Development of microfluidic tools for Point-Of-Care pregnancy monitoring

Project background

The flow of circulating foetal nucleic acids (cfNA) in maternal circulation provides a unique opportunity towards the development of techniques for Non Invasive Prenatal Diagnosis (NIPD) as an alternative to invasive techniques such as amniocentesis. However, the requirement of specialist and costly equipment limit the broad implementation of existing techniques. Microfluidics, the precise manipulation of fluid at the microscale, is an engineering technique that allows the miniaturization of laboratory tools into integrated and portable bench-top devices. By miniaturizing and integrating the tools permitting NIPD from maternal blood sample, results will be delivered faster and at a cheaper cost than existing solutions, allowing the NHS to offer these tests more broadly.


Project goals

We wish to advance critical areas of research in miniaturized non-invasive prenatal diagnosis by developing and integrating a series of novel cost-effective, microfluidic modules for the study of prenatal diagnosis of foetal sex and rhesus D status. Specifically, the main objectives of the studentship will be:
(i) The development of on-chip, passive, sample preparation units that extract and enrich the plasma in cfNA in view of a direct amplification and/or detection.
(ii) The development of novel amplification and detection solutions compatible with existing blood plasma separation modules.
(iii) The integration of all these components to create a lab-on-chip experimental workbench for the separation and analysis of cfNA
(iv) The test, characterization and benchmarking of the developed modules and integrated system using gold standard protocols and their validation in clinical trials.

The student will have the opportunity to join an experienced multidisciplinary team and will therefore gain training in microengineering, microfluidics, and associated biological manipulation.

The research will be carried out under the supervision of Dr Maïwenn Kersaudy-Kerhoas, and a second supervisor (TBA), in collaboration with front-line industrials and clinicians in UK. The student will also have the opportunity to participate to other projects related to the integration of Microsystems for Life Science applications.


Institution

Heriot-Watt University is an ideal and stimulating place to pursue interdisciplinary and applied research in the field of Engineering for Life Sciences. Heriot-Watt has a central place in several research pooling partnerships with other Scottish Universities, including the Edinburgh Research Partnership (ERP) and the Scottish Universities in Physics Alliance (SUPA).
Heriot-Watt has a strong track record in terms of manufacturing and packaging research with excellent facilities. The different Microsystems and Microfluidics groups at Heriot-Watt have equipped themselves with rapid prototyping capabilities, including easily accessible rapid laser-machining, rapid CNC machining and laminating which will allow the student to rapidly test microfluidic structures, as well as providing all the tools for the assembly of prototypes, thus enabling rapid progress.
The position is hosted at the newly created Institute of Biological Chemistry, Biophysics and Bioengineering (IB3). IB3 focuses on applying advances in the chemical, physical, and engineering sciences to enable and enhance life science research. Through its membership composed of scientists, biologists and engineers, IB3 has the unique advantage of providing expertise both in engineering and physical sciences as well as in biology in particular cell and molecular biology.

Skills/Experience

For this exciting multi-disciplinary project, we are looking for an energetic, self-motivated candidate, from an engineering background and looking to develop skills and experience in Life Science applications or vice-versa.

Minimum criteria
- Educated to MSc degree level, in an engineering or life sciences discipline
- Ability to understand and analyse engineering problems
- Work as part of a multidisciplinary team
- Demonstrate prior experience in one of the following areas: molecular biology, microfluidics, microengineering

Desirable criteria
- Knowledge of standard biological protocols such as PCR and gel electrophoresis
- Knowledge of CAD (eg:AutoCAD), and/or computational fluid dynamics modelling (eg: COMSOL)
- Knowledge of microfluidic microfabrication (eg: soft lithography)
- Knowledge of microfluidic rapid prototyping (Any or all of these: sandblasting, laser cutting/engraving, CNC machining)
- Knowledge of electronics design
- Knowledge of system design software such as Labview



Applications accepted all year round. This position will be filled as soon as possible.
Please send your CV and a cover letter to: Dr Maïwenn Kersaudy-Kerhoas, m dot kersaudy-kerhoas at hw.ac.uk