TWO Postdoc

Radboud University logo - Two Postdoc Positions on Synthetic Cells
Employment 1.0 FTE
Gross monthly salary € 3,706 - € 5,760
Required background PhD
Organizational unit Faculty of Science
Application deadline 15 October 2026
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These positions are part of a European consortium Propel, which aims to revolutionise sustainable bio-manufacturing through the creation of the first integrated, cost-efficient and scalable pipeline for the production of protein-based materials and biocatalysts using synthetic cells.
A key objective is the bottom-up construction of synthetic cells that are capable of sustained protein production. This is a formidable challenge as we lack a blueprint that allows for a bottom-up engineering approach. At the same time, there is an experimental bottleneck: the number of ingredients (lipids, amino acids, cell-free gene expression machinery) prevents a trial-and-error approach where the complete experimental space can be explored such that a large number of experiments will include the correct solution to the problem.
You will develop a design-build-test-learn cycle, combining high throughput experiments and active learning to obtain synthetic cells with the desired properties. You will integrate liquid handling robots and high-speed microscopy with AI and machine learning to form stable liposomes from libraries of (novel) phospholipids that can robustly encapsulate cell-free gene expression systems. You will then expand this pipeline to optimise the yield and especially the robustness of the cell-free expression system. The result will be synthetic cells that can be used across the consortium to degrade plastic waste and transform waste products into valuable biomaterials.
I try to help budding academics feel just as at home at Radboud University as I do.
Laura van Niftrik
Professor of Microbiology at the Faculty of Science
Laura van Niftrik is a Professor of Microbiology at the Faculty...