Principal Researcher in the area of biosensing in dermatology

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

The Division of Dermatology and Venereology is one of ten divisions at the Department of Medicine, Solna, Karolinska Institutet. The division comprises several research groups in different medical fields, all working on clinical and translational questions in dermatology. 

Description of the subject area

The subject area encompasses biosensing with applications in dermatology, with a particular focus on transdermal and epidermal sensing. This includes the development and characterization of biosensors, such as wearable and microneedle-based platforms, for the detection of biomarkers in the skin and for the diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of skin diseases. The area is interdisciplinary, combining medical engineering, bioelectronics, and dermatology to enable translational research and clinical application. Research within the subject area aims to improve the understanding of the pathophysiology of skin diseases through advanced sensing, as well as to develop new tools for personalized treatment and disease monitoring. The integration of biosensors with clinical data and biobank information is central to validating the clinical utility of the sensors and to promoting a precision medicine approach in dermatology.

Your mission

The position is intended to further strengthen and expand our leading research in biosensing and dermatology. You will lead translational dermatology and conduct independent research on transdermal and epidermal biosensing in dermatology, with particular focus on the development and clinical application of biosensors for the diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of skin diseases. The role also includes participation in the research group’s other projects. Supervision of postdocs, doctoral students, and master’s students is included, as is teaching.

Eligibility requirements

For employment as Principal Researcher at Karolinska Institutet, the eligibility requirements stated in the Guidelines for non-teaching positions at Karolinska Institutet are applied in relation to the established profile of employment.

To be eligible for employment as a Principal Researcher, in addition to holding a Degree of Doctor, PhD, or having a foreign degree deemed equivalent to a Swedish doctoral degree, the applicant must have demonstrated research skills. The applicant must also be a research leader and have established their own line of research. The applicant should furthermore have shown documented, high-quality scientific production, particularly in the last six years and have the potential to resolutely drive their research forward as well as be recognised nationally and internationally. The applicant should also have obtained robust, long-term and preferably external funding and have the potential to obtain further external funding.  The applicant should have shown teaching and supervision experience and demonstrated good leadership qualities.

Eligibility requirements for the position include:

• doctoral degree in a relevant discipline such as bioelectronics, biomedical engineering, medical engineering, or a related field
• documented scientific production as first and last author in biosensing, epidermal sensing, or related areas with application in dermatology; the applicant must have published several original works, which must be based on research conducted after doctoral studies without any of the doctoral supervisors as co-authors. A significant proportion of these must be as last author
• very good technical competence in designing, developing, and characterizing biosensors and integrating these into wearable or microneedle-based platforms for transdermal and epidermal sensing
• demonstrated ability to secure substantial external funding for their own research
• very good knowledge of the English language in writing and speech

Assessment criteria

It is particularly meritorious that the applicant has shown

• extensive experience in academic research in biosensing and dermatology, with a focus on the development of transdermal and epidermal biosensors for diagnostics, monitoring, and treatment of skin diseases, as well as field-relevant applied statistics and data analysis
• scientific independence in biosensing and translational dermatology, demonstrated through first and last authorship of original works of high quality and other scientific publications,
• major research grants obtained in regional and national competition
• research responsibility as main supervisor for doctoral students and postdocs
• development of an independent research profile in biosensing and dermatology, with leadership of research projects in transdermal and epidermal sensing
• extensive experience in research on modern biosensor platforms, such as microneedle-based systems, wearable sensors, and 3D in vitro models for skin diseases
• national and international research collaborations
• international experience as a postdoc
• teaching in medical sensors and medical engineering
• competitive plan for future research based on current science in biosensing and dermatology

It is meritorious that the applicant has shown

• documented strong ability to communicate scientific findings
• experience of revieing and evaluating others' scientific work
• international recognition, demonstrated through, for example, authorship of editorials and service as an invited speaker at scientific meetings

The assessment criteria above are a list of the types of skills that form the basis for the overall assessment of the applicants. Since the position involves close collaboration with researchers both within the research group and with external collaborators, great emphasis is placed on personal qualities such as very good collaborative skills. 

After an overall assessment of the expertise and merits of the applicants in relation to the subject area, Karolinska Institutet will determine which of them has the best potential to contribute to a positive development of the activities at KI.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Here, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement.

Location

The position is located within the Department of Medicine, Solna. The department consists of ten divisions and each division consists of several research groups. The position is based within Ning Xu Landén´s research group. The research group conducts research in translational dermatology.

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Application

We prefer that Your application is written in English, but You can also apply in Swedish. An application must contain the following documents: PhD certificate, resumé, qualifications and description of planned research, presented in accordance with Karolinska Institutet's qualifications portfolio.

The applications will be reviewed by external reviewers.

KI applies individual and differentiated salary setting in accordance with our collective agreements RALS and RALS-T.

The application must be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.

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