Internship

Electrical stimulation of Cardiomyocytes in a Heart-on-a-Chip.

START: 03-02-2025
END: 04-07-2025

Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is a serious health status affecting 33 million worldwide. The drug development for AF is cost intensive and a time-consuming process. Organ-on-Chip technology has the potential to revolutionize drug development. While conventional processes involve animal testing, this number can be reduced significantly by using human stem cell derived cardiomyocytes. 

The goal of this internship is the implementation of gold electrodes in the current Heart-on-a-Chip design, the culture of hiPSC derived cardiomyocytes in the chip and the pacing of cells using the sputtered electrodes. The success of the pacing is followed by fluo-4 staining of the calcium influx. The project also involves the automation of medium exchange using a small-scale pipetting robot. After the proof-of-principle, atrial fibrillation can be simulated by high-frequency pacing of cardiomyocytes and the effect of drugs can be studied.

Educational programmes: Biology and Medical Lab Research (BML) or a comparable study program

Interested? Please send your motivation letter and CV before the 1st of December 2024 to Michelle Fleermann (m.fleermann@saxion.nl)

An osteoblast/osteoclast co-culture model to study menopause related osteoporosis.

START: 03-02-2025
END: 04-07-2025

Menopause marks the final menstrual period in a woman’s life. In the period preceding menopause, called perimenopause, a shift in hormonal balance occurs. While some women go through this period uneventfully, others experience negative consequences that affect their physical health and workability. One of the physical health risks is an increased chance of osteoporosis.  Hormonal changes during the perimenopausal cause women to lose bone mass at a rate that corresponds to 5-10 years of normal aging, increasing the lifetime fracture risk to nearly 50%. In the graduation project, the student will focus on a better understanding of the pathophysiology of accelerated bone loss.  To study pathophysiological mechanisms, human cell culture models are an important tool to allow better translation to the clinical situation in comparison to animal models. Microfluidic co-culture models resemble the in vivo situation in human bone compared to conventional separate cell culture models. Therefore, the student will establish a microfluidic osteoblast/osteoclast co-culture model that will be used to study osteoporosis on a chip. The microfluidic co-culture will be compared to conventional separate culture models. Additionally, the effect of estradiol on bone cells will be analyzed using techniques such as , microscopy, RT-PCR and bone formation assays.

Educational programmes: Biology and Medical Lab (BML).

Interested? Please send your motivation letter and CV before the 8th of December 2024 to Petra Juffer (p.juffer@saxion.nl)

Local preparation of high-quality, personalised nucleic acid nanomedicines.

Project duration: 01-10-2022 - 30-09-2028

Start Internship: Spring 24/25 (February 2025 – July 2025)

Orphan diseases are a condition that affects not more than 1 person per 2000 in the European population. There are between 5 000 and 8 000 rare diseases, accounting for 3.5% - 5.9% of the worldwide population. Orphan diseases have significant impact as they are often chronic, progressive and life-threatening. The majority of rare diseases influence life expectancy and lead to physical, emotional and psychosocial limitations with a wide range of disabilities when left untreated. Unfortunately, there is a lack of effective personalized treatment options for many patients with rare diseases, which can be explained by challenging R&D combined with market failure. Developing medicines intended for small numbers of patients has little commercial relevance under normal market conditions.

The majority (72%) of orphan diseases is genetic and the cause can be relatively easily addressed by compensating for the defective gene. Administering mRNA for the defective of missing protein is an effective treatment for many rare diseases with a metabolic origin. This mRNA needs to be packaged within lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) to protect the mRNA and to target the mRNA to the right organ, mainly the liver. 

NANOSPRESSO-NL aims to research, develop and implement a technology for decentralized and small-scale production of high quality and affordable nucleic acid nanomedicines for the treatment of orphan diseases. The research group Applied Nanotechnology focuses on designing and fabricating a microfluidic chip and cartridge to generate LNPs which serve as the nanomedicine to treat rare diseases. Moreover, the generated LNPs will be characterized for their morphology and performance.

As an intern you will focus on the design and fabrication of microfluidic chips to generate monodisperse LNPs with a size < 100 nm. Different key parameters will be tested (channel dimension, flow rate, lipid and mRNA concentration) to analyse how they effect the morphology of LNPs. Moreover, experiments will be performed to determine the amount of encapsulated mRNA and the transfection efficacy within cells.

Educational programmess: Biology and Medical Laboratory Research (BML) and Chemistry (CH).

Interested? Please send your motivation letter and CV before the 8th of December 2024 to Floor Wolbers (f.wolbers@saxion.nl).

Selection and testing of different antibodies for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to capture bacteria, such as Staphylococcus Aureus.

START: February 2025
END: July 2025

Infectious diseases are illnesses caused by pathogens that can get into the body and therefore cause existential threats. The COVID pandemic has demonstrated how disruptive even mild pathogens can be for society, and the prevalence of antimicrobial resistance is increasing at alarming rates. In conjunction with this, sepsis (i.e., systemic response to infection) is responsible for 1 in 5 deaths worldwide and this percentage is rising. Without breakthrough pharmaceutical solutions, the future depends on finding innovative approaches to manage infectious agents effectively.

A promising contributor to the solution of this very complex issue is microbiological diagnostics. Currently, information on whether to quarantine a patient is usually available too late. Standard culture-based diagnostic tests, usually performed in centralized labs, take three to five days from sampling to results, delaying timely and precise treatments. However, fast and accurate pathogen detection could significantly reduce infection spread and save lives.

Over the past five decades, microbiological diagnostics in clinical practice have evolved minimally. Conversely, emerging technologies are enabling radical new possibilities. Innovation in  nanotechnology, microfluidic integration and surface chemistry have enabled the revolutionary ORCHIDD technology, allowing for the first time to simply count viruses and bacteria, one by one.

For diagnostics involving bacteria, the state of the art is culturing samples on culture plates, optionally in an antibiogram format to determine drug resistivity. This process takes three to five days—sometimes longer—and most patients require immediate intervention. Consequently, physicians often rely on empirical therapy, typically involving broad-spectrum antibiotics based on limited information, which drives antimicrobial resistance and is therefore not a sustainable way of working.

Consequently, there is an urgent and crucial need for point-of-care (PoC) diagnostic tools which have more sensitivity & reliability, higher throughput, and lower cost.

Therefore, the student will select and test different antibodies for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to capture bacteria, such as Staphylococcus Aureus. If the right antibody is selected, the student can functionalise the chip and test the selected antibody on the ORCHIDD platform.

Educational programmes: Biology and Medical Lab (BML)

Interested? Please send your motivation letter and CV before the 8^th of December 2024 to Martin Bennink (m.bennink@saxion.nl) and Kim Roekevisch (k.roekevisch.01@saxion.nl).

Design and realization of an automatic classification system for PCB recycling.

START: 03-02-2025
END: 04-07-2025

In this bachelor thesis project, the student will design and construct a demonstrator system that addresses a significant challenge in the recycling and reuse of printed circuit boards (PCBs). The project focuses on the development of an automated system capable of detecting, and classifying PCBs based on their recyclability and reuse potential. This system will contribute to the broader goal of promoting sustainability and circular economy practices by improving the efficiency and accuracy of PCB recycling processes.

The demonstrator will incorporate an AI-based classification system to identify and categorize PCBs. While the AI component plays a crucial role, the primary focus of the project lies in the design and implementation of the mechanical and mechatronic systems. This includes tasks such as developing and integrating machine vision components for image capture and processing, selecting and configuring sensors and actuators, and designing the necessary mechanical structures for identifying PCBs efficiently.

Throughout the project, the student will be involved in various aspects of system development. These include designing the architecture of the demonstrator, programming the machine vision and control systems, and selecting appropriate components to ensure reliable and precise operation. The project will also require the student to address challenges related to system integration and testing, ensuring that the final demonstrator meets both functional and performance requirements.

By the end of the project, the student is expected to deliver an operational demonstrator capable of detecting and classifying PCBs with a high degree of accuracy. This system will serve as a proof of concept, showcasing how innovative mechatronic solutions can be applied to real-world challenges in sustainability. The results of this project could provide valuable insights and inspiration for the development of more advanced recycling technologies in the future.

Educational Programmes

• Mechanical Engineering (WTB),
• Mechatronics (MT),
• Electrical Engineering (ET)

Interested? Please send your motivation letter and CV before the 8th of Dec 2024 to Roy de Kinkelder (r.dekinkelder@saxion.nl).