechnologies, medicine, computer science, bioinformatics or closely related (for life science DRs). Candidates in the final stages of obtaining their degree are also eligible to apply.
    • Desired methodological skills materials science (one or more): materials design and synthesis, materials characterization and testing, PVD, microscopy methods, handling of proteins and nanomaterials, organic and inorganic materials preparation, computational materials science, data base experience, materials engineering skills
    • Or: Desired methodological skills life science (one or more): basic training in microbiology and bacterial culture; experience in cell culture and infection experiments; basic knowledge in molecular biology, FACS-analysis, advanced automated image data analysis, programming skills
    • Highly motivated individual with an interest in joining one of the interdisciplinary research areas of the RTG and cooperate with other projects and partners
    • The ability to work creatively and independently towards developing your own research project and collaborate with DRs of other disciplines
    • An integrative and cooperative personality with enthusiasm for actively participating in the dynamic RTG community
    • Outstanding English communication skills, both written and spoken

We offer:

    • Research in a clinically highly relevant topic
    • A highly communicative atmosphere within an energetic scientific network
    • A comprehensive mentoring program and soft skills courses for early career researchers
    • An international competitive interdisciplinary training program in materials science and life science
    • Jena – City of Science: a young and lively town with a vibrant local cultural agenda
    • A family-friendly working environment with a variety of offers for families: University Family Office ‘JUniFamilie’ and flexible childcare (‘JUniKinder‘)
    • University health promotion and a wide range of university sports activities
    • Attractive fringe benefits, e.g., capital formation benefits (VL) and an occupational pension (VBL)
    • 30 days of vacation per calendar year plus two days off on December 24 and 31
    • Remuneration based on the provisions of the Collective Agreement for the Public Sector of the Federal States (TV-L) at salary scale 13 — depending on the candidate’s personal qualifications—, including a special annual payment in accordance with the collective agreement.

Doctoral Research Positions are funded by the German federal and state governments. Friedrich Schiller University Jena is an equal opportunity employer. To promote gender equality in science, applications by woman are particularly welcome. Candidates with severe disabilities will be given preference in case of equal qualifications and suitability.

Applications in English should comprise a cover letter, a detailed curriculum vitae and copies of academic certificates as well as a minimum of two letters of support from referees. Please familiarize yourself with the available doctoral researcher projects at the website https://www.mmm.uni-jena.de/22/job-advertisement and the application process as described in the Online Application Portal. Please submit your application via the JSMC Online Application Portal, under the vacancy ID 169/2024 by 9. September 2024:

Master Thesis – Digital biomarkers in inflammatory arthritis – biomechanical and experimental analysis of hand motions

The Department of Internal Medicine 3 – Rheumatology and Immunology, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg & Universitätsklinikum Erlangen together with the Institute of Applied Dynamics (LTD) Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, are offering a

Master Thesis – Digital biomarkers in inflammatory arthritis – biomechanical and experimental analysis of hand motions

Marker-based motion capturing is the current gold standard for assessing human movement. Movements such as walking are well studied and differences in patterns influenced by diseases or muscular imbalances can be evaluated and used for diagnosis. However, evaluation of fine motor actions such as hand movement are challenging to date. Within the CRC
EmpkinS, the Department of Internal Medicine 3 – Rheumatology and Immunology and the Institute of Applied Dynamics (LTD) conducted a large research study. A group of 150 patients and 75 healthy subjects were already measured for characterizing hand movements. These evaluations will help to define hand biomarkers for monitoring disease activity in rheumatic patients.

The project involves

  • Biomechanical analysis of hand movements based on the existing data set
  • Statistical analysis and reporting of relevant parameters
  • Data collection of hand movements via motion capturing and EMG

Qualifications

  • Biomedical engineering, engineering with focus on biomechanics, sport science or related studies
  • C1 in German (for communication with patients) and B2 in English
  • Programming experience in Matlab, Python or similar
  • Courses in biomechanics and statistics (desirable), interest in working with patients

What we offer

  • Interdisciplinary environment in an innovative Collaborative Research Centre EmpkinS
  • Possibility to continue as a PhD student
  • Additonal employment as student assistant in the working group Musculoskeletal Function and Mechanobiology, Universitätsklinikum Erlangen

Start date: November 2024

If interested, please E-mail to: Birte Coppers, birte.coppers@uk-erlangen.de

 

PhD student position in Biomechanics / Musculoskeletal modelling

   

PhD student position in Biomechanics / Musculoskeletal modelling

Earliest start: September 01, 2024
Workplace: Basel (Switzerland)

The project
Anterior knee pain, notably due to patella-femoral joint instability (PFJ) is a very common orthopaedics issue, particularly in adolescent girls. The causes for the instability are multi factorial and there is a knowledge gap on what are the most important factors and the patho-mechanics of the instability. Three main factors may contribute: abnormal shape of the femur and patella bones, laxity of the medial patella femoral ligament (MPFL), and the orientation of the knee extensor mechanism. Clinical decision-making process requires to evaluate the relative contribution of each factor to the overall instability to address the principal cause(s) and help the patient. We hypothesise the relative contribution of each factor varies from one patient to another, and between groups of increasing level of instability.
The objective of this project is to develop and implement a patient-specific musculoskeletal modelling platform to evaluate the relative contribution of each factor to the PFJ instability. Three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) will be utilised to create patient-specific detailed model of the knee joint while bi-plane radiographs (EOS) will be utilised to create patient-specific models of the entire lower limbs and provide accurate markers to bone registration.
Musculoskeletal simulations will utilise the OpenSim musculoskeletal modelling platform.

Your assignments

The PhD project is fully funded for up to four years. The student will be working among a multidisciplinary team of orthopaedic surgeons, physiotherapists, human movement scientists, and biomedical engineers at the University Children’s Hospital Basel (UKBB). The PhD student will oversee data collection for the project at UKBB. The candidate will be registered as a PhD student at the University of Basel, and work under the supervision of Dr. Morgan Sangeux (UKBB and Department of Biomedical engineering).
In addition, the PhD student will help organize – jointly with the team – workshops and conferences, participate in outreach activities of the project, and present her/his research at scientific meetings.

Your profile

Applicants should hold a master’s degree in Biomechanics or related fields and possess excellent, demonstrated, programming skills (Matlab/python). The student should have good command of German (to interact with patients and families) and English and be able to work autonomously within an internationally and institutionally diverse environment.

We offer you

The project is based at UKBB and in the department of biomedical engineering at the University of Basel. The multidisciplinary nature of the project ensures the successful candidate will be immersed in a stimulating clinical and research environment, with cutting edge medical imaging infrastructure. The salary and the conditions of employment will be those of PhD students at the University of Basel. Salary: approx. 50’000 Swiss francs / year.

Contact

Applicants should contact Dr. Morgan Sangeux (morgan.sangeux@unibas.ch) with a motivation letter and a current CV.