We are the Indiana Biosciences Research Institute (IBRI). We are a leading translational research institute that advances academic and industry science through collaboration to improve patient health outcomes. Building your career at the IBRI in Indianapolis’ 16 Tech Innovation District means being part of a team of renowned scientists, creative thinkers, and innovative leaders.

Today’s research is being driven by significant advances in our abilities to study complex disease processes and propose new ways to improve patients’ lives. To reflect the evolving nature of life sciences research and encourage synergies through collaboration, we’re enhancing our integrated capabilities, adding depth to how we approach patient-informed translational science and pursuing four foundational areas of scientific focus. These four areas will provide us with the core talent and capability to pursue translational science in this new patient-centric framework:

• Disease, Systems, Pathways – We’re working to better understand diabetes and identify new ways to combat the disease. We’re applying this learning to other diseases that share common systems and pathways.
• Molecular Innovation – We’re developing new capabilities for molecular design and drug discovery to investigate disease processes and pursue new therapeutic approaches.
• Integrated Data Sciences – We’re pursuing advanced data sciences to create novel end-user inspired solutions that address complex analysis, simulation, and prediction across the translational sciences.
• Enabling Technologies – We’re building a rich platform of enabling technologies that give our scientists, partners, and collaborators access to the best tools to solve complex scientific problems.

The IBRI’s vision is to build a world-class organization of researchers, innovators and business professionals that catalyze activities across the Indiana (and beyond) life sciences community. To achieve that vision, we look for curious and collaborative team members who are energized by innovation, guided by integrity, and inspired by diversity of thought.

The Opportunity:

The Indiana Biosciences Research Institute (IBRI) is hiring a highly motivated and skilled Postdoctoral Fellow to join our interdisciplinary team focused on advancing microphysiological systems (MPS) using human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). This project aims to optimize and standardize human iPSC-derived organoid-based MPS platforms to evaluate therapeutic agents using translatable pharmacodynamic markers and to develop a novel AI-guided, closed-loop perfusion system for modeling pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics (PK/PD). This is a unique opportunity to work in a fast-paced scientific environment with both academic and industry colleagues.

Responsibilities:

MPS Optimization and Therapeutic Testing

• Generate and culture human iPSC-derived organoids (e.g., brain organoid, blood-brain barrier) for evaluation in microfluidic perfusion systems.
• Optimize MPS models for physiological relevance, reproducibility, and scalability.
• Evaluate therapeutic agents in MPS using molecular, biochemical, and imaging-based readouts.

Standardization of Drug Evaluation Practices

• Establish and document best practices for rigorous, reproducible testing of drugs in MPS.
• Develop standard operating procedures (SOPs) for drug administration, sampling, and longitudinal analysis.
• Contribute to multi-lab harmonization efforts for MPS quality control and inter-lab reproducibility.

AI-Guided PK/PD Modeling

• Collaborate with engineers and data scientists to design and validate a closed-loop perfusion system mimicking in vivo PK/PD behavior.
• Integrate AI-based feedback mechanisms to optimize dosing, sampling schedules, and biomarker analysis.
• Apply computational modeling to predict drug distribution and response dynamics across the MPS.

Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in stem cell biology, biomedical engineering, pharmacology, or a related field.
• Proven expertise in multiple cell culture techniques including hands-on experience with human iPSC culture and differentiation.
• Prior work with organoids, organ-on-chip platforms, or microfluidic devices.
• Strong background in pharmacology, drug testing, or PK/PD modeling.
• Excellent communication, organizational, and collaborative skills.
• Strong peer-reviewed publication track record.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working with iPSC derived microglia, neuron, astrocyte or immune cells is highly desirable
• In vitro pharmacology expertise and proficiency in standard laboratory assays such as qPCR, western blot, and cell or tissue imaging is preferred.
• Familiarity with AI/ML applications in biology or closed-loop experimental systems is a plus.
• Immunostaining, imaging, flow cytometry and high-content analysis with an emphasis on organoids.
• Practical transcriptomic/proteomic analysis for biomarker discovery.
• Experience with perfusion bioreactors or microfluidic systems.
• Experience with grant writing is valuable.

Compensation:

Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits offered commensurate with experience.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

The IBRI provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants and does not discriminate based on age, race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status.