Research Fellow [LKCMedicine] Full-time

Research Fellow (Vascularized Organoids & Microphysiological Systems)

The Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine), Nanyang Technological University, develops advanced human microphysiological systems (MPS) and vascularized organoid platforms to model solid-tumour biology and therapy response. This position will support a project to develop and validate a colon cancer model, a kit-ready vascularized patient-derived organoid platform enabling intravascular dosing, real-time imaging, and downstream tissue retrieval for flow cytometry and single-cell/spatial profiling. The Lab works at the interface of bioengineering and translational cancer biology, with a focus on standardizing workflows (SOPs and QC criteria) to enable robust cross-sample comparisons and future scale-out.

We are looking for a Research Fellow to lead the day-to-day execution of a platform development project focused on patient-derived colorectal cancer organoid culture integrated with perfused microvascular networks. The role will focus on optimizing and standardizing vascularized organoid workflows, executing drug-response and combination-therapy assays, coordinating single-cell and spatial profiling readouts, and delivering validated SOPs/QC metrics and project milestones.

Key Responsibilities:

• Establish, maintain, and quality-control patient-derived colorectal cancer organoids (PDOs), including expansion, organoid formation, and experimental scheduling.
• Set up and optimize vascularized organoid cultures.
• Execute intravascular dosing assays (e.g., 5-FU and rational combinations), including experimental design, controls, replicate planning, and documentation.
• Perform and/or coordinate readouts including live/dead imaging, confocal microscopy quantification, and sample retrieval for downstream analyses.
• Conduct tissue dissociation and immune/phenotypic profiling workflows as needed (e.g., flow cytometry, immunofluorescence marker validation, basic biomarker assays).
• Coordinate external core services and pipelines for single-cell RNA-seq (and, where applicable, spatial profiling), including sample preparation, submission logistics, and data organization.
• Perform first-pass data handling and interpretation (with lab bioinformatics support), including QC tracking, summary plots, and integration of multimodal results into clear conclusions.
• Manage project operations: procurement of consumables, inventory tracking, coordination with collaborators/industry partners where relevant, and monthly progress reporting to the PI.
• Contribute to outputs: figures, internal reports, conference abstracts, manuscripts, and invention/patent-supporting documentation when appropriate.

Required educational qualification, experience, skills and competencies:

• PhD in Bioengineering, Biomedical Engineering, Cell/Molecular Biology, Biotechnology, Immunology, Cancer Biology, or a closely related discipline.
• Demonstrated hands-on experience with 3D culture systems, preferably patient-derived organoids/tumoroids and/or primary cell co-cultures.
• Experience with one or more of the following: microfluidics or organ-on-chip systems, perfusable/vascular co-culture models, ECM hydrogel handling (e.g., collagen/fibrin), confocal microscopy, image quantification, flow cytometry.
• Familiarity with sample preparation and coordination for single-cell workflows (e.g., viability handling, dissociation, logistics with sequencing cores); basic literacy in interpreting scRNA-seq outputs is an advantage.
• Strong organizational skills, meticulous record-keeping, and ability to execute under project timelines; ability to work independently while coordinating with a multidisciplinary team.
• Good written and oral communication skills for reporting progress, documenting SOPs/QC, and contributing to manuscripts/presentations.

Hiring Institution: LKC