Do you want to advance our knowledge on bile duct inflammation using an organ-on-a-chip system?

One position is available as a Postdoctoral fellow, a 3-year engagement at the Norwegian PSC Research center (NoPSC) at Department of Transplantation Medicine, Oslo University Hospital. The project is funded by the Research council of Norway project DUCTchip and will be a collaborative project between NoPSC and the Norwegian Centre of Excellence Hybrid-technology-hub (HTH).

NoPSC is dedicated to research on the chronic liver disease primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). Immune functions play a clear role in the disease pathogenesis but still a lot is unknown regarding inflammatory mechanisms in the bile ducts. The NoPSC center comprises three research groups covering all aspects of research related to primary sclerosing cholangitis, from basic genomic and experimental studies to clinical research and clinical trials. The research environment is world-leading for PSC and counts 20-25 engaged researchers from several countries and specialties.

We are now seeking a skilled and ambitious co-worker to take on a challenging project funded by the Research Council of Norway. The project will be a collaborative effort with a Norwegian Centre of Excellence headed by Prof. Stefan Krauss. The project aims to develop a bile-duct-on-a-chip using organoid technology, microfluidics and on-line readouts. The project is led by Senior researcher Espen Melum who will combine his expertise on bile duct inflammation and bile duct diseases with technological advances at the Centre of Excellence. The postdoctoral fellow will form an integrated team together with researchers at HTH and NoPSC that will develop a bile-duct-on a chip to study immunological functions in the bile ducts. All results from the chip-based experiments will be cross-validated in animal models and/or human disease.

The Postdoctoral fellow will be employed at Norwegian PSC Research Center, Department of Transplantation Medicine, Oslo University Hospital and work in the environment of the Research Institute of Internal Medicine, Division of Surgery, Inflammatory Diseases and Transplantation, University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital.

Qualification requirements

• Applicants must hold a relevant PhD
• Ability to design, plan, interpret original experiments in an independent and innovative way
• Experience with advanced cell-culture, including organoid culture techniques, and organ-on-a-chip systems is an advantage
• Experience with establishing and characterizing novel in vitro disease models and developing adequate on-chip readouts is an advantage
• Experience with 3D bioprinting and diverse cell culture matrixes is an advantage
• Experience in molecular biology is a requirement, preferably within immunology including techniques such as confocal microscopy, image analysis

Personal skills

• Well organized with high working capacity and productivity
• Excellent team working skills
• Strong motivation for a career in science, including project management and scientific writing
• Excellent writing and oral communication in English

Personal suitability for the position will be emphasized and taken into account.

We offer

• Salary NOK 534 400 – NOK 594 300 per annum depending on qualifications in position as Postdoctoral Research Fellow (position code 1352)
• An ambitious, stimulating and friendly working environment located at Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet
• Attractive welfare benefits and a generous pension agreement, in addition to Oslo’s family-friendly environment with its rich opportunities for culture and outdoor activities

How to apply

The application must include

• Application letter
• A one-page statement of motivation and research interests
• CV (summarizing education, position and academic work, and that lists scientific publications)
• Copies of educational certificates
• List of publications
• Names and contact details of 2-3 referees (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)

The application with attachments must be delivered in our electronic recruiting system. Foreign applicants are advised to attach an explanation of their University's grading system. Please note that all documents should be in English (or a Scandinavian language).

Formal regulations

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Oslo.

No one can be appointed for more than one Postdoctoral Fellow period at the University of Oslo.

According to the Norwegian Freedom of Information Act (Offentleglova) information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure.

The appointment may be shortened/given a more limited scope within the framework of the applicable guidelines on account of any previous employment in academic positions.

Inclusion and diversity are a strength. The University of Oslo has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. We also want to have employees with diverse expertise, combinations of subjects, life experience and perspectives. We will make adjustments for employees who require this.

The University of Oslo has an agreement for all employees, aiming to secure rights to research results etc.

If there are qualified applicants with special needs, gaps in their CVs or immigrant backgrounds, we will invite at least one applicant in each of these groups to an interview.

Contact information

Contact persons:

• Senior researcher Espen Melum, MD, PhD, Project leader, espen.melum@medisin.uio.no Tel. +47 91780732

For further info about the research environment please see:

• NoPSC (www.ous-research.no/nopsc)
• Espen Melum’s group (www.ous-research.no/melum)
• Hybrid-technology-hub (https://www.med.uio.no/hth/english/)

For Questions regarding the online application form contact:

• Senior HR adviser Heidi Falch Ecklund, h.f.ecklund@medisin.uio.no.

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