Postdoctoral Scholar Safety Pharmacology

At Johnson & Johnson, we believe health is everything.

Our strength in healthcare innovation empowers us to build a world where complex diseases are prevented, treated, and cured, where treatments are smarter and less invasive, and solutions are personal. Through our expertise in Innovative Medicine and MedTech, we are uniquely positioned to innovate across the full spectrum of healthcare solutions today to deliver the breakthroughs of tomorrow, and profoundly impact health for humanity. Learn more at https://www.jnj.com

Job Function:
Career Programs

Job Sub Function:
Post Doc – Drug Discovery & Pre-Clinical/Clinical Development

Job Category:
Career Program

All Job Posting Locations:
Beerse, Antwerp, Belgium

Job Description:

We are seeking a highly skilled and motivated postdoctoral scientist, with a fixed term of 2 years, o join the team of Global Safety Pharmacology located in Beerse, Belgium.

The postdoctoral scientist will focus on de-risking drug-induced peripheral neuropathies (DIPNs) to support our drug discovery and development programs.

The successful candidate will apply their expertise in neuroscience to establish translatable human in vitro models of peripheral neuropathies with robust read-outs for functional and molecular biomarkers of DIPNs and perform intricate data analyses.

Responsibilities include experiments such as 2D co-culture of hiPSC-derived sensorimotor neurons and Schwann cells, multi-electrode array recordings, and various gene and protein expression analyses.

Collaboration with cross-functional teams and a commitment to ethical research practices aligned with the 3Rs principles will be essential.

Proficiency in English and strong communication skills will facilitate effective collaboration and dissemination of findings through scientific writing and presentations.

Major Duties & Responsibilities


* Establishing in vitro platforms of drug-induced peripheral neuropathies (DIPNs) using co-culture models of hiPSC-derived peripheral neurons and human Schwann cells


* Identification, testing and validation of human-relevant biomarkers for DIPNs in the in-vitro platforms


* Define strategies whilst collaborating with cross-functional teams and establish in-vitro screening tools to assess DIPN liabilities


* Data analysis and reporting


* Development, training, conferences and writing scientific papers for publication in relevant journals

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:


* PhD in Neuroscience, Physiology, Cell Biology, or a relevant field focused on CNS and PNS safety pharmacology/toxicity


* In-depth knowledge and experience in the mechanisms of peripheral neuropathies (up to the molecular level), electrophysiology, and hiPSCs, with a proven track record


* Hands-on experience in the experimental techniques mentioned below



* hiPSC-derived sensory or motor neurons co-cultured with human Schwann cells (or other human glial cells) on microfluidic platform...