Phd position making membranes for synthetic cells

Can we build metabolic pathways that convert nutrients into membranes for synthetic cells? 

We seek a highly motivated individual to build membranes for synthetic organisms. Building life from nonliving components - whether assembled by a living organism, or within a test tube by a researcher - requires a membrane to contain the stuff that makes living cells alive. Cell membranes are assembled from metabolites by lipid synthesis pathways, which produce insoluble molecules from soluble precursors. Working in the model prokaryote E. Coli, our group has extensively characterized metabolic regulation and adaptation of fatty acid biosynthesis pathways using mass spectrometry-based analytical tools that are unique to the field. The PhD will use cell-free expression systems to generate fatty acid and phospholipid synthesis pathways from synthetic gene circuits and apply our analytical tools to analyze and troubleshoot the assembled pathways. Our long-term goal is a designed pathway that can generate sufficient phospholipids from soluble substrates to enable growth of a synthetic cell.

This project is part of the EVOLF consortium, which seeks to create living cells from nonliving materials. EVOLF consists of 31 research labs tackling different aspects of this challenge in an integrated and collaborative manner. As this project progresses, we will seek to integrate our optimized phospholipid synthesis pathway with additional elements of living cells, such as cell division machinery and metabolite importers, to move closer to realizing artificial life. In the longer term, we will use evolution to improve the performance and integration of the synthetic components.

The PhD will join the Bokinsky Lab in the Bionanoscience Department at TU Delft. We have extensive experience in diverse fields, including (top-down) synthetic biology, genetic and metabolic engineering, live-cell microscopy, and mass spectrometry-based analysis of proteomes and metabolites in living cells. You can find more information about our synthetic biology and membrane metabolism research on our website at sites.google.com/site/bokinskylab.

Applicants should have (or be about to earn) a Masters degree in biology, biochemistry, biotechnology, biophysics, microbiology, or a related field. Experience with metabolic modelling, liquid chromatography / mass spectrometry, the Python programming language, or in vitro transcription/translation systems is highly desirable but not essential. Applicants must have excellent written and spoken English skills to ensure good communications and interactions, as well as to participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, read, comprehend, and write scientific articles, and complete a PhD thesis. For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements.

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

With more than 1,100 employees, including 150 pioneering principal investigators, as well as a population of about 3,600 passionate students, the Faculty of Applied Sciences is an inspiring scientific ecosystem. Focusing on key enabling technologies, such as quantum- and nanotechnology, photonics, biotechnology, synthetic biology and materials for energy storage and conversion, our faculty aims to provide solutions to important problems of the 21st century. To that end, we educate innovative students in broad Bachelor's and specialist Master's programmes with a strong research component. Our scientists conduct ground-breaking fundamental and applied research in the fields of Life and Health Science & Technology, Nanoscience, Chemical Engineering, Radiation Science & Technology, and Engineering Physics. We are also training the next generation of high school teachers.

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1.5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2.5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

). You can find more information about our synthetic biology and membrane metabolism research on our website at and about the EVOLF consortium at: .

Are you interested in this vacancy? Please apply no later than via the application button and upload the following documents:

• A detailed CV.
• A motivation letter that describes your previous research experience and your specific interests in this project.
• Names and email addresses of two references who can evaluate how you work in a research setting.

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the .

• Be aware that we will evaluate the applications as they arrive on a rolling basis.
• A pre-employment screening can be part of the selection procedure.
• For the final candidates, a knowledge security check will be part of the application procedure. For more information on this check, please consult Chapter 8 of the National Knowledge Security Guidelines. We carry out this check on the basis of legitimate interest.
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