Postdoctoral position (Fall 2013)
Mechanobiology of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms (AAA)
Aneurysm of the abdominal aorta (AAA) is a common and frequently lethal age-related disease affecting 6 to 9% of the population over the age of 65. The formation of AAA is believed to be a multi-factorial and degenerative process resulting from a complex interplay between biological processes in the arterial wall and the hemodynamic stimuli on the wall, such as Wall Shear Stress (WSS). As a monolayer in direct contact with blood, vascular endothelial cells (EC) are the primary cells exposed to the WSS. The aim of this project is to investigate the role of hemodynamic forces, in particular spatio-temporal WSS gradients, on EC dysfunction and consequently on the AAA wall remodelling. The work of the post-doctoral fellow will consist in:
developing a new device allowing to reproduce wall shear stress encountered at different locations of the aneurismal sac on endothelial cells within dedicated flow chambers;
designing an AAA model in order to study the effect of spatio-temporal WSS gradients.
To clarify the role of the shear stress gradient in EC-dysfunction, EC will be analyzed for several biological aspects in both experimental setups. The above experiments will be coupled with real-time microscopy observations, and biological measurements, such as the expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) and nitric oxide (NO).
Collaboration: This work will be carried out in the « laboratoire Interdisciplinaire de Physique (LIPhy) » in Grenoble, in collaboration with the lab 3SR, the Institut Albert Bonniot (IAB) and IRPHE (Marseille)
Qualifications: We are looking for a candidate with expertise in biomechanics, biophysics and/or biology. An experience in cell culture will be appreciated.
Application deadline: june 30, 2013.
Starting date of the position: Ideally between September and November 2013.
Duration: 12 months.
Application procedure: Interested candidates should send their applications to claude.verdier@ujf-grenoble.fr. The application should include a letter of interest, a curriculum vitae with list of publications as well as names and (e-mail) addresses of two referees.